Anxiety can vary in intensity from mild nervousness to intense feelings of fear and panic.
It is often described as feeling like you have no control over your brain or thoughts.
Some people say they sometimes feel helpless, ashamed, weak and isolated.
They may even want to withdraw from life, as they don’t want people to see them like this.
It’s not as easy as turning it off and thinking positive thoughts!
The smallest tasks, that most people take for granted, can seem like insurmountable obstacles to people with anxiety.
Anxiety can be exhausting, frustrating, illogical and unpredictable.
Sufferers of anxiety are often terrified of what terrible things could happen in just one day.
They can become paralysed in that fear, unable to function and constantly worry about having a panic attack, which then brings on the panic attack.
People with anxiety are normal people who might work with you or sit next to you on the bus, and you would never know that they are suffering.
On the surface all may appear calm however under the surface they are furiously treading water!
They become very good at hiding what is going on from everyone.
There are many types and causes of anxiety however the general emotion behind all of it is FEAR.
Anxiety is a natural response to a real or perceived danger or threat.
Under normal circumstances, we need fear/anxiety to prompt us to protect ourselves from danger.
It sends our bodies into the fight, flight or freeze response, so you can prepare for action to either run or fight or perhaps freeze so as not to be seen.
In other words, the way the body responds to danger is one of the causes of anxiety symptoms, such as sweating, racing heart, and shortness of breath and that can be quite frightening.
We have all experienced this “normal” feeling at some stage in our lives, however it generally goes away when the danger passes, and the physical symptoms disappear.
Sufferers of anxiety are in this state constantly and the body forgets to relax when danger passes. Their minds seem to be in a state of overdrive, constantly worrying about everything and everybody.
The body experiences all the physical symptoms of being unable to breathe, sweating, heart palpitations, feeling sick in the stomach, fatigue, tightness in the chest, like your head is going to explode and the list goes on.
Types of anxiety include: -
· Generalised Anxiety
· Social Anxiety
· Post Traumatic Stress Disorder
· Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
· Phobias
Treatments may include: -
· Medical treatment normally from your General Practitioner
· Psychological / Counselling
· Hypnotherapy
· Complementary and Lifestyle
Psychotherapy can help you to understand what is triggering the anxiety and to learn new adaptive coping strategies.
The effect of this relearning helps to reprogram the nervous system and teach the brain to rewire the circuits. This is known as neuroplasticity and there is much research now to support its validity.
Counselling and hypnotherapy can also help with the following: -
· Learn relaxation and mindfulness techniques
· Explore options and achieve life goals
· Boost self-confidence and self-belief
· Understand your belief systems, core values and strengths
· Learn new ways to manage your thoughts and behavioural patterns
References
Beyond Blue (2016) Anxiety, Beyond Blue, Retrieved on 23 June 2016 from https://www.beyondblue.org.au
In 2018 the APS completed the fourth edition of the Evidence-based psychological interventions in the treatment of mental disorders: A review of the literature.
Valentine KE, Milling LS, Clark LJ, Moriarty CL. THE EFFICACY OF HYPNOSIS AS A TREATMENT FOR ANXIETY: A META-ANALYSIS. Int J Clin Exp Hypn. 2019 Jul-Sep;67(3):336-363. doi: 10.1080/00207144.2019.1613863. PMID: 31251710.
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