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Here I sat, an acute agoraphobic, prone to panic attacks, unable to walk beyond my own street and I had dealt decisively and efficiently with an emergency. If you have a particular phobia which you do not think is covered here, you may find it listed on The Phobia List website (see Apdix 2). Do you avoid the dentist, or dread the thought of an injection? Choose specific goals Dont say my goal is to be happy. Start the breathing as early as possible, so that you go into the situation calmly. These are explained in Chapter 2 Anxiety/Panic Disorder This is the form of the disorder that brings on sudden attacks that paralyze you with fear for no apparent reason. These things are not easy, and for some people retreat into Anxiety can seem like their best option. Go for a longer drive in traffic with helper driving. What is the evidence for this thought being true? A similar process haps if you are frightened. Write down in your notebook exactly what you intend to do, and what you expect the outcome to be for each of the two theories: Example: Test: I wont do my cleaning ritual in the living room for one day. Next are the cognitive distortions that weve already looked at, everything from all-or-nothing thinking to wishful thinking. No wonder its hard to pick yourself up and find the energy for a recovery programme. Repeat each step until you are comfortable with it. Go camping in Spain. Are you one of them? Many studies have focused mainly on two specific portions of the brain that are responsible for inducing feelings of fear and anxiety. So I dont use exercise as a recovery tool, but it does help me to maintain good mental health. Exercise helps. It doesnt matter how many good things have come your way, there will always be a but as you knock back the good and focus on the bad.

Enjoy the garden, if you have one. Breathe in and allow your stomach to expand like a balloon as you fill your lungs with air. There is more about this in Chapter Your digestion may be affected, with loss of appetite, dry mouth, nausea, swallowing difficulty. Sometimes people worry about how they are going to explain what they are feeling. Is this belief always true? All three types of thought can be challenged with counter statements. Facing up to difficult issues Once you have worked out what it is that you find difficult to face, you can decide if theres anything that can be done about it. Its long and tough but at last you get it out, and now you know that dandelion wont be growing back in your lawn. Ways of using this book You may feel ready to undertake the challenge of working towards a full recovery. I am a critic, I laugh at myself. Once youve formed the habit of doing relaxation every day, keep it up throughout your recovery programme. Rather like putting Anxiety on trial, this is a way of shining a light onto it and understanding how it works. I have general anxiety due to withdrawal from tranquillisers. I have suffered from OCD most of my life. In the end my diagnosis was panic attack.Ive had panic, agoraphobia, death phobia, social phobia, illness phobia and claustrophobia. [I] could not shake off the feelings of dread . However severely restricted you are, starting from where you are now, you can make improvements in your situation. Say I wont be able to give anyone a lift on Tuesday evenings, thats going to be my evening off. Breathe out. Lift your shoulders towards your ears and breathe in. Breathe quietly, and focus on the word relax. Most people who experience traumatic events such as road/rail/air accidents or incidents involving violence can expect to have at least some disturbing physical and emotional reactions associated with shock and horror.

Perhaps they feel unable to make eye contact, and lurk unhappily on the edge of the proceedings. The trouble is that the beliefs dig themselves in and hang on into adult life like bad habits that are hard to change. If youre not sure you could try the self-help methods that we suggest first and see if they help. It is also referred to as Social Phobia and can be a very traumatic and debilitating disorder making it near impossible for one afflicted with it to be comfortable at any social gathering. If youre not sure you could try the self-help methods that we suggest first and see if they help. Ill never find someone to love me. Finding counters for these kinds of thoughts is a question of persuading yourself to accept the evidence at face value, for example: Over-generalising Im always the one who struggles. Just think about the next step. What alternative explanation might there be for me having this thought? Cook your favourite meal. Do you worry about blushing or trembling when speaking to people? You would want to aid them, wouldn’t you? They dont need to understand the nature of Anxiety disorders, as long as they can accept that you need to do exposure in a certain way. Hold it and feel the tension in your forehead. Once you have found a belief that seems to be important, examine how you feel about it at the moment. Their overall function is to help you feel safe in a frightening situation. As usual its best to aim to do this gradually, in small manageable steps. Sit or stand, keeping your back straight. We are all likely to encounter events in our lives which produce anxiety. Put yourself in the picture behaving calmly and succeeding at the goal.

Even when you succeed, you think it was a fluke, or a one-off. Changing your breathing There is an exception to most rules, and in the case of your nervous system the exception is breathing. Here is a brief overview: Physical: whether or not you suffer from panic attacks, the effects of Anxiety always have a physical element. The next step is to see what changes you can make to improve matters. The receptionist said to him isnt it kind of your sister to give you a lift? The woman was mortified, and cried bitter tears when she got home. Somebody drove into the back of my car once. Deep relaxation is an important part of recovery from Anxiety. Disappointment – if you havent come as far as you wanted. This builds up more Anxiety, making for another bad night, and so on. They vary from person to person but doctors use the following list – if you experience four or more of these sensations in the space of a few seconds then you are probably having a panic attack: shortness of breath a choking sensation rapid or irregular heartbeat chest pains tension in muscles trembling or shaking numbness intense sweating dizziness nausea urgent need to go to the toilet. Their overall function is to help you feel safe in a frightening situation. And it doesnt make your Anxiety go away. ought to take the approach that a setback is a sign that you are getting better and learn from it to move forwards again. Dont get thinking of that again. Something you could SEE the outcome from. Do you worry about blushing or trembling when speaking to people? Other type (such as situations that might lead to illness, choking, vomiting). Something unforeseen might hap that I cant cope with. There is a parallel effect on your mind. There is a huge range of volunteering opportunities, so you should be able to find something that interests you, and that fits in with any restrictions that Anxiety still imposes on you.