Anxiety & Panic
WHAT IS ANXIETY?
Anxiety is a an extremely common mental health condition that many people live with. Although it is common, it can be very painful and sometimes even debilitating to live with. People find different ways to cope with anxiety which we will talk about here. Anxiety can show up in many ways such as generalized anxiety, irrational fears, panic attacks, and phobias.
SYMPTOMS OF ANXIETY
Anxiety is a mental and physical reaction to a perceived threat. There are various ways that anxiety can show up for people, such as "butterflies" in the stomach, sweating, an increased heart rate, rapid breathing, and racing thoughts. A more extreme experience of these symptoms can result in a panic attack. That's why it's good to recognise the symptoms of anxiety and address them either through therapy or coping mechanisms to prevent it from escalating into a panic attack. Anxiety can also show up as avoidance of something or someone.
These symptoms all have something in common - the body is in a state of flight. Anxiety happens when the mind mistakes a situation as a physical threat and causes a reaction that is actually designed to physically protect us. This is rarely required in our modern world, so finding a way to get the whole mind to understand that there is not an actual threat, is the solution.
HOW TO TREAT ANXIETY?
Many people use self-help mechanisms to help relieve their anxiety, like books, holistic therapies like breathwork, yoga, sound therapy, experts on social media, and getting support from friends and family. Others may turn to medication to support their symptoms, particularly if anxiety is disrupting their life significantly and preventing them from fully experiencing life.
However, understanding how anxiety has been affecting you individually can be valuable in finding a way out of it. This can be done with the help of a professional through counselling. Talk therapy can be useful in really understanding your anxiety, but it can also be useful in adopting an individualized plan to cope with it. There are also alternative methods that can relieve anxiety such as Rapid Resolution Therapy or other brain-based methods of causing a change.
Book a session with one of our therapists to get some relief from anxiety today.