COPING WITH ANXIETY

most of the threads on this site cope with depression, but anxiety is just as bad in my opinion.
i think i have some trouble with it, and as i have a family history of anxiety, i would like to find out more about it, and ways to cope with it.
i apologise for all future typos.

ANXIETY
physical effects
-heart palpitations
-fatigue
-nausea
-chest pain
-shortness of breath
-stomach aches
-headaches
-sweating
-trembling
-dizzyness

mental/emotional effects
-feelings of dread
-trouble concerntrating
-irritability
-feeling tense/jumpy
-anticipating the worst
-restlessness
-feeling like your minds gone blank

its easy to see that this can be mistaken for a heart attack.
i tried to be as general as i could, as anxiety has different sub-genres (english fail ahaha)

self help (seek proffetional help if this is a real issue for you. this is not real help, this is someone using google)
-common sense actions to limit the anxiety you feel
-exercise can release mental tension
-seek help from friends
-eliminate stressors
-learning relaxation skills

basically relax, deal with the issues, etc.

can anyone else with actual experience or advice add to this?
im interested in any usefull information you have.
any coping mechanisms would be best for people who need help with this sort of thing.

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Well, this is what I know of it:

Spielberger defined anxiety in 1972 as:

A specific emotional state which consists of unpleasant, consciously percieved feelings of nervousness, tension and apprehension, with associated activation or arousal of the autonomic nervous system.

The normal fear response to threatening stimuli (anything from a dog to an upcoming exam) comprises of:
-Defensive behaviours
-Autonomic reflexes
-Arousal and alertness
-Corticosteroid secretion
-Negative emotions.

In anxiety states, these reactions occur in an anticipatory manner, independent of external events. Anxiety becomes pathological when these symptoms interfere with normal function.

Clinically recognised anxiety disorders include:
-Generalised anxiety disorder: an ongoing state of anxiety with no clear reason
-Panic disorder: attacks of overwhelming fear in association with maked somatic symptoms - sweating, tachycardia, chest pains, trembling, choking etc
-Phobias: strong irrational fears of specific things or situations
-Post Traumatic Stress Disorder: anxiety triggered by insistent recall of past stressful experiences. Commonly abbreviated to PTSD.

Pharmacological treatment:
There are a variety of drugs used to treat anxiety, the frontline class of which are the Benzodiazapines. (Geeks amongst you may recall that Snake from Metal Gear Solid used Benzo's to steady his aim when sniping.) The most famous Benzo is Diazepam, also known as Valium. Benzo's bind to GABA A receptors and increase their affinity for GABA, thus 'dampening' neural activity. They are rapidly absorbed orally, bind strongly to plasma proteins and can accumulate in body fat due to their lipophilic nature. Their main effects are

-Reduction of aggression and anxiety.
-Sedation and induction of sleep
-Reduction of muscle tone and coordination.
-Anticonvulsant effects.
-Anterograde amnesia.

Side effects can include amnesia, loss of coordination, confusion, drowsiness, enhancement of other CNS depressants like alcohol, tolerance and dependance.

(Tolerance is defined as an increase in the dose needed to elicit the same effects, while dependance in this instance refers to a physical withdrawl syndrome. Psychological addiction does not occur.)

In overdose, Benzo's are quite safe, although they can lead to prolonged sleep. When mixed with other CNS depressants like alcohol, they can lead to life-threatening respiratory depression. Benzo's are often used in suicide attempts, and victims are often simply left to sleep off their effects.

5HT-1A receptor antagonists like Buspirone are also used, and they don't cause sleepiness.

Barbiturates were commonly used to treat insomnia, but they are 'dirty' drugs that are very dangerous in overdose and thus are no longer used, apart from in epilepsy and anaesthesia.


-Mostly from lecture notes.

thank you curiousgeorge

I have yet to go to a professional about it but it's known among my close friends, and my ex gf that I have anxiety problems. They say my childhood has to do with most of it. I myself don't know much about it, but my ex says that's one of the reasons I'm so unhealthy. Since we first met and she began to know me that I have PTSD. I thought being happy helped but apparently not cuz i still get stressed and get little anxiety attacks. Well she has me drink plenty of water [i really have no clue what that does] plus she has me on these little food plans. She plans to be a pediatrician so maybe this shit means something. But if anyone has anything else to add please do. I really hate how my heart acts up daily.

I have this...along with some other things. But what helps me when I'm feeling the pressure I leave and find a quiet place to calm down. You know *breath in breath out* type of deal sometimes it helps other times it dosen't.

I do suffer from minor anxiety, but I don't know whether you'd count it as real anxiety, but I do, I suffer quite severely from seperation anxiety.

I can not be on my own, I do not like it. I panic when I am, and I tend to latch on to people, some more so then others.

Like, I have the worst seperation anxiety when it comes to my fiance, I freak out if I can't get in contact with him, even if nothing serious is going on for me, and just want to talk to him. I know its not particularly healthy, but he feeds my seperation anxiety for him, if that makes sense...he doesn't get freaked out by it, he encourages it. Says it lets him know that I really love him, and won't leave him and so on.

Like right now, he's gone and I'm dealing with quite bad anxiety because comunication with him comes in spuratic moments when he isn't driving...so I never know when I'm next going to hear from him and its killing me.

I need to learn how to deal with it, I know.

I have ptsd, thats what my mom thinks however right now it's not acting up. i don't know the reason why i get them maybe my family has a history of maybe its from sometime ago along with my stressful life.i have yet to see a doctor about.

I think I may have some, nothing severe.
It makes me tired and worried all the time, plus it won't let me sleep properly.

i've heard budism meditation calms people with anexity my friend she has attacks all the time poor dear...but she seems to be getting a lil better with it

Buddhist meditation definitely helps.

Don't let the word Buddhist turn you away from it or the word meditation for that matter. All meditation is is a breathing technique to help calm and empty the mind.There's no chanting or humming involved. You don't have to sit in a funny position or anything.

The simplest way to meditate is to get in a comfortable position, close your eyes and start to breathe and concentrate on that breath. As you breathe count each breath. Inhale, exhale, one, inhale, exhale, two. Keep counting until you get to ten and then start over at one. If you go past ten then you're not really focusing and concentrating.

Seriously it can help.

i believe i do too. im like dizzy all the time.. my mom thinks its from stress

could be because you drink too much