Living with Anxiety

First a brief overview of anxiety and related conditions.

What is Clinical Anxiety?
Clinical anxiety in its various forms boils down to the overwhelming, persistent, and disruptive form of the 'fight or flight' mechanism in the brain. The climax of this disorder is normally an anxiety attack (also called a panic attack). Depending upon the type of anxiety you may have, anxiety attacks may or may not be able to be detected before the onset. One of the most frustrating aspects of this disorder is the inability to express to others what is wrong before diagnosis in most cases. Although there is no immediate danger, the brain is telling the rest of the body that something is very wrong and in some cases, death is imminent. Clinical anxiety is closely related to post-traumatic stress syndrome which is marked in cases of war veterans and disaster survivors.

Physical symptoms can include (although combinations vary) feeling as if you cannot breathe, heart palpitations, chest pain or tightness, shaking, dizziness, severe headaches, feeling you may pass out, nausea and vomiting, fear you're losing control or crazy beyond help, hot and cold flashes, extreme fatigue, and insomnia.

Emotional symptoms can include (although it varies by person) paranoia, dread, restlessness, avoidance, hypersensitivity to surroundings, irritability, confusion, behavioral problems (especially in children and adolescents), consistent nervousness or jumpiness, feelings of insecurity and being overly self-conscious, abnormal fear of imminent death, and a strong desire to escape or run away from a situation (which could be represented by the need to move house or even country).