Blaming

Panic Disorder sufferers are often under the impression that there is some influence behind their disorder and this leads them to believe that it is out of their control.

They start feeling hopeless and then start blaming this condition on others. They start blaming their marriage, their job, and sometimes even their kids. The act of blaming is futile and only leads to weakening the confidence and focus, both of which are imperative to completely cure their condition. .

So, if you really want to cure your Panic Attacks, the first step to recovery is to stop blaming and realize that blaming is not going to stop this. Instead of focusing on the cause, concentrate on the cure. There is no external influence and there is no one to blame. The only way to stop it is to take control of your life and become the master of your own destiny.

Negative Words

Negative words are sometimes used by people to convince themselves that they are incapable of taking control of their mind and body. Words like “I tried but…” or “I can’t do this” or “It’s too hard”.

When you use words like these, you are stopping the possibilities that are open to you to completely cure panic attacks.

Words like “can’t” and “try” are derogative because they are preparing your brain for failure. They make you start thinking about failure before you even attempt to succeed.

To cure your anxiety disorder, you will need focus and determination that no amount of negative thought can harm.  You need to focus on the final outcome of your journey to recovery. And when you do so, then you will start using words like “When I have….” and “Once I reach there….”

Your Protective Side

There will always be a protective side of your own self that will try to stop you from taking action. The protective side of you will want you to stay in your comfort zone. This protective side of you will always say “what if you fail”.

But, you need to understand that this protective side is just a part of you, and is trying to help you. And the only way to really stop this protective side from discouraging you is t help this protective side understand that you are doing this for your own good.

Explain yourself about the life that you can live once you are free of Panic Attacks. Explain this protective side that the life you are living right now, in the dark caves of fear and intimidation, is not what you want in life. Explain yourself that this comfort zone is like a cage that is holding you back, and to be free you need to pry open the lock of protectiveness.

These three small but deadly threats can ruin all your efforts in a matter of seconds. The best way to deal with them is to recognize them as soon as possible and remind yourself that this is a threat to your recovery and might ruin everything you’ve achieved. Once you recognize the threat, you will automatically take action to stop it.

Everyone worries. Anxiety is a common part of life and everyone experiences some anxiety almost everyday. But when anxiety and worry becomes so severe that it is all you ever feel, then there is a possibility that you are suffering from Generalized Anxiety Disorder.

Generalized Anxiety Disorder is a condition which is characterized by excessive and continuous worry or anxiety even though there is no apparent and rational reason for worrying. Generalized Anxiety Disorder sufferers find it very hard to just go about their daily life because every moment and every single event makes them feel anxious. Most of the times, GAD sufferers know that their worry is irrational and excessive, but they can’t help it.

A few symptoms of GAD are

• Being easily fatigued
• Restlessness or feeling keyed up or on edge
• Irritability
• Difficulty concentrating or mind going blank
• Sleep disturbance (difficulty falling or staying asleep, or restless unsatisfying sleep)
• Muscle tension

GAD sufferers feel overly anxious even if they realize that the situation doesn’t require so much anxiety. In addition, even if there is no apparent reason for worrying, they still feel uneasy and anxious. It might be the general worry for the well being of themselves or their loved ones or they may have a feeling that something bad is going to happen.

It should be noted that GAD sufferers are not worrying about having a panic attack (Panic Disorder), social situation (Social Anxiety).  They are also not being obsessed with small things (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder). General Anxiety Disorder is associated with general worrying and not worrying about a specific situation. They are usually anxious about anything and everything.

One of the biggest misconceptions about people suffering from panic attacks is that they lack courage. For a person who has never suffered from a panic attack or General Anxiety, it becomes hard to understand why someone would be afraid to go to the super market or drive a car. And they often conclude that the panic attack sufferer lacks courage to face these situations.

They cannot be further from the truth. In reality, panic attacks and General Anxiety have absolutely nothing to do with the personal bravery level of the sufferer. Panic attack sufferer aren’t really afraid of the outside world, it is their internal crisis that they are afraid of. It is easy to go about your day when you are feeling safe inside. But when you feel like there is an internal time bomb ticking inside you, which can explode any moment in the form of a panic attack, it becomes very difficult to go about your day without hesitation.

Barry Joe McDonagh from the Panic Away explains that he has worked with several panic attack sufferers who came from the bravest professions in the world. Policemen, Firemen, Soldiers; who suffer from panic attacks find it harder to deal with panic attacks than go into building on fire or fighting in the battle field.

The reason is simple, running into a burning building and saving someone is easier because they know how to handle the situation. But when a person suffers from a panic attack, they feel helpless and powerless. It feels like some outer influence has taken over there body and they do not have control over anything.

Panic attack sufferers are in a way the one of the bravest people in the world. They deal with their internal crisis and fear every day. That, in my opinion, is one of the bravest things.

If you are suffering from panic attacks, know this; the bravery does not go unrewarded. You are becoming a stronger person every day. Sure there will be times when you will feel like you should just give up. There will be setbacks. But if you persevere, you will completely cure panic attacks and will come out a stronger person than ever before. You will develop an inner strength that someone who hasn’t suffered from this condition can never develop.

Panic Disorder, simply put, is the fear of panic attacks. A person suffering from a panic disorder is afraid of having another panic attack. They are afraid that the next panic attack will be the ultimate panic attack and will end things for them. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy is a popular psychotherapy treatment method for panic disorder along with other type of anxiety disorders.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy requires the panic disorder sufferer to recognize and understand his thought patterns and realize that the fear of panic attacks is irrational. Panic Disorder sufferers are usually under the false impression that a panic attack will cause them physical harm and they have a hard time believing that this is a harmless condition. On the contrary, most of them are so terrified of the panic attacks that they usually start avoiding places and social conditions which they believe might lead to a panic attack (agoraphobia).

CBT for Panic Disorder consists of the following parts -

1. Psycho-education – In this part, the therapist explains the patient the normal reaction of the body under panic and makes them understand why panic attack is harmless. The firs step of CBT is also the most important step because unless the sufferer understands that panic attacks are harmless, they won’t be able to use any of the techniques taught and will still be afraid of panic attacks. (See The FREE report Understanding Panic Attacks)

2. Breathing and Relaxation Techniques – The therapists then teaches a few breathing and relaxation techniques that the sufferer can use in case they feel they are having a panic attacks.

3. Cognitive Restructuring – This part essentially deals with restructuring the thought patterns that induces the fear of panic attacks in the sufferer. Understanding what thoughts lead to the vicious cycle of fear which inevitably leads to panic attacks and stopping the anxious thoughts before they take total control over your mind.

4. Exposure for Agoraphobia – Panic Disorder with Agoraphobia sufferers will also go under exposure therapy which makes the sufferer face the environment and situations that they try to avoid. Sometimes it is done under controlled environment where they will be gradually made to face their fears.

CBT had shown positive results in treating Panic Disorder. It is considered a highly reputed therapy and thousands of sufferers have shown remarkable improvements after attending CBT sessions. The only drawback to CBT is that it is a time sensitive session and has only 2-3 sessions per week.

Anxiety disorder sufferers constantly have a fearful and anxious thought that seems impossible to get out of their mind. The more they try to get rid of the thought, the more intense it becomes.

The fear can be of anything like

• The well being of a loved one
• Fear of a panic attack
• Losing control
• Never getting rid of the severe anxiety disorder

Whatever the fear may be, the pattern of this anxious thought is generally the same. It intensifies as you think more about it. And every time it comes back with more intense anxious shock-waves.

Let us examine how these anxious develop and linger even though you try very hard not to think about them.

You are doing your own thing, when suddenly an anxious thought comes to your mind.

The thought flashes for a moment in your mind and you find yourself contemplating the thought. Your body then reacts to the thought and sends a fearful shock wave throughout your body’s nervous system. You feel this wave more in your stomach than anywhere else. This is because of the large amount of nerve endings that are present in the stomach.

After your body reacts to the fearful thought, it becomes more prevalent and now it is even harder to not think about it. The fearful thought becomes more intense and sends more shock-waves through your body.

This is typically how an anxious thought take control of your mind.

These fearful thoughts are very common and every one in this world gets them. The difference between a normal person and anxiety disorder sufferer is that a normal person does not give so much importance to these thoughts. A normal person just takes them for what they are, i.e. anxious thoughts that are very common.

But an anxiety disorder sufferer is at a disadvantage over here because their anxiety baseline is at a lower level than a normal person. This basically means that their body and mind reacts to anxious thoughts much easier than a normal person’s mind would.

Now, if you approach the fearful thought in the beginning in a different manner then it might be possible decrease the intensity of the anxiety to a great level.

Instead of trying to get rid of the thought, all you have to do is accept it. If you try not to think about something, then the only thing you will be thinking about is that something.

Instead of running away from the thoughts, just stop and acknowledge them.

As soon as you get a fearful thought in your mind, take a different approach than you normally would. Try this approach for instance

“These are just normal fearful thoughts that everyone encounters. I can obsess over them and be miserable. But, this time I will try something different. I will just acknowledge them, and try best not to react. This is a fear of …….. I will just label it and continue doing whatever I was doing.”

That’s one of the best ways to deal with anxious thoughts.

Acknowledge them

Label Them

Let it pass along

Don’t try to get rid of it. Don’t try not to think about it. The harder you try, the worse it will get.

You can imagine it like a cloud passing over your head. It will go away by itself in short while.

And then you can continue doing whatever you were doing.

You can find your own way to deal with these thoughts. Just remember that you should not try to suppress them. Fearful thoughts are normal and there is no way you can stop having them. But you can change your attitude towards these thoughts and in doing so, you become free of the fear.

Once you are comfortable with dealing with these thoughts, you can take it a step further and invite these thoughts.

That’s right.  Invite the fearful and anxious thoughts. Call them in.

It might sound like a crazy idea, but this is truly the best way to completely eliminate the fear of fear.

“The only thing we have to fear is fear itself” – Franklin D. Roosevelt

And when you invite the fear, you are sending the message out that you are no longer afraid of the fearful thought. You are taking control.

General Anxiety Disorder is one of the most common Anxiety Disorders in America today. It is characterized by uncontrollable, excessive and usually irrational anxiety in everyday life.

CBT has been found very effective in treating anxiety disorder, especially in the case of GAD. The reason why CBT is so effective is because it targets the main cause of the GAD, i.e. the uncontrollable thoughts.

The thought pattern of GAD sufferers generally follows the same pattern. It starts with something trivial; a normal concern for someone or something and then the worry gets worse and worse until the GAD sufferer blows it out of proportion.

GAD sufferers are known to take a small event or matter, and evaluate and interpret it to death. The “what if thoughts” are the main reason behind this evaluation and interpretation. This is actually quite normal when the sufferer is in a constant of anxiety. The “what if thoughts” and the evaluation and interpretation of each possible outcome to a situation is the normal procedure of the brain when it is in the anxious mode.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy makes the sufferer understand their thought pattern and teaches them how to stop the anxious thought before it develops into a vicious cycle of worries and anxiety. Identifying the thought patterns or problematic thoughts also known as “Cognitive Distortions” is the first step in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. If the person is able to recognize that the thought is actually unreasonable and there is no need to further exaggerate this fear or worry, it will be much easier for them to stop the anxious thought.

The GAD behavior of being constantly anxious becomes a habit for the sufferer. CBT teaches the sufferer relaxation techniques and ways to unlearn the anxious behavior and see things more accurately.  Slowly by practicing the new behavior many GAD sufferers are able to overwrite their previous programming of being anxious at everything and become more relaxed and calm.

Numerous studies and researches have shown that CBT is extremely effective in treating GAD. There are a large number of experiments that have shown that GAD is an effective. One of the well known studies by Cochrane Review confirmed the effectiveness of GAD which was done in 2007. It included 25 studies with over 13,000 participants. The study showed that 46% of GAD sufferers showed a significant improvement in their anxiety symptoms after being treated with CBT. On the other hand, out of those who were treated with medication or some other form of psychotherapy, only 14% showed significant improvement.

Distractions have been used for a long time to take the focus off of unwanted thoughts or physical pain. Doctors use it all the time when the patient has to go through some sort of physical pain. And in the case of General Anxiety, distractions can prove to be a boon in fully eliminating the Anxiety Disorder and treating panic attacks.

If you find yourself constantly anxious and feel like a smog of fear is formed around your entire life, then distractions can help you tremendously in clearing this smog.

By just engaging yourself in activities that require your complete attention, you can take your focus of anxious thoughts and anxiety. All you need to do is find something that you enjoy, have fun doing, or just simply require your attention.

It can be anything like gardening, playing a musical instrument, exercising, painting, cooking, creating bonsai trees or even talking to a friend. The only requirement is that it should capture your whole attention. Don’t leave any room in that mind for anxiety.

It is much easier to put all your attention into an activity that you enjoy doing. That is why it is recommended that you do what you like doing. Spend as much time as you can doing it. And before you know it, it will be weeks before you even think about anxiety.

If you think you have a lot of free time at your disposal, then just find a local voluntary organization and volunteer. You can help the elderly, help keep the environment clean, help children etc. The possibilities are endless. Don’t let the excuse that you have nothing to do come in your way.

The idea of keeping yourself occupied is very powerful and people use it all the time.

If you feel that your anxiety disorder always keeps your head filled with anxious thoughts and fear in a nonstop cycle, then just a simple activity that you enjoy and needs your attention can break this cycle. All it requires from you is starting the activity and everything else will take care of itself.

Scientists are discovering new psychological connections between the diet of a person and their behavior. For example, it was discovered that anorexia patients don’t just throw up the food because of their self esteem but also because the food they eat releases a certain chemical which makes them feel uncomfortable.

Similarly, anxiety disorder sufferers may also experience some of the same connections between the foods they eat and how they feel.

It is highly recommended that you eat a well balanced and healthy diet as it does help greatly in reducing your anxiety levels and makes you feel a lot better.

Anxiety sufferers often resort to eating sugary food in hopes that it will keep them active and prevent them from getting exhausted.  But they should know that sugary food does not help you keep active but in fact, does exactly the opposite. If you eat sugary food your blood sugar levels rise suddenly and then plummet. So after a while, you will start feeling exhausted and tired which may lead to anxiety or even a panic attack.

It is recommended that you eat complex carbohydrates which release the sugar in your blood slowly and steadily through a long period of time. This will keep you active and make sure that your blood sugar level is at a normal and healthy level.

Examples of complex carbohydrate food are whole wheat bread, oatmeal, brown rice, yams etc. Simple carbohydrates which you should avoid are white rice, white bread, sugar etc.

One of the nutrients which are very important for the proper functioning of the body and which also helps immensely in reducing general anxiety is Omega-3 acid. It has been proven that it helps the nervous system work properly and keep the anxiety level low. Japan has a depression rate much less than that of the western world because their diet consists of sea food which is rich in Omega-3 acid.

Therefore, it is highly recommended that you start eating fish, tuna or any other type of sea food you prefer. Some of the vegetarian sources of Omega-3 acids are walnuts and flake seeds. If you don’t have easy access to food rich in Omega-3 acids, then you can take supplements.

Your diet should be a balanced diet that contains all three important nutrients namely carbohydrate, protein and fat. You should eat only healthy fat such fish oil, olive oil, walnuts, almonds etc. Include some rich source of protein such as fish, chicken, lean red meat, whey protein etc. And only eat complex carbohydrates that release the energy slowly as mentioned before.

Apart from the above two nutrients, it is imperative that you get ample vitamins and minerals. Fruits and green vegetables are rich in Vitamins and Minerals and that is why you should always include some green leafy vegetables with your meal.

You can eat fruits as a snack during any time of the day or as a desert after your meal. There are no restrictions with fruit. Eat as much as you like and whatever fruit you like.

It is recommended that you have a proper meal every 2-3 hours which includes all essential nutrients in right proportion. This will keep your body functioning properly and keep your anxiety in check.

During anxiety you may develop some kind of bad association with some type of food that you may have had bad experience with. If you think you are allergic to that food item, then get a doctor check it up for you. If you realize that you don’t have any allergies to the particular food item then you should try and start eating the food again. If the food is healthy, then not only will you will be able to gain it’s healthy benefit, you will also gain the confidence of getting over another obstacle that anxiety laid in front of you.

The exact cause of an anxiety disorder is not known. The functioning of the brain is still not completely understood by the scientists today, even though a lot of research has been done on the subject.

There are two theories regarding the causes of anxiety disorder. One of the theory states that it is chemical imbalance, while the other theory states that it is behavioral condition.

The term “chemical imbalance” is a term wildly associated with brain impairment. Some doctors and psychologists believe that anxiety disorders can be treated by medicines by targeting the neurotransmitters that are involved with the disorder. By directly targeting the neurotransmitters, they can be returned to the normal level.

However, this theory doesn’t explain the effect of situation on the person behavior. If it is a chemical imbalance, then the disorder should be present regardless of the situation around a person. For example, a person suffering from panic disorder might be comfortable travelling in a train. But if the train is stopped and the driver announces that there might be some problem with the train, the sufferer feels trapped starts to panic. But if the driver announces that it was false alarm and everything is back to normal, the sufferer stops panicking and starts feeling calm again.

Similarly, someone who works in the fire department doesn’t hesitate in doing his work which requires skills and bravery, but feels uncomfortable and trapped while at a barber shop.

The behavior changes according to the conditions. This means that these situations are associated with the behavior. In other words, it must be a behavioral condition.

A well known expert in the field of Anxiety r. Claire Weekes described that many anxiety disorders are developed from exhaustion. The exhaustion can be mental, physical or emotional. He explained that a person who is exhausted is more susceptible to anxiety and triggering the fight or flight response.

Mental exhaustion refers to stress, which can be work related or worry. Physical exhaustion can be because of poor diet, substance abuse or some bodily changes like premenopause.

Emotional exhaustion is associated with issues like family, loved once, divorce etc.

When a person is exhausted, they feel jittery and are very vulnerable to any type of anxiety or shock. People become confused about their condition and start developing fear. They start fearing that something is wrong with their minds and or bodies which lead to more bodily response and so they become trapped in the vicious cycle of fear.

Another reason for developing an anxiety disorder can be a terrifying event in the person’s life that leaves an impact on them. It can be any unresolved issue like child abuse, neglect or any other traumatic incident. This type of disorder is known as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. A person suffering from such a disorder usually knows what the traumatic incident that is causing this is. The best way to treat this disorder is therapy where they directly address the issue.

It should be noted that GAD, should not be treated with such therapy where the therapist tries to find an underlying cause for the problem. Unless you know it is PTSD, it is a bad idea to blame yourself or some incident for the severe anxiety. This is because blaming only reinforces the thoughts that there is something wrong with you and to truly recover from GAD or any other type of Anxiety Disorder, you need to believe that there is nothing wrong with you and you can control your mind and body.

Fear of flying is common in an average person. So, if someone suffering from an anxiety disorder experiences flying anxiety, it is completely understandable. Overcoming fear of flying is even harder for an anxiety disorder sufferer.

An anxiety disorder sufferer isn’t really afraid of an aircraft malfunction or some sort of mechanical failure during the flight. What they are afraid of is an uncontrollable panic attack or anxiety attack during the flight. A severe anxiety sufferer feels like they are carrying an internal bomb which might trigger at any moment, and if they don’t have a safe exit around them, they might hurt themselves or someone else around them.

But just like everything else related with a Anxiety Disorder, you can easily learn how to control your panic attacks and go through an entire flight without panic. Here are a few ways which will help you get over the fear of flying.

1.  Don’t take it as something that you are afraid of or have to go through. Instead, think of it as a challenge which you WILL go through and come out the other end a stronger and a more confident individual. Remember, panic attacks and your anxiety have never hurt you till now and no matter what you situation you were in, you always came out the other end unharmed. Be excited for your flying experience and look at it as another challenge you need to overcome to completely eliminate anxiety. Your attitude while booking the ticket is important.

2. Make sure that you get enough rest the night before. The more stressed you are, the harder it will be for you. So get adequate amount of sleep before the flight.

3. Plan everything before. Make sure you are not late for the flight. The last thing you want is to make an already stressful trip more stressful by arriving at the airport at the last time. Provide enough time to clear the customs etc. You can do this by arriving at the airport well before your flight departure time.

4. When you enter the plane, don’t try to hide your anxiety from the crew. Tell them about your condition. If possible, talk to the captain about your condition. It helps a lot in decreasing your fear once you have talked to the captain and know that everything is alright.

5. During the flight, don’t try to run away from your anxious thoughts. The more you try to hide them, the stronger they will come back. The best way to tackle this is to expect the anxious thoughts. And if you do feel anxious, don’t over react, just accept the anxiety and don’t react. By not reacting you show confidence and control. The thoughts and the fear shock-waves that you feel will pass away in a few minutes. They might come back, and do the same this time and let them pass away.

Hopefully, these tips will help you in your road to recovery from Panic Attacks and Anxiety Disorder. But don’t force yourself to go on a flight unless you think you are ready for it. Before going for such bigger challenges, like going through a flight, you need to first establish a strong base and learn how to subdue your anxiety and panic in less fearful situations.