Did you know that the trick to ending panic and anxiety attacks is to want to have an attack? This may sound odd but think of the saying "What you resist persists." If you resist a situation out of fear that fear will persist but if you actually look out for a panic attack you find that you won’t have one because you have stopped resisting the fear.

Your real security is the fact that a panic attack will never harm you and that is a medical fact.
 

The following natural anxiety remedy tips are only a few of those available.  Please feel free to add your own or make comment on what has been helpful to you.

* Herbal remedies include Kava, Motherwort, Passionflower, Skullcap, St John’s Wort and Valerian.

* Herbal teas – many and varied include teas made from the above list as well as Chamomile and Lemon Balm.

* Learn to laugh – laugh every day, even if you need to fake it.

* Massage can relieve tension in muscles and relieve stress and anxiety. It can cause your body to release natural painkillers.  Combine with essential oils.

* Get your finances sorted.  Particularly in the current economic climate stress and anxiety is an issue and it is important to take hold of finances.

* Soak in a warm bath with aromatherapy oils added.  Essential oils such as Bergamot, Cedarwood, Geranium, Lavender, Lemon, Sandalwood and Sweet Marjoram.

* Exercise every day.  Try walking, yoga or any physical activity that you enjoy.

* Learn to breathe deeply.  When we are stressed and anxious we tend to breathe shallowly which exacerbates the problem.  Learning correct breathing techniques is invaluable.

* Meditation. Research shows that meditation can significantly lower anxiety. Do some sort of meditative activity for at least 15 minutes, three or four times a day.  Find a place of quiet surroundings, clear your mind, and actively relax.

Herbal and other natural remedies are becoming increasingly popular as a substitute to prescription drugs for the treatment of anxiety.Using a natural anxiety remedy makes a far safer alternative to anti-anxiety medications which can often be habit-forming or can cause side effects.

Although the terms panic attack and anxiety attack are used interchangeably when describing symptoms there is a difference. Read “The difference: Anxiety Attacks and Panic Attacks” to find out more.

In summary panic attacks are more intense but of shorter duration than anxiety attacks.

You are not alone.  While we would never wish phobias, anxiety and panic on anyone it is somewhat comforting to know that famous people suffer too.

Celebrity chef Paula Dean, actress Kim Basinger, director Woody Allen, and Nobel laureate for literature Elfriede Jelinek have all suffered from agoraphobia.

Footballer David Beckham, winning writer, actor and director Billy Bob Thornton, actress Jessica Alba and even the twentieth century billionaire aviator and entrepreneur Howard Hughes ("The Aviator") all suffered from OCD.

Many refer to anxiety attack and panic attack as being one and the same but there are some differences. The main difference being the duration of the attack and the intensity.  Whilst anxiety attack symptoms are less hi-stress, they tend to last longer than the power-packed panic symptoms -- which are far more intense. Usually an anxiety attack comes on more gradually than a panic attack which is sudden and without warning.

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Depression is a serious medical condition affecting the mind and body.  It is a state of mind characterized by a negative sense of inadequacy and a visual lack of activity. Mentally the affected person experiences feelings of gloom and downturns in mood with feelings of sadness, despair, low self-esteem, self-reproach and discouragement.

We have all experienced depression at some time in our life, such as when someone close has died or a misunderstanding has occurred in our family situation, but depression becomes an illness when the mood state is severe, lasts more than two weeks and interferes with our ability to function normally.

It is important to get professional help if your symptoms of depression are severe and affecting your daily life.

Believe it or not Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia is the name given to a phobia of long words -- sent to haunt the sufferer? This is an example of a specific phobia.  A specific phobia is an anxiety disorder that is based on a certain fear which is irrational, intense and persistent.  These fears are so intense that they can bring on panic and anxiety attack symptoms.

According to a recent newspaper report (The Times, Britain, Jan 08) Phillip Durkin, principal etymologist (the study of sources and development of words) for Oxford English Dictionary, said: “The hippopotomonstro part is clearly someone adding hippopotamus and monstrous.  It doesn’t really follow linguistic rules. It’s a sort of joke.  The label mocks the sufferer”.  You will find many a website with this monstrous word.

In the same article Robert Endelmann, psychologist and patron of the National Phobic Society said that it was not unusual for people to have unusual phobias and in fact phobias may have a deep rooted biological trigger.  For example it would have been useful for our ancestors to be afraid of such things as the dark, snakes or spiders.

Several British psychologists insisted that there is a phobia for almost everything.  Surprisingly Coulrophobia, a phobia of clowns, is particularly common, and not just among children.

 

 

Wouldn’t we all love to go back to our childhood at Christmas?  The excitement and anticipation of Christmas, the gifts Santa will bring and the eating of goodies not always allowed during the year.  For adults however, Christmas can be a time of stress and anything but jolly.  And too much stress can lead to us experiencing panic attack symptoms.

Can we afford the bikes the kids want? How can we attend the children’s nativity play and the work function on the same night?  You love the in-laws but just how long are they going to stay?  There’s not enough time…..

Rushed buying can mean that you end up with gifts and food that you can’t really afford.  Presents means credit card payments and extra debt.  Celebrating comes to mean laboring in the kitchen over a hot stove.

While a certain amount of stress can be helpful by challenging us and keeping us motivated too much can lead to a panic attack.  This is when the body feels under threat and goes into fight or flight mode and can be triggered by something as simple as a phone call at the wrong time.  Symptoms may include increased heart rate, rapid breathing, tense muscles and hypertension.  Emotions may be piqued and include irritability, anger, losing your temper, yelling and lack of concentration.

If you suffer from a panic attack try to calm yourself by stopping what you are doing, drop your shoulders, breathe out and stop for about 10 seconds, then normal breathing in for a count of three and out for a count of four.

Planning is vital at Christmas.  Make yourself a list and check it more than twice.  List what must be done and what you would like to, do but is not essential.  Make sure you do the important things first – shopping and meal planning.  Get someone else to do the things you don’t enjoy so much and share the load.

Make sure you take care of yourself by getting some regular exercise, eat fresh fruit, take a long bath and ‘don’t burn the candle at both ends’.  Try to get some relaxation each day until Christmas and when the day comes around enjoy the moment, hopefully free of any panic attack symptoms.