I have suffered with Generalized Anxiety Disorder for a number of years, during this time my weight has plummeted and ballooned and I have found it very hard to maintain a good weight. Prior to Generalized Anxiety Disorder sticking its big nose into my happy and carefree life I was a good weight, fit and healthy. I was a UK10-12, I swam and ran and loved my food. I knew I was prone to putting on weight so would keep a check on my diet and weight and make the changes that were needed.

When anxiety and panic first hit I stopped eating and drank nothing more than a little water. I was often sick in the morning and if I tried to eat was gagging on food. My weight dropped but because I wasn’t skinny to start with it was not considered a problem, except by my hubby who was terrified by how little I was eating. For me what was a problem was that I had no energy, I stopped running and my children were noticing I never ate. I permanently had the shakes which my daughter was fascinated by and still remembers. It was at this time that I was first prescribed anti-depressants.

After the first week on them my appetite came back with a vengeance. I could not stop eating and not good healthy food either, I craved cakes, chocolate and burgers, all high sugar, high carb bad, bad food. I was eating again, that’s all that mattered. The weight piled back on and then some. I kept telling myself I would start being careful tomorrow then I stopped thinking about it altogether. My Doctor had described my medication as “nonchalance pills” and he was right. It just did not matter to me, I was feeling OK and I didn’t have thoughts of getting on the scales. I am grateful, in hindsight, that I did not have this attitude to the kids diet, I managed to maintain a healthy diet that they had always had.

I’m not sure when it hit me or why it suddenly mattered but one day I saw how big I had become, I got on the scales and I was 2 stone heavier. I decided to come off the anti-depressants. I just stopped taking them. Low and behold a few weeks later the anxiety was making my life a misery but this time no sudden weight loss, I was still eating anything that I could get my hands on. I was back at the Doctors being prescribed a different type of anti-depressant and also counselling. Another stone and a half went on this time and I did not feel the benefits of the anti-depressants. I managed to get myself running again but I always lacked energy and spent a lot of time beating myself up about my weight, my diet and how my running had slowed so much - was it any wonder, I was carrying an extra 3 stone!!

I came off that medication with Doctor supervision and with the help of CBT began to feel better, I lost a little weight, felt more in control and began to get my running up to where it had once been. Then there was trouble at work, I had no way of coping, no reserves left, I was highly sensitized to the anxiety I was feeling and panic set in. This time I refused medication, I was more concerned with my weight than anything else - by this time I was a UK 16, the biggest I had ever been. I joined a weight loss programme and began to eat more healthily. I was back to eating five a day and cut right back on sweet snacks. I have a sweet tooth and never want to completely deprive myself of the food I love, but moderation has very much made a welcome return to my life.

As I began to get better I realised that diet is linked into the feelings of exhaustion and self loathing that I had been living with. If you eat rubbish food you feel rubbish, with a good healthy diet and treats as just that, a treat, you feel less tired. It can be hard work at first, you have to make a real effort to get cooking and get moving. I stopped giving myself a hard time about running. I’ll run when I feel like it, I don’t force myself out of bed at 6am to run for an hour anymore. I walk the children to school everyday and I go for a jog when I feel like it. My diet, my health and my attitude improved together and I truly believe that they are all linked together and part of the road to recovery from Generalized Anxiety Disorder.

Why do you have anxiety Why are you prone to panic attacks What’s wrong with you Why are you worried so much These are some of the questions that might be flashing through your mind if you suffer from generalized anxiety or panic attacks.

There are a lot of reasons that people experience anxiety at different points in their lives or as a sustained problem. Traumatic events, upheaval, financial, personal or emotional strain and longer term biological and behavioral factors may come into play. For some people, however, they experience anxiety because they lack meaning or purpose in their life.

So many of us often ask the question, why are we here What is our purpose What were we meant to contribute Some answers seem obvious; others are more elusive and leave us searching for answers.

We all have a basic idea that we should strive to be good people, help others, give to those less fortunate and work hard with honesty and integrity. But so many of us wonder how to achieve our full potential, how to achieve great things, whatever that particular concept means to us as individuals, and live a complete life.

So many people are bored, stymied, feel held back or incomplete because they haven t achieved or accomplished what they think they are capable of. If you re having this nagging feeling of not reaching your potential it can make you anxious.

If you feel trapped in your job, your residence, your location, your family situation and your current life, it can contribute to anxiety, phobias or panic attacks. These attacks are simply manifestations of the fear you feel about being trapped in your current life situation. Fears are often a mirror through which we can view ourselves.

Sometimes simply finding an outlet to give your life greater meaning or purpose can reduce your feelings of anxiety and panic. Monumental changes to your life are not usually necessary but finding a passion, exploring and developing it can be instrumental in providing you with a more positive outlook.

Going back to school, changing your career, developing a talent or getting involved in your community can all be ways to find a more complete purpose in life. When we feel we are living up to our potential, using our talents and fulfilling our purpose we feel better about ourselves, others and our own lives. Feeling good is really the best tool in fighting anxiety, panic and fear.

Regardless of your age, profession or life circumstances you can make small changes that have big mental impacts. Happiness isn t measured in dollars; it s really about being fulfilled. Some people find this feeling at church or with their own spirituality, while others find it through community involvement and outreach.

Still others find satisfaction in pursuing hobbies, changing careers, learning a new occupation or developing a new talent. Contributions big and small are all important to the world and you need to find your little piece of happiness.

Once you do, you will feel better, experience less anxiety and lead a generally more fulfilled life. Start your search now.

Why are you worried? Because you fear for the worst! When a negative thought pops into your head replace it with a neutral thought instead. 96% of worries never happen. Be open to the idea that there will most likely be a positive outcome to any given worry. Teach your mind to observe the good things that are happening now in your life, instead of dwelling on bad things that have happened in your past or could possibly happen in the future. Live for the moment, not the past or future.

Neutral thinking can be of considerable benefit to anxiety sufferers. The aim of neutral thinking is to provide your mind with realistic alternatives to negative thoughts. So, for example, instead of saying to yourself “I’m an idiot” you would turn this into something neutral, like: “I am a very bright person, but we all make mistakes”; the point is to replace every negative thought with a neutral thought. The neutral thought must be something which your mind can accept; in other words it must be realistic; so, for example, if you are having a truly awful day you wouldn’t say to yourself “I’m having a great day” because your mind simply won’t believe it; but if you are having a truly awful day and you say something like “I’m okay, everything is fine” this is neutral enough for your mind to accept.

It takes time to retrain your mind and the negative thoughts will come back from time to time but be persistent. The more persistent you are the less recurring negative thoughts you will have. Each week will get easier if you monitor your thoughts and replace any negative thought with a neutral one. Repetition is the key to training any new habit and re-conditioning your mind. Whenever a negative thought pops into your head replace it with a neutral thought. More often than not you will start to feel much better within a week or two; you will also feel much more able to carry on with life than you were when you were overcome with fears. One of the most exciting things about training any new habit is that with practise it gets easier.

When you find that you are worrying less I hope you will realise that worry does not assist you to make better decisions. That is because worry is an emotion. Emotion is not rational it does not help you to see things more clearly or logically. Decisions should not be based on emotion. Rather, decisions should be based on logical, rational, decision-making. It can be very hard to think logically when you are very emotional about something. The situation is made worse by the fact that when we are afraid of something we tend to find evidence to confirm our fear.

You will likely encounter both ups and downs along the road to recovery. To handle the “downs” observe them, take note of them, and be aware that they will soon come to pass. Stick with it, and take one step at a time. Remember inch by inch is a synch. Down-times are natural, as are changes in mood. Give things a fair chance, and the time to take effect, before you simply give up.

For better ways to cure anxiety, stress, panic, fear, or phobia click here: http://www.johnsreview.net/beatanxiety.html

This article was written by John horrax.

 

References:

T.H. Rogers, Panic & Anxiety - There is Light at the End of the Tunnel.

Andrew Langerman, Proactive Strategies for Anxiety and Depression.

 

This article is solely for informational purposes. It is not medical advice. No one including the editor, author, reference authors, or anyone else or any company take responsibility for any possible consequences from any treatment, procedure, exercise, dietary modification, action or application of medication which results from reading or following the information contained in this article. The publication of this article does not constitute the practice of medicine, and the information contained in it does not replace the advice of your doctor or other health care provider. Before undertaking any treatment whatsoever, the reader must seek the advice of their doctor or other health care provider.

Why are you worried? Because you fear for the worst! When a negative thought pops into your head replace it with a neutral thought instead. 96% of worries never happen. Be open to the idea that there will most likely be a positive outcome to any given worry. Teach your mind to observe the good things that are happening now in your life, instead of dwelling on bad things that have happened in your past or could possibly happen in the future. Live for the moment, not the past or future.

Neutral thinking can be of considerable benefit to anxiety sufferers. The aim of neutral thinking is to provide your mind with realistic alternatives to negative thoughts. So, for example, instead of saying to yourself “I’m an idiot” you would turn this into something neutral, like: “I am a very bright person, but we all make mistakes”; the point is to replace every negative thought with a neutral thought. The neutral thought must be something which your mind can accept; in other words it must be realistic; so, for example, if you are having a truly awful day you wouldn’t say to yourself “I’m having a great day” because your mind simply won’t believe it; but if you are having a truly awful day and you say something like “I’m okay, everything is fine” this is neutral enough for your mind to accept.

It takes time to retrain your mind and the negative thoughts will come back from time to time but be persistent. The more persistent you are the less recurring negative thoughts you will have. Each week will get easier if you monitor your thoughts and replace any negative thought with a neutral one. Repetition is the key to training any new habit and re-conditioning your mind. Whenever a negative thought pops into your head replace it with a neutral thought. More often than not you will start to feel much better within a week or two; you will also feel much more able to carry on with life than you were when you were overcome with fears. One of the most exciting things about training any new habit is that with practise it gets easier.

When you find that you are worrying less I hope you will realize that worry does not assist you to make better decisions. That is because worry is an emotion. Emotion is not rational it does not help you to see things more clearly or logically. Decisions should not be based on emotion. Rather, decisions should be based on logical, rational, decision-making. It can be very hard to think logically when you are very emotional about something. The situation is made worse by the fact that when we are afraid of something we tend to find evidence to confirm our fear.

You will likely encounter both ups and downs along the road to recovery. To handle the “downs” observe them, take note of them, and be aware that they will soon come to pass. Stick with it, and take one step at a time. Remember inch by inch is a sync. Down-times are natural, as are changes in mood. Give things a fair chance, and the time to take effect, before you simply give up.

Why do you have anxiety? Why are you prone to panic attacks? What’s wrong with you? Why are you worried so much? These are some of the questions that might be flashing through your mind if you suffer from generalized anxiety or panic attacks.

There are a lot of reasons that people experience anxiety at different points in their lives or as a sustained problem. Traumatic events, upheaval, financial, personal or emotional strain and longer term biological and behavioral factors may come into play. For some people, however, they experience anxiety because they lack meaning or purpose in their life.

So many of us often ask the question, why are we here? What is our purpose? What were we meant to contribute? Some answers seem obvious; others are more elusive and leave us searching for answers. 

We all have a basic idea that we should strive to be good people, help others, give to those less fortunate and work hard with honesty and integrity. But so many of us wonder how to achieve our full potential, how to achieve great things, whatever that particular concept means to us as individuals, and live a complete life. 

So many people are bored, stymied, feel held back or incomplete because they haven´t achieved or accomplished what they think they are capable of. If you´re having this nagging feeling of not reaching your potential it can make you anxious. 

If you feel trapped in your job, your residence, your location, your family situation and your current life, it can contribute to anxiety, phobias or panic attacks. These attacks are simply manifestations of the fear you feel about being trapped in your current life situation. Fears are often a mirror through which we can view ourselves. 

Sometimes simply finding an outlet to give your life greater meaning or purpose can reduce your feelings of anxiety and panic. Monumental changes to your life are not usually necessary but finding a passion, exploring and developing it can be instrumental in providing you with a more positive outlook. 

Going back to school, changing your career, developing a talent or getting involved in your community can all be ways to find a more complete purpose in life. When we feel we are living up to our potential, using our talents and fulfilling our purpose we feel better about ourselves, others and our own lives. Feeling good is really the best tool in fighting anxiety, panic and fear. 

Regardless of your age, profession or life circumstances you can make small changes that have big mental impacts. Happiness isn´t measured in dollars; it´s really about being fulfilled. Some people find this feeling at church or with their own spirituality, while others find it through community involvement and outreach. 

Still others find satisfaction in pursuing hobbies, changing careers, learning a new occupation or developing a new talent. Contributions big and small are all important to the world and you need to find your little piece of happiness. 

Once you do, you will feel better, experience less anxiety and lead a generally more fulfilled life.  Start your search now.