Positive Mind Map

Print this page, stick it somewhere you can easily see it, and look at it each day as a positive mind map to reinforce what you need to feel about yourself and your life.

Staying positive and fearless goes a long way towards preventing panic attacks.

Autogenic Therapy (also called Autogenic Training) is a relaxation technique involving self suggestion which was developed by the German psychiatrist, Johannes Schultz and first published in 1932.  It is a powerful and proven deep relaxation technique similar to mediation, which enables you to relax your body and calm your mind quickly.  Autogenic therapy is one of the simplest and most effective ways to activate the ‘relaxation response’ which can break the vicious cycle of stress related disorders.

The core of this therapy is a course that teaches simple exercises using passive concentration in body awareness and relaxation and is practiced either sitting in a chair, lying down or in a horizontal posture and once mastered it can be done in almost any environment.  Visualization is also often used with Autogenic therapy practices.

Autogenic therapy is used extensively in business and sport to enhance performance and reduce stress and needs to be learned with a qualified therapist.  Once learned, it is a skill for life equipping you to deal with stress completely independently.

Please note that this therapy is very safe but isn’t recommended for people with severe mental problems such as personality disorders, for children or people who lack the intelligence to understand and perform the training.

Please contact your medical practitioner to see if this treatment would benefit you and where it is being held in your local area.

For other stress relief articles see Herbal stress relief or Who else wants instant stress relief.

Even in the Western world, Eastern medicine has found its place in treating certain ailments and conditions.  Chinese medicine in particular is popular with various herbal formulations being sold not only in oriental drugstores but in mainstream retails stores and pharmacies as well.  One particular segment of the market that is served by Chinese medicine is those who are looking for anxiety disorder help.

Anxiety disorders are usually concerned with psychological roots and occasionally hormonal or chemical imbalances.  Chinese medicine is effective in providing anxiety disorder help owing to its spiritual roots and relaxation benefits. As an anxiety disorder help, Chinese medicine serves to counteract the negative energies that are thought to be the cause of anxiety.  These treatments include either or a combination of herbal medication and acupuncture therapy.

Several herbs are usually combined in formulations that are known to ease anxiety, stress and other ailments.  Among those herbs that are combined in Chinese medicine to treat anxiety disorders include Polygonum Root, Ginseng, Licorice Root, Duanwood Reishi, Jujube Date, Dang Gui Root, Cynomorium Herb, Rehmannia Root, and Polyrachis Ant.  These herbal treatments usually come in pills, tea bags, powders, and tonics among others.

Chinese accupuncture is also an acceptable way of treating anxiety disorders.  Western doctors have been known to recommend acupuncture as an alternative treatment method not only for anxiety disorders but other ailments as well.  Acupuncture therapy is all natural and safe if performed by trained therapists.  This particular treatment has been practiced since ancient times to keep Qi or energy moving in a smooth and balance manner through the meridians or channels under our skin.  Anxiety, stress, anger, fear, grief, infections, and trauma are among those that are addressed by acupunture therapy.

So you can see now that Chinese medicine has its place with helping with  anxiety disorder.

Social anxiety affects millions of people yearly and is the third largest mental health problem  in the world. We are often referred to as shy but that is not necessarily so.  I am only shy or nervous in a few situations whereas I can give a talk to groups of people without any problem (public speaking is the most common social fear).  Some people are shy but don’t show it outwardly, actually acting  quite the opposite to hide their nervousness.

What frightens me:
Meeting new people in new places
Dating (although now Im engaged that is no longer a problem I face)
Looking different from everyone else
Embarrassing myself in front of others

I would describe myself as an emotional person and that makes me more likely to be shy or a worrier or to get depressed etc.  I don’t regard this though as a complete negative as I also am kind hearted and a caring person which is the positive side of being that emotional person. Many factors also play a part in whether you develop social anxiety such as the way You were brought up and your family life,  your learned experiences and the way you reacted to them.

I probably developed social anxiety  in my early 20s but cant think of any event that may have triggered it off.  As a child I was confident, outgoing and friendly. It must have been a gradual thing.  I was a young mother at the time and my self esteem was not very good, I worried about everything and I became a negative thinker. I didn’t socialize much as we didn’t have much money and so it was confined to mainly family events and meeting my husbands friends. I cant remember having too many friends of my own at that time.

As a shy person I worried about what others thought of me and I didn’t feel I measured up at social situations like parties and other social gatherings.  It wasn’t helped by having a husband who was a critical and negative person, not just of me, but of most things in general.  I always felt and sometimes made to feel that I was fat and frumpy next to the other wives.  This in turn made me feel that I didn’t want to go or contribute to the conversations at these gatherings.  People just thought I was shy.

As a consequence I started to avoid social situations like the plague.

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A great book I would like to recommend here and now is Overcoming Shyness and Social Phobia: A Step-by-Step Guide (Clinical Application of Evidence-Based Psychotherapy).  It is a guide and a work book by Ronald M Rapee PhD that I have used and found to be very helpful to understanding and managing shyness and social anxiety.

Agoraphobia can be treated successfully with the help of the sufferer, that is the key.  People suffering from agoraphobia normally do not know what triggers their anxiety attacks and therefore try to avoid being in places where they feel stressed and could be embarrassed by such attacks.  They usually fear being alone outside their homes, being in a crowd, traveling for long periods in a closed vehicle, or being in any enclosed area an eventually can be the fear of being afraid and losing control.
Agoraphobia treatment differs from one sufferer to another.  The causes for agoraphobia are not definite as each one could have a different trigger from another.  Their anxiety attacks occur randomly and unpredictably in episodes.  This is the reason why these patients try to avoid places that cause severe anxiety to them.  To prevent agoraphobia from progressing into other conditions such as depression,  alcohol or drug dependency, and other non related medical conditions such as  chronic fatigue and hypertension, it is necessary for those who are exhibiting such symptoms to seek agoraphobia treatment.

Treatment for agoraphobia includes psychiatric evaluations and psychotherapy, as well as antidepressant medications (if necessary).  Cognitive behavioral therapy is also often necessary for successful treatment of agoraphobia and this is one treatment that I think is the most effective.  All these should be taken in combination to be able to successfully treat agoraphobia.   The patient shall be gradually exposed to the particular situations identified to be triggering his attacks.  This technique is called desensitization and is considered to be an effective, although not easily developed, way of permanently treating agoraphobia.

Many people have achieved great success with PANIC AWAY. You can read their stories and see how they can help you.

There is much controversy surrounding the effectiveness of  St John’s Wort as a depression and stress relief treatment.  While it has been found to be effective on its own, there are some drug interactions that could cause adverse effects to patients who also suffer from other disorders.   This herbal  is definitely effective but certainly needs to be taken only with the supervision of a physician.

Effective stress relief can be achieved though with regular use of  St John’s Wort.  While this is so, improvement in one’s general mental state can only be expected about three months after starting the herbal treatment.  Those who are looking for immediate stress relief should consult with their physicians right away.  Formulations of this herbal remedy vary in potency and could differ in their effects on a patient.  It would not be wise to make a decision on which brand of  St John’s Wort product to use merely based on cost.  You need to investigate the various brands and decide the best dosage and potency for your condition.

Other side effects of using this herbal remedy could include photo sensitivity and dizziness.  Extra care should be taken to address these side effects if you are going to be taking it continuously for stress relief over a long period of time.

There is no denying that St John’s Wort can do what it claims it can do.  It does lift mood for those who are seeking treatment for mild cases of depression or for stress relief.  They can definitely benefit from taking this herbal supplement  but only with proper consultation with a physician and by making  an informed decision.  Just be aware of the drug interactions though but this is a natural anxiety treatment worth trying for stress relief and mild depression.

Relaxation is so important in keeping anxiety at bay but it can be quite difficult to maintain.  I work at keeping my stress levels down and music I found is great for this.  This is a great video and it has great music.  Please take some time out to put on some headphones, sit in a relaxed position, turn off your cell phone, close the doors and listen to this video.

This is a 26 minute video so you will definitely feel yourself relaxing. Save it to your computer and you can listen to it as often as you want.  Just remember that the more you watch and listen the easier it will become to keep your stress levels down.

If you are looking for some great music for relaxation then look to Amazon.com for them.  Sitting on the beach, in the park or by the pool, these are great places to try and relax and Amazon has music for every taste.   I love to listen to relaxation music while I’m traveling as well.  My favorite is Healing Sounds of Nature – Thunderstorm, Rain and Ocean Waves but another related to this video is Echoes of Nature: Rainforest.  Both have lovely relaxing tones that relax me fairly quickly.  What ones you do like best?

But why do we fear speaking in front of others so very much? Psychologists believe that it is not really public speaking that make people experience so much STRESS but the fear of making a mistake in front of others. Public speaking anxiety can however be conquered with the right attitude and commitment.

Here are some points that can start you in your path towards a public speaking anxiety free life:

Speak about what you know
Talking about something that you have a passion for and know will not only lessen the anxiety that you may experience and will also make you appear fervent and enthusiastic about the project.

Use Humor
What’s the best way to impress an audience? To make them feel connected to you. And how do you exactly do that? Use humor. Open your speech with a joke or funny obervation. Everyone loves to laugh. This can also help you relax. It’s also a good strategy for covering up errors when they happen as well.

Practice
When you practice, the chance for making a mistake decreases. The biggest benefit though will be that it will make you feel more self assured, knowing that you have prepared for the speech and that you have done your best to present it.

Involve The Audience
The best way to appear good before an audience is to actually acknowledge their existence. Also when you do this it makes the speech less formal and more comfortable for everyone. A less formal approach can excuse the speaker from some blunders.

My main coping technique in regard to public speaking anxiety is to think of everyone as children. Children are accepting and not critical.  Find what works for you as we all react differently to stress. Maybe all you need is to listen to some RELAXATION MUSIC beforehand and that is what I do as it brings my stress levels down quite dramatically.

I have spoken about this online store called The Unexplainable Store before but in the last week I noticed that my anxiety levels were rising again because of a few things happening in my life at present, and so I wanted to talk to you again about how the music they sell is such a great help to me in managing my anxiety.   If something works then you should spread the news!

You know in yourself when your anxiety has reared its ugly head and sometimes it’s a surprise, and feels like it has come from nowhere, and at other times you know exactly what has triggered it.  The good news for me is that when I realize my stress levels are building, I then can go and control it and reduce it to a manageable level  with binaural beat music, and before it develops into a panic attack.

The Unexplainable Store sells binaural beat music which is played in both ears at once through stereo earphones.  You download the music straight to your computer and then you can put it on your iPod or MP3 player.   It’s amazing how fast it works to get your stress levels down even from the first recording.  When you listen to the music you can feel a kind of buzz ( Im sorry thats not very descriptive) so you know its working for you.  Maybe I’m more sensitive or something, and I would love you to tell me how it affects you.

They have a wide range of titles but my favorites are Slow Down and Relax and Anxiety Aid.  Besides titles on anxiety and stress they also have recordings on motivation, prosperity and weight loss.  I have also used the self hypnosis recordings as well and find them very good.

You can order a free 10 minute sample from The Unexplainable Store which is great way to get a feel for what the audios are all about but be prepared at first to take about 6-8 minutes to relax and concentrate so the full versions would give you a lot more benefits.

If you suffer from anxiety you have to give it a go.  It works for me and has saved me from a panic attack on a few occasions and I also take them and my iPod when I travel and am a little more keyed up.  You can read my full review of this online store it’s at at Squidoo and its called The Unexplainable Store Review.  There is also a video on there from the owner of the site.

Its hard to believe there could be a single cure as there are many types and causes of anxiety attacks. Some people have very mild forms of anxiety attacks while others will experience immobilizing fear. Often, anxiety problems are mild and can be prevented. While no single anxiety cure exists, there are many things you can do to stop and treat it.

Anxiety cure |Prevention is better than cure
Have a positive outlook. Negative thinking can be the worst thing that can develop into bad thinking patterns. Keep anxiety levels down by practising relaxation methods. A healthy and balanced diet can help reduce the risk of many minor anxiety ailments.

Treatments | Curing the anxiety
Behavioral therapy is by far the most popular form of treatment for patients with anxiety disorders. Many anxiety disorders are formed out of habit. By breaking the habit and by forming new positive experiences the fear will fade. The doctor will try to desensitize the patient from the object of his fear. Exercises are done repeatedly until the anxiety disappears.

Another method that psychologists use to help treat patients is to show them how to do breathing exercises which will improve their oxygen intake, which relaxes and calms down the person. Control breathing has been a big part of the way I have learnt to control anxiety and panic.

There is no quick anxiety cure, but most anxiety problems are not major threats to a person’s health just usually to their lifestyle and quality of life so its worth the effort to be brave and aim for a cure.