Just a quick note to wish you a very Happy New Year. As we think back on the last year we can often tend to focus on what went wrong rather than what went right. There are some of you who might feel it was not as anxiety free as you wished it could have been. If that is the case with you I want you to take solace in the fact that the road to recovery almost always has setbacks along the way. Recovering from panic attacks or GAD is never linear like getting over a cold. You take
Read more
Most people who experience panic and anxiety attacks regularly have forgotten how to breathe correctly. If you think about it, consider how you breathe when you’re tense or anxious about something. If you’re like most people, your breathing becomes really shallow and you may even “sink” into your body, rounding your shoulders and slouching slightly. This often sets you up for feelings of fatigue as you breathing is too shallow. Making sure fresh oxygen is circulating throughout your body helps to keep you alert and clear headed. When you are feeling anxious, you might slow down your breathing and thereby
Read more
The sensations of a panic attack can appear at random times throughout the day, but in some people, the effects are more persistent over an entire day. It’s important to remember that the physical manifestations of a panic attack are linked to automatic nervous system functions. When either of these systems is activated, you will feel a number of different sensations throughout the body. Adrenaline is released and the body goes into the famous state of ‘flight or flight’ a term which coined by Dr. Walter Canon with his original formulation of human threat response. This cycle of sensations and
Read more
The things that challenge us deeply, also offer us great opportunity. When it comes to anxiety, ask yourself what gift this experience brings to you. There is a hidden gift there and here is how you might discover it… Anxiety is a crash course in self development. You might not remember volunteering for it but nevertheless you are here. This is intense learning for the brave. You may not think of it as learning but you are already developing by the very fact that you are seeking answers. Everyday anxiety is teaching you how to be a bigger person. Anxiety
Read more
Seeing as it is Thanksgiving in the US, I think this post is appropriate: Gratitude Lifts The Weight of Anxiety Let me tell you why the art of gratitude is such a great tool for ending anxious thoughts. A lot of people write telling me how their anxiety makes them feel very cut off or removed from the world around them. This sensation can be distressing as people fear that they will never be able to feel normal again. This feeling is common and in my experience is mainly fueled by a cycle of anxious thinking. A person with a
Read more
The holiday season can be one of the most stressful times of the year. Last minute shopping, in-laws, and everyone on their best behavior…or not. People with anxiety often count down the days to the merry season with mixed feelings. If you suffer from panic attacks regularly, you are probably well aware of the physical manifestations that you will probably experience as the holidays draw near. The body’s goal of the fight or flight response is to make you aware of danger, but if you’re having a panic attack, this response can be triggered by a variety of stimuli. Holiday
Read more
When your anxiety level is high any anxious thought you might have takes on a different intensity. For example a bizarre thought that would normally never cause you any concern starts to feel uncomfortable and leads to further anxious thoughts. The reason this happens is because your anxiety score is high and you are not feeling at ease with yourself. Compare that to when you are feeling relaxed and happy. In that situation anxious thoughts hardly make an impression and if they do, you have enough inner calm to dismiss them and move on without reacting in fear. Have you
Read more
People experience their first panic attack in different ways. For some it happened at home or others it was while they were in a stressful situation. I have created a cartoon video below for you to watch that describes a typical first panic attack. This animation includes elements that are common to most peoples first panic attack. Does this ring a bell with you? You can tell your story by leaving a comment below.
Read more
Trembling Hands, Blushing, Nervous Sweating… Social interaction can cause many people to experience bodily reactions that make them feel highly uncomfortable around others. Common problems are blushing in public, sweating, and trembling hands. None of these are harmful in any way, but if people become overly conscious of these symptoms, it can lead to shying away from social contact, sometimes to the point of leaving their jobs. I’ll describe part of the approach I teach people to help them end this problem. I’ll use the example of a trembling hand, but the approach is the same for both blushing and
Read more
Today I want to look at something so simple and yet equally powerful in alleviating the symptoms of general anxiety. This tip also helps reduce the frequency and strength of panic attacks. Fresh Drinking Water There is no quicker way to significantly reduce general anxiety than adopting good eating and drinking habits. One of the most easily implemented and effective additions to your diet is fresh water. Water is a great quencher of thirst but more importantly here –a great quencher of anxiety. Nearly every function of the body is monitored and pegged to the efficient flow of water through
Read more
