What is Anxiety Disorder?

In this post I just wanted to shed some light on what Anxiety and Panic Attacks/Panic Disorder are like.

Anxiety disorder and panic attacks are two different things, even though they are mistaken they can be very similar in the way of feelings and symptoms. Many people suffer both, I do. I have been suffering for 5 years and still don't completely understand why myself, but I do have some ideas, which I will share in a post at a later date.

Anxiety affects 1 in 20 people in britian. Think about it, when your in a public place how many of those may also be suffering, it won't be the same as you as everyone is different, but they can relate, if they knew.

What is anxiety?

Anxiety can be serve or mild, it can unfortunately get progressively worse. So for some people it may start mild but it can rapidly increase to serve anxiety.

"Anxiety is a feeling of unease, such as worry or fear."

Fundamentally, the above is what it all boils down to. But it's intense feelings or unease and worry. Everyone feels anxious from time to time, there isn't one person who can't say they have never been nervous. Some people are naturally just nervous!

Generalised Anxiety Disorder (GAD)

GAD is essentially when anxiety is long term, when general day to day things become a struggle. So when;

• Your worrying affects your social, work, school life.
• Your worries become extremely stressful and upsetting, sometimes leading you on to feel depressed.
• Your worries become uncontrollable, you can't shut them out no matter what kind of distractions you use.
• You feel worried nearly everyday.

When you suffer with GAD it means your suffer in a wide variety of situations, not just certain events. GAD suffers tend to feel anxious on a daily basis, even doing a simple thing like going to work can cause all sorts of worries and unease. GAD can cause both physical and emotional symptoms. 

Physical symptoms can affect the whole body and every part of it.Physical symptoms that are most common include;

• Shaking
• Hot sweats
• Headaches
• Difficulty breathing 

Emotional symptoms include;

• Feeling of doom
• Loss of control
• Feeling that you are going mad

Anxiety can also cause phycological disorders, such as;

• OCD
• Depression

Treatment

When it comes down to treatment there aren't really that many options. I have tried both, but I will write more on that later.

Drug Treatment

To help ease you and calm you down, it may be in the form of an anti-depressent or maybe just something to help you sleep at night. But I can write from experience, that this can be a dangerous road to go down as you may then feel like you rely on the tablets, but drug treatment can't be a long term thing. It's best used in conjunction with psychological treatment. 

Psychological Treatment

This is essentially talking. Now I've tried this with a number of different people on a number of different occasions when my anxiety was at it's worst. It helps to talk, there is no denying that and the best advice I could ever give to anyone would be- when you feel like you can open up or you need to talk- just talk! Get it off your chest release that energy. This could be a psychologist, doctor or just simply a friend or maybe someone who is going through the same thing. Talking is good, and in my eyes one of the biggest steps.