Category: Anxiety and Panic

How Exercise Helps to Reduce Anxiety

According to the World Health Organization, depression affects more than three-hundred-million people across the globe. This can lead to drastic consequences for people who are looking to enjoy their lives. It could lead to substance abuse and the need for holistic addiction treatment. It may lead to worse with suicide or death because of the substance abuse. However, it might have a just as troubling minimal effect on your interest in getting out in the world and enjoying things. This is where you may look for ways to prevent this from happening. Many people like sports and you may not be aware of how beneficial that is for your entire health. It could be quite useful for you to relieve tension that is building up within your mind and body. Not only can you improve the condition of your body but you are also able to stave off those troubling feelings you face each day.

What exactly exercise can do is by stopping your stress. By eliminating fatigue, concentration troubles and keeping you alert, your overall cognitive abilities will be amplified. If it is a sunny day and warm out, you may want to take the opportunity to go for a run. The sunshine has a bonus effect in that it could cause a great deal of improvement for your mood too. So, if you have the chance, playing sports or exercising outside can amplify your mood and inspire you to get a lot more done in life.

Exercise will stop your overall levels of tension from increasing, can stabilize your mood and even improve your self-esteem overall. The Anxiety and Depression Association cites psychologists as believing a ten-minute walk may be as good as a forty-five-minute workout. If you have a job, you might be able to take this walk on your lunch break. Perhaps, you might wish to walk around the parking lot of your office building. This may be how you are able to release tension. Jump in your car and you may find that to be just as fulfilling. You won’t feel like you have to turn to substance abuse and potentially end up needing a holistic addiction treatment.

Clinical psychologist Marla Deibler stated there are some true benefits to physical exercise. “Moderate exercise has been shown to have a significant effect on anxiety and mood,” Deibler said. “Moderate to intense exercise raises core body temperature, which is accompanied by a simultaneous reduction in muscle tension, thereby affecting the experience of anxiety.” With the release through exercise of neurotransmitters, endocannabinoids, and endorphins into the brain that are designed to improve your mood, you can find your whole outlook on life improving just by beginning your first steps outside.

How Do Leaders Deal With Disruption and Changes in Life?

President Kennedy wrote: “Change is the law of life and those who look only to the past or present are sure to miss the future.”

Change simply means that something is different than it was a minute, a day, a week, a month, a year or a decade or more ago. Some trigger has modified the details of your life, the organization you work for, even global economic conditions.

Change can be caused by evolving external forces, such as the rise of ISIS. Most people did nothing to start this phase of terror perpetrated on the world. But that doesn’t mean they can avoid its ramifications.

And then some change is fostered internally, by the change in the way you see your life going, by new perspectives on your employment, education, relationships, and your health.

Change is disruptive and can even be turbulent — especially when it hits close to home and plays with our emotions. But then leadership today is all about managing disruption. And disruption is an hourly occurrence. Leaders are people who don’t just learn to live with or manage change — they actually create change and help others successfully navigate it.

Listen carefully to catch the change behind the change. Change can be tricky and misleading. Be careful not to make a superficial translation of some trend only to be led down some dead end. Not all change is what it seems on the surface.

If you don’t truly get under the change and analyze it before you react to it, you may miss something — like the critical time to quit your job and move on. You are not the only person in the world affected by change. You may be stuck in a trap where you think that you caused the change in your life and that it is harmful to you alone.

Targeted actions for managing Change for Leaders like CEO’s

Targeting pockets of opportunity: CEOs should focus on a few well chosen initiatives, primarily in their existing markets, to stimulate organic growth.

Concentrating on the customer – CEOs are creating new ways to demand and foster customer loyalty. Few could be capitalizing on digital marketing platforms and involving customers in product/service development. But does not mean they have a open budget. They need to cut down cost of R&D and take care of innovation.

Improving operational effectiveness – CEOs should be balancing efficiency with agility.

7 Strengths for 7 Stressors of Today

The modern world today has been the worst all across human history for the stress effects on our daily life. There are many people who are feeling the psychological burden. Lot of us are feeling very tired and withdrawn from everyday routine and daily activities. The constant exposure to media is aggravating the situation towards the downward spiral because of the environmental and social events happening all around us and in the world we live.

Here are some of the top stressors in the current times and how we can overcome them to live a simple yet fulfilling life. Following these tips will mobilize your strengths towards achieving greater resilience and buoyancy in daily life.

1. The world is going through tough times and going to a shallow bottom – there are many horrific events like fires, earthquakes, hurricanes, and flooding. The political environment all around is also not giving any sense of stability either.

To cope up, remember that in all the times of despair and calamity, we see many resources being mobilized by people to care for others whom they do not know or never met. This is the human nature which has made us coexist since so long. The feeling of altruism, sympathy, and empathy are still in all of us fundamentally. Be helpful and provide hope for yourself and others.

2. Are we destroying our planet and making it inhabitable – The population of the world has been growing ad currently it is over populated, due to which we are consuming more and more resources. This causes Earth to suffer due to waste, deterioration of resources, oil reserves, etc.

Well, think that the basic step starts from you. We must do all that we can individually and collectively to make our planet better.

3. Feeling Lonely – We are living in a mobile world where people are moving constantly for school, work, leisure, etc. Therefore, we are often lonely with extended family living at distance, whether hundred miles or thousands of miles. Disintegration of community and relatives is making us get lesser and lesser emotional support.

To cope up with feeling of loneliness, we do need to be with others and feel part of a group. Invite friends over for dinner or extended an invitation to someone for coffee. Be inspired and extend yourself to an activity or an invitation and savor some connection.

4. There is so much anger around us with people upset naturally always. – The frustrations of life comes out in any form at any time with minimal or no provocation at all. Well, you might have heard it million times before, but the coping mechanisms remain same – exercise, meditation, friends and family, vacation time, etc are all the ways to reduce the daily life frustration. Do what you enjoyed once and stopped doing it due to time and its relevance.

5. How can I help or how can I get help – Healthy stepping back from your own world can take you to the longer road of good and destressed life. Keep in mind that grief and loss are part of life. What does loss or grief mean to you? How have you managed your own loss or grief in life? What helped, what didn’t? How can you cultivate them? Time to introspect and help others introspect.

6. Accept that stress is part of life – When stressful situations arise, remind yourself that they are part of life and will come and go. Nothing in this life is permanant – neither does your stress. So take a relaxed approch towards stress in life.

7. Have a realistic outlook about everything in your life. Do not see the world through rose-colored glasses rather have your own outlook which is realistic. You also need to check the silver lining in the tough circumstances. Stressful circumstances are there to make you become stronger and better.

The Art of Nostalgia

“The Art Of Nostalgia” is a elaborate collection of nine personal essays of Lauren. These essays aim to capture nostalgia’s essence on how does it effects the person and the thought process. The essays bring the reader on a journey as Lauren crafts a timeline of memories that reflect a deep-rooted nostalgia for places, people, and transient phases of life. She, inadvertently, strings together pieces of herself, pieces that shape who she is at her core, daring us to ponder our own stories, our own past that vitally remains within us.

Here is some insight on how to tame the phenomenon that is nostalgia.

The cycle of Nostalgia

Keep in mind that you’ve missed things a thousand times before, and it always becomes easier. It may take weeks, or months, but it always does. Whether it’s a place, a person, or your favorite food that you can no longer eat because you just found out you’re gluten free, it always gets easier.

Be Realistic: The most dangerous part of nostalgia is the tendency to romanticize. When you look back, look back on the past as it actually was. Doing so will prevent you from ranking the past as better than the present.

Look Forward: Avoid excessive planning, but when that new movie tells you how enlightening your twenty-something years are, or how incredible your forties are, listen. Your grandmother is right when she says you have a lot to look forward to. Be excited for, and do not fear, what lies ahead.

Always Live In The Moment – Try to embrace how exciting life can be when you truly live in the moment. Respect the epitomic Cards and try new things everyday.

Balance – Try to find a balance between the past and the present. Keep in touch with old friends, and remember the events that made you the person you are today. Most importantly, always participate in Instagram’s “throwback Thursday.”

The first and probably the most important consideration is the attitude with which we approach our material. Since nostalgia serves no immediate purpose besides providing pleasure it is a fundamentally aesthetic memory experience, which means we should approach our material with the mindset of an artist.

Accident Phobia – Impairs the ability to Drive

Situational Specific Phobia :  Accident Phobia

Accident phobia has been studied most extensively in relation to accidents involving motor vehicles. It has been established that thirty-eight per cent of survivors of car crashes subsequently develop severe phobic fear and avoidance of car travel, which has had a significant effect on their normal life.

Symptoms of accident phobia

Although it is unusual for car journeys to be avoided completely, accident phobics will often only travel when strictly necessary. Also, the journey may only be undertaken at a particular time of day, for example, when traffic conditions are light. Accident phobics experience considerable anticipatory anxiety before the journey and are highly fearful while in the car. Some find it very difficult to be passengers and most constantly give the driver instructions.

It is not unusual for accident phobics to make considerable adjustments to their life to avoid car travel. This can include such extreme measures as moving house or even relinquishing a job and, in most cases, the person’s normal enjoyment of outings, hobbies, holidays and so on, is considerably restricted because of the effect on mobility. It is possible that similar levels of phobic fear and avoidance may occur in those who have been in accidents involving buses, coaches and trains.

The recently developed Accident Fear Questionnaire of American Psychiatry appears to reliably differentiate between the two conditions and indicates that phobic fear develops independently of injury, pain or depression caused by the accident. There is, however, some evidence that a person/ s psychological make-up might predispose them towards developing accident phobia.

Treatment of accident phobia

Treatment for accident phobia is in a process of continual development and refinement. Initial cognitive therapy is needed, aimed at helping the person to realize that he is a survivor, and that there is no reason to suppose that an accident that has happened once will be repeated. Therapy using the person’s imagination and the use of video-taped material may be useful. Eventually, the person is encouraged to embark upon exposure therapy by becoming a car passenger – something that most phobics find extremely difficult. The final stage, if the person is a driver, is for him to start driving again and a refresher instruction course may help in this respect.

Receptive Expressive Disorder

Receptive-expressive developmental language Disorder

In this disorder the understanding of language is below the level appropriate to the child’s mental age. In almost all cases, expressive language is also disturbed (a fact recognized in DSM-IV by the term receptive-expressive language disorder). The development of receptive language ability varies considerably among normal children. However, failure to respond to familiar names, in the absence of non-verbal cues, by the beginning of the second year of age, or failure to respond to simple instructions by the end of the second year, are significant signs suggesting receptive language disorder – provided that deafness, learning disability, and pervasive developmental disorder have been excluded. Associated social and behavioral problems are particularly frequent in this form of language disorder.

The prevalence depends on the criteria for diagnosis, but a frequency of up to 3% of school-age children has been suggested (American Psychiatric Association 1994). The prognosis is poor with around 75% continuing throughout childhood. The prognosis is worse when the language disorder is severe, or there is a co-morbid condition, such as conduct disorder. Treatment is through special education. The psychiatrist’s role is the same as in expressive language disorder.

Panic attacks and disorders

Panic attacks and disorders – Difference and Complex relationship

Panic (or anxiety) attack

A panic attack involves the sudden appearance of four or more of the following mental and physical symptoms which are the typical symptoms of extreme anxiety. These are:

  1. Rapid rate of heartbeat or palpitations.
  2. Breathlessness or a feeling of being smothered.
  3. Tightness or pain in the chest.
  4. Tremor, trembling, shaking.
  5. Feeling hot or cold or alternating between the two.
  6. Shivering or sweating; pallor.
  7. Choking feeling in the throat.
  8. Dizziness, feelings of faintness or light-headedness.
  9. Nausea or gastro-intestinal symptoms.
  10. Tingling in the extremities of the limbs or feelings of numbness.
  11. Fear that loss of physical control (for example of bladder and bowels) is imminent.
  12. Fear that mental collapse and loss of control or , madness’ are imminent.
  13. Feelings of detachment and unreality and fear that one may be dying.

The symptoms rapidly reach a peak of intensity within ten minutes of first appearing and then disappear as quickly as they arose. Although a panic attack can be extremely distressing, it is not physically harmful although the sufferer frequently believes that it is. Panic attacks are extremely common with about a third of people experiencing one in any given year.

Panic (or anxiety) disorder

Panic disorder is characterized by the occurrence of panic attacks which, at least in the first instance, arise unexpectedly and are not attached to a particular situation or stimulus. Anticipatory anxiety about the occurrence of further spontaneous attacks is a major part of the disorder. In many, but not all, cases the person avoids the place or situation where a panic attack occurred and this aspect has a strong correlation with agoraphobia.

The person also commonly believes that the panic attack is symptomatic of a serious physical disorder, such as a brain tumor or heart condition, and may report to a doctor or hospital on this basis. A diagnosis of panic disorder is unlikely to be made in these circumstances although it may emerge at a later date. The disorder itself is uncommon, affecting fewer than one in a hundred people in any given six-month period.

Support For Cancer Patients

Support for Cancer Patients is Available and it is Effective

Cancer is a disease which is often scary, life threatening and often causes people to become anxious. People if diagnosed with cancer often need assistance and support from all sorts of support groups including family and neighbors.

There are many Cancer Support helplines available which has licensed counselors to provide guidance, resources and support to callers with a variety of needs from getting information about cancer, identifying a local support group or just finding someone who is willing to listen.

Additional Cancer Support Helpline Services

  1. Connecting callers to local or national resources, including support groups, transportation services and other programs
  2. Short-term cancer counseling and emotional assistance
  3. Treatment decision planning
  4. Financial counseling regarding the costs of cancer and its treatments
  5. Specialized information on genetic counseling and pediatric oncology
  6. Access to an online distress screening program, CancerSupportSource
  7. General information about the Cancer Support Community

Most Cancer Council support services are provided at a local level in each and every country and state. Each state and territory Cancer Council offers a range of patient support facilities. They provide services such as:

  • counseling services
  • support groups and networks
  • education groups, programs and information
  • practical assistance
  • accommodation

When you need assistance or advice on cancer-related topics, many organizations will offer their expertise at no charge.

Teen Suicide Facts

Real and Shocking Teen Suicide Facts – Youth Suicide Statistics

Teen Suicide has been a nightmare situation in the US. Currently there is thousands of teen’s suicide each year in the United States. Shockingly, it is the third leading cause of death for 15- to 24-year-olds in the US.

Almost 1 teen among 5 thinks of suicide as an option annually. According to the earlier statistics, there are about 1 million teens who attempted suicide out of which 300000 needed/received medical attentions whereas 1700 died. Currently, the most effective suicide prevention programs equip mental health professionals and other community educators and leaders with sufficient resources to recognize who is at risk and who has access to mental health care.

Some Shocking facts about Suicide in Teens

  1. Nearly 30,000 Americans commit suicide every year.
  2. Spring time is the time when there is maximum number of suicides.
  3. On an average, there is a suicide committed every 16.2 minutes.
  4. More teenagers and young adults die from suicide than from cancer, heart disease, AIDS, birth defects, stroke, pneumonia, influenza, and chronic lung disease, COMBINED.
  5. Almost all the kids or teens who have tried to commit suicide have given clear warning signs.
  6. The risk of suicide increases dramatically when kids and teens have access to guns or firearms at home.
  7. 60% of all suicides in the United States are committed with a gun.

Checking on the method of Suicide

The first way of suicide in teens is by the guns or firearms at home. Next method is overdose using over-the-counter, prescription, and non-prescription medicine. Suicide rates and attempt rates differ between boys and girls a lot. While more girls attempt suicide, boys tend to die twice as much as girls due to suicide. The reason is girls think about suicide, but use drug overdose or cutting the wrist as the method, whereas boys think less but take a lethal method like guns, hanging, etc.

Suicide cases in 90% of teens who kill themselves have some type of mental health problem, such as depression, anxiety, drug or alcohol abuse, or a behavior problem. Some of the teens will be victim of physical or sexual abuse causing them to take extreme step.

Possible warning signs

  1. Talking About Dying — any mention of dying, disappearing, jumping, etc.
  2. Recent Loss — divorce, separation, broken relationship, self-confidence, self-esteem, loss of interest in friends, hobbies, etc.
  3. Change in Personality – becoming more sad, withdrawn, irritable, anxious, tired, etc.
  4. Change in Behavior – sudden poor performance on school, work, routine, etc.
  5. Change in Sleep Patterns
  6. Change in Eating Habits — loss of appetite and weight,
  7. Fear of losing control – acting erratically, harming self or others
  8. Low self esteem — feeling worthless and shameful

Hearing Inner Voices

Simple tips to Handle Betrayal and Hearing Voices

Betrayal harms us more than anything else in the world.  It can go down till the deepest parts of us. Yet it is possible to reach those inner dark places which hide the darkest fears and desires. It is possible through gentle love and listening.

Whether it is a child suffering from sexual abuse or a partner dealing with domestic violence, the trauma is overwhelming since it involves someone with intimate relationship. Since you are dependent on the other person for food, shelter, emotional wellbeing, support, etc. the suffering received is also severe in the case of abuse.

In the cases of abuse and betrayal, many times people start hearing their names being called out from the back. When they turn around, there is no one. This hearing of voices if happens more than 2-3 times a week, is not normal and comes under the category of issue called hearing voices which has its roots in the betrayal and abuse you had suffered from deep inside.

When our experience of hearing voices goes beyond hearing names, then we tend to feel concerned. These in other words are also called auditory hallucinations which may not necessarily always be abnormal.

Differences in Voices origin

Different people hear voices from different places. Sometimes the voices appear to come through ears and sometimes, it is like coming from inside the head. There could be many voices or single voice coming from these places.  These voices can be both encouraging or intimidating coming either from someone you know in your life or from someone you never heard of.

Betrayal trauma can lead to visual and auditory hallucinations such as victims hearing the voice of their abuser.

Advice for those hearing voices

The following advice can help you recover from the deep hurt from these voices:

Acceptance

Accepting your voices and stop battling with yourself to avoid them, will make you in better position to understand them.

Control

There are different ways you can gain control over your voices. You can distract yourself from the voices by listening to music through headphones. You can also start a dialogue with the voices you hear. If the voices you hear are threatening, tell them that they have no power over you.