10 Simple Tools for Coping with Anxiety

Does it ever seem like your feelings and fears control you instead of feeling like YOU are in control of your FEELINGS? If you have out of control feelings, are constantly worrying and have excessive fears that control your life, it could mean you are suffering from anxiety attacks and you could have an anxiety disorder.

If your anxiety is affecting your quality of life you should seek professional assistance from a qualified therapist or psychiatrist. However here are some things you can do yourself anytime to try to take control of your moods and help cope with anxiety.

Top 10 Simple Tools to Reduce Anxiety

“Everyone has moments, which create anxiety. This particular feeling can be detrimental to your work, life and relationships because it may stop you from living normally. Here are my top ten tips to deal effectively with this uncomfortable emotion.

1. If you are prone to anxiety you have two choices. Give in to it or learn to live with it. Giving into it also means that your partner will suffer the burden of your fears so, to make your lives a better place to be, find ways to eliminate or at least limit this feeling by taking responsibility for your emotions and knowing you have a choice.”

Michael Jackson’s Life Could Have Been Saved with Harm Reduction

In the weeks prior to his death, Michael Jackson’s family tried to do an intervention and get him into rehab. But Michael’s resistance might have been circumvented, if he had been offered a “Harm Reduction Approach” according to Dr. Marc F. Kern, a Beverly Hills addictions specialist.

When many people think of the term “intervention” they think of the type of intervention done on the A&E show “Intervention”. This type of intervention requires that the person stop using all drugs immediately and enter rehab. What if Michael Jackson had been approached with the idea that he could continue to use his medications privately, at a lower level and safely?

The following press release snippet has information about a radical new approach to addiction.

Michael Jackson’s Life Could Have Been Saved, According to Beverly Hills Psychologist

Los Angeles, CA (PRWEB) July 12, 2009 — Beverly Hills clinical psychologist and addiction expert Marc F. Kern, Ph.D. states, “A powerful, successful and extremely private man like Jackson would appear to most people that he was in denial, but rather might have been exercising his right as an adult to just say ‘NO’ to Total Abstinence.”

“Harm Reduction” is a new science-based paradigm in the field of addiction treatment, and is the approach of choice in many countries such as Canada, England and the Netherlands. Harm Reduction therapists consider substance abuse as a very complex behavior, not only a medical disease, and assist people to find safer ways of using drugs. Total abstinence is not the main emphasis but rather a secondary goal among several alternatives including moderation.

“This is not just a situation unique to celebrities like Jackson, Anna Nicole Smith, Kurt Cobain, or other high profile people. Most average individuals who use drugs or alcohol won’t accept ‘Abstinence as the Only Solution’ for themselves so there is a great deal of shame and secrecy around their habit. In our contemporary society, it is time to offer harm reduction to help the millions of affected adults and teenagers who would benefit from the harm reduction approach.” More…

Dietary Sugar and Mental Illness: A Surprising Link

I’ve always known sugar does terrible things to my mind as well as body. I feel a sickly high after eating too much sugar, lose energy and get a depressed sort of brain fog. I thought it was just me!

I have wondered about the long term affects on mood and suspected sugar consumption could have an affect on depression. Recently a noted psychiatric researcher Malcolm Peet, conducted an analysis of the relationship between diet and mental illness. His primary findings agree with my suspicion. He found a strong link between high sugar consumption and the risk of both depression and schizophrenia.

Dietary Sugar and Mental Illness: A Surprising Link

First, sugar actually suppresses activity of a key growth hormone in the brain called BDNF. This hormone promotes the health and maintenance of neurons in the brain, and it plays a vital role in memory function by triggering the growth of new connections between neurons. BDNF levels are critically low in both depression and schizophrenia, which explains why both syndromes often lead to shrinkage of key brain regions over time (yes, chronic depression actually leads to brain damage). There’s also evidence from animal models that low BDNF can trigger depression…

As I’ve become increasingly convinced by these research data, I’ve begun gently encouraging my depressed patients to simply try cutting out sugars for a couple of weeks to see if they notice any effect… A few have had the courage and determination to given it a go: they’re reported remarkable improvements in mood, energy, and mental clarity.

The Unexplained Physical Pain of Depression

Physical pain and depression go hand in hand for many people - typically women more than men. Sometimes the mystery pain, called somatoform pain disorder, is just written off as the person being a hypochondriac - but to the person experiencing the pain, it is very real.

A new research study investigated the fairly common problem of unexplained pain in people with depression.

Unexplained Pain Among Depressed Patients

“According to Frieser then, it is possible that patients who report to their doctors with multiple pain symptoms that cannot be explained in clinical terms are very probably suffering from a depressive disorder requiring treatment. In cases of major depression, the affected patients often exhibit dejection, despair, swings in appetite and body weight, insomnia or an increased need for sleep, tiredness, lack of energy, and psychomotor disturbances. These patients not infrequently also consider committing suicide.

The results of the GP survey in Mainz underline the importance of the correct classification and evaluation of pain symptoms for health care services; the general practitioners concluded that pain was somatoform in 73 percent of cases, and could be fully explained in medical terms in only 27 percent of cases.”

Cymbalta is one anti-depressant that is advertised to treat the “pain” of depression. I have not read enough reviews to know how well it works on the physical pain but it may be worth asking your Dr. about if you are suffering.

Stop the Madness - 7 Quick Sanity Tips

Recently Therese Borchard over at the PsychCentral blog asked readers for their sanity tricks - techniques that help them fight the forces of the dark side. I’ll share mine and then quote and link to the best ones readers submitted.

My Sanity Tip #7 - In with the good/out with the bad breathing. When severe anxiety hits, something that helps me is good/bad breathing. As I inhale deeply I say inside my rattled mind “In with the good: calm, peace, prosperity.” On the long, slow, cleansing exhale I say “Out with the bad: fear, worry, stress and sadness.” Change the words to fit your situation, be sure to do deep breathing and do as long as necessary until you find yourself calming down.

6 Quick Sanity Tricks

1. Learn the alphabet.

Do you know why the vowel “I” comes well before the vowel “U”? Because a person must take care of herself before trying to help someone else or the world. It’s the same logic that flight attendants use when they swear to you that your plane isn’t going to crash, but in the event that it does, you’d be smart to fasten your own oxygen mask before helping the kiddies. Do it in reverse, and you’ll all run out of air.

Read the rest of the 6 Tricks here.

Obsessed TV Show on A&E Explores OCD and Other Anxiety Disorders

If you are plagued with an anxiety disorder such as Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD), phobias or panic attacks - or if you know someone that is - you may want to watch a brand new reality show called “Obsessed“. Similar to their hit TV show “Intervention,” Obsessed portrays a very realistic, documentary-style show, but instead of addiction and intervention - this show shares a glimpse into the lives of people who suffer from various anxiety disorders and documents how it affects their quality of life and relationships. Then the show offers some insight into the cognitive behavioral therapy that helps sufferers regain control.

Obsessed premiered last night and airs Mondays at 10 Pacific, 9 Central on A&E.

Here is snippet about the show and a link to the show web site where you can watch segments from the premier show.

About Obsessed

Intense and highly personal, A&E’s true-life docuseries “Obsessed” examines the lives of everyday people imprisoned by unmanageable, repetitive behaviors and sometimes debilitating fear. Whether it is Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, Panic Disorder, Social Anxiety Disorder, General Anxiety Disorder, Hoarding or a variety of phobias, the unscripted series gives viewers a chance to see first-hand how an obsession can radically affect a person’s life.

By using cognitive behavioral therapy, each subject is taught how to understand the thought process which contributes to his or her symptoms and is coached on how to change these thought patterns, manage their anxiety and avoid the resulting debilitating compulsions. The show explores the stories of sufferers as well as the adverse effects their disorders have on their friends and family.

The Link between Belly Fat and Depression

Researchers at Rush University Medical Center have shown that depression is somehow linked to the accumulation of visceral fat, the belly fat that is packed around your internal organs at the waistline.

The study concluded that “Increased visceral fat may be one pathway by which depression contributes to excess risk for cardiovascular disease and diabetes. Further research is needed to examine whether depressive symptoms influence accumulation of VAT over time.”

Douglas Robb over at the HealtHabits blog has some great additional insights.

The Link between Belly Fat, Depression, Diabetes and Cardiovascular Disease

In a previous article, I wrote about the link between belly fat (visceral fat) and depression…

Today’s post is based on the findings of this study, which suggest that belly fat (visceral fat) “is an important pathway by which depression adds to the risk for cardiovascular disease and diabetes.”

Recession Anxiety Escalates

Due to the recession, anxiety, depression, sleep disorders and other stress related conditions are on the rise. A New York Times story has some stats and several good personal stories about how the recession is affecting people’s mental health as worry about the economy grows.

Recession Anxiety Seeps Into Everyday Lives

“It is early to measure the recession’s consequences, but surveys suggest a growing impact. In an American Psychological Association poll in September, 80 percent reported the economy’s causing significant stress, up from 66 percent last April. The National Sleep Foundation said 27 percent of people surveyed last fall had sleeplessness because of economic anxiety.

National Suicide Prevention Lifeline calls jumped to 50,158 in January 2009 from 39,465 a month in January 2008, and economic stress more frequently “played a central role,” said Richard McKeon, the group’s federal project officer.”

I agree with an anonymous commenter at the Psychology Today blog.

“My prescription for these anxieties… Turn off the news, and go play with your kids, pets, friends, etc. Articles like this add to the chaos. There was very little on how to manage stress in this article. I felt like this article was extremely sensational as is the case with the majority of articles and media reports. The fact that many cases sited were people who were not directly related, they still had a job, they were living in an area that was still doing well, they still had their savings, they had family to rely on, etc., yet they were incapacitated at times due to anxiety, proves my point. The best thing for our mental health right now, would be to turn off the sensationalizing media!!!”

Anxiety Attack Symptoms - Dealing with General Anxiety Attacks

Fear is natural. It is something that everyone deals with and can even be a healthy emotion when warranted. It’s when fear gets out of control and becomes an obsession or when someone suffers excessive fear for no valid reason that it becomes a problem that can turn into a panic or anxiety disorder. For some tips on how to deal with anxiety, read on.

My anxiety manifests as a tightness in my chest. like I have the fight or flight response for no reason. Then I get a scary out of control feeling in my head. What am I afraid of??? Nothing and everything. Chicken little the sky is falling! Doom and gloom! My mind just starts obsessing over every little thing and I become consumed with fear and these racing, repetitive thoughts take over.

So what can you do? If the anxiety is debilitating and affects your daily life - seek professional help. There are a variety of anti-anxiety medications and anti-depressants that can help. If you’ve tried anti-depressants and they didn’t work, then possibly an adjunctive medication like Abilify added to an SSRI could help.

The National Institute of Mental Health reports that approximately 1 in every 5 adults suffer with from a fear-related disorder. Here are some quick facts:

· 18.8 million American adults will suffer from depression this year
· 9.1 million American adults have an anxiety disorder
· 5.2 million American adults will experience Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder this year
· 2.4 million American adults will experience a panic disorder this year

Here are some self-help articles I found about managing fear and anxiety.

• Managing Your Persistent Fears And Anxieties
• Managing Your Fearful And Obsessive Thoughts
• When Your Fears And Depression Have The Best Of You
• Managing Your Fears With The Help Of God
• Managing Your Every Day Stresses And Anxieties
• Finding The Answers In Managing Your Fears And Anxieties
• Alcohol And Substance Abuse Will Not Take Away Your Fears
• When Someone You Know Struggles With Fear And Anxiety
• A Review Of Techniques In Managing Your Depression
• Managing The Fear Of Loneliness
• Fame, Money, And Success Will Not Take Away Your Fears
• Facing The Fear And Anxiety Of The Unknown

Provigil (Modafinil) for Depression and Weight-loss?

Wish you could pop a pill that would give you more energy, boost your mood/overcome depression, improve your memory and help you lose weight - all at the same time? Provigil (Modafinil) sounds like a wonder drug to me and I’d love to try it. Too bad it’s not approved for any of the above uses. Right now it’s only approved for excessive sleepiness associated with treated obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), or with shift work sleep disorder (SWSD) or narcolepsy.

I wonder if Provigil (Modafinil) will ever be approved as an adjunct to anti-depressant therapy? Some studies have been done showing it can be effective as a mood brightener. Many people suffering from depression also have severe fatigue and can’t get out of bed or enjoy life, so could certainly use an energy boost.

Several studies have been done on Modafinil as an augmentation for antidepressant treatment… but I don’t believe it’s FDA approved for this use yet, so it’s difficult to get insurance to cover it and Provigil is very expensive.

I’m intrigued by the fact that some consider it a smart drug, so I wonder if it could give us boomers a cognitive boost too. See: Is modafinil ( Provigil ) a smart drug ? and A Dose Of Genius - washingtonpost.com

Last but not least, studies on modafinil indicate that it has an appetite reducing/weight loss effect. Sounds like the perfect anti-depressan to me. More energy, weight-loss - instead of gain and mood enhancement all in one med. I’m going to ask my psychiatrist about it.

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