Anxiety

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Anxiety is normal and everyone experiences it at some time i.e. exams, driving test, moving house, meeting new people. But anxiety can become a problem when it manifests into apprehension or a fear and a sense of 'losing control'.

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That fear feels very real. It's often of a perceived event or situation, and causes a physical response which can be very frightening:-

• Sweating

• Heart racing

• Rapid breathing

• Feeling nauseous

• Lightheaded

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A Panic Attack is a rush of these sensations which brings on a catastrophic interpretation of feelings.

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When we become over-tired, physically, emotionally or mentally exhausted, anxiety can become a problem and start to interfere in our day-to-day lives. We then start to avoid triggers and compound the problem.

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When we are anxious our body goes into a 'fight or flight' response. It is our basic survival response to fear. This served primitive man well when he was out hunting. Adrenaline, a hormone, rushes to our blood stream to enable us to fight or run away as a survival mechanism. But it was designed to be short-lived. Either we killed or were killed.

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In today's busy, stressful lives when we feel tense and anxious the levels of stress-response hormones are activated more often and for longer so we stay in a state of 'fight or flight' response which is detrimental to our bodies and mind.

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How can counselling help?

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Talking can help identify the triggers that lead to feeling anxious or fearful. Exploring when and where the feelings originally came from can help. Learning a relaxation technique when the anxiety is triggered can give back the 'control' to the sufferer.