People who struggle with excessive anxiety often have a personality type that predisposes them to this problem. This predisposition can be triggered at various points throughout your life by the events that happen. For some people, their anxiety trigger may never be pulled but for others the specific event could be any kind of major life change or personal loss.
Anxiety is a normal, even common emotion. We experience it whenever we are exposed to a troublesome or uncomfortable situation. If you have to speak in front of a group of people you have probably experienced it. When you met your girlfriend’s parents you may have experienced it. When you were walking home alone late at night and heard footsteps behind you, you may have experienced it.
It’s a feeling that comes and goes with the terrain but when you do experience it you work through it, bite your lower lip and tough it out. That’s what most people do at any rate. For some people the physical sensations and the mental thoughts become so overwhelming that they experience intense panic.
This fear has physical sensations that are so powerful that they may be rendered speechless; unable to breathe, experience such a rapid heartbeat that they feel their heart is going to explode or other problems.
Excessive anxiety, triggered by seemingly normal events can cause such a lack of confidence, that engaging in normal, everyday activities becomes difficult, if not impossible. It’s unclear why some people experience these feelings while others do not.
A firefighter can run into a burning building and save a life but you can’t choose which head of broccoli looks best in the store without feeling your heart race? This doesn’t make any sense, at least until you look to some of the causes for panic.
For people who struggle with excessive worry, the personality type they have inherited from their parents can contribute to their tendency to worry. This predisposition to worry exists like a ticking time bomb. In some people it goes off because of triggering events and in some people the bomb never goes off.
Your inherited personality type and childhood environment are the long term factors that determine how you will respond to stress but the short term causes are what trigger the release of excessive anxiety in your life. Short term causes can be any number of things. For some people, this will be the loss of a spouse, child or family member, for other people it could be the loss of a job or the end of an important relationships.
Seemingly happy events can also cause stress triggers such as having a baby, getting married or moving. These changes bring about significant changes in your life and can increase your stress and worry.
Once anxiety has been allowed to creep through that open door, it is hard to get rid of. It’s very hard to tell how you will respond to any given event. Losing a child, spouse or family member is shattering for everyone. Everyone responds to this personal loss with great sorrow, anxiety and depression.
Many people are eventually able to go on, struggle through the day and regain their former life. The suffering is normal and part of life. What’s not normal is that anxiety so overwhelms you for such a long period of time that you can’t engage in anything anymore.
At some point, pain and worry should pass and if it doesn’t you may be dealing with a more significant problem than your personal loss. The same goes for losing a job, moving, getting married, having a baby. These events may disrupt the normal rhythm of your life but you should be able to regain a footing and proceed with your new life without excessive anxiety after awhile.
The negative shouldn’t be lurking behind every corner. It’s important to consult a doctor if you feel you are struggling with sustained, excessive and unwanted anxiety.
Anxiety and Stress – A Risk of Heart Attack?
Anxiety and stress are known to make a patient get a feeling like heart attack due to rapid pulse and shortness of breath. According to a study it is suggested that shortness of breath or rapid pulse experienced due to stress may evoke a feeling similar to heart attack and even result in serious heart troubles in the long run.
Agoraphobia – Is a Treatment Possible in Worst Cases?
For most sufferers, Agoraphobia is like a living hell. They give up all hope due to the intensity of the symptoms they experience. When treated from an early stage, Agoraphobia can be cured easily. However, since a lot of people are unable to recognize the symptoms, they reach a stage where the condition becomes worse and they tend to fear whether or not cure is possible.
Social Phobia - How to Effectively Use Exposure Therapy to Combat Your Phobias!
Dealing with phobias can be troubling! These little fears can cause big reactions, leading to extreme anxiety, panic attacks and total avoidance of particular people, places, things and activities. Common phobias include fear of flying, fear of driving, fear of animals such as dogs and fear of public speaking. For many people, their fears and their anxieties don´t play a daily part in their lives but for phobia sufferers, their thoughts are always directed towards avoiding that which they fear. Exposure therapy is a great way to lessen the dread that so many phobia sufferers have to contend with but it needs to be approached effectively.
