Anxiety

Anxiety is a normal reaction to stress. It is a feeling of apprehension or fear.The source of this uneasiness is not always identifiable. Anxiety is often accompanied by physical effects like heart palpitation, fatigue, nausea, chest pain, shortness of breath, stomach ache or headache. External signs may include pale skin,sweating,trembling and pupillary dilation.

SYMPTOMS

Physical : like sweating,trembling, pupillary dilation, heart palpitation, fatigue,nausea, chest pain, shortness of breath, stomach ache, head ache.

Emotional: like feeling of apprehension, anticipating the worst, irritability, restlessness, feeling like your mind gone blank, trouble in concentrating.

CAUSES OF ANXIETY

Certain drug, both recreational and medicinal, can lead to a symptom of anxiety due to their side effects Such drugs include caffeine, alcohol, nicotine, bronchodialators, antidepressant, cocaine, amphetamines, ADHD medication and thyroid. Beside this poor diet can also contribute to stress or anxiety.In very rare case a tumour of adrenal gland may be the cause of anxiety. The symptoms are caused by over production of hormones responsible for feeling of anxiety.

TYPES OF ANXIETY

1. Generalised Anxiety

It is common chronic disorder characterised by long lasting anxiety that is not focused on any one object or situation.

Those suffering from generalised anxiety experience non specific persistent fear and worry and become over concerned with every day.

2. Panic Disorder

A person suffering from brief attacks of intense terror and apprehension, often marked by trembling, shaking, confusion, dizziness nausea. These can peak in less than 10 min. and can lasts for several hours. Although special cause is not always apparent.

3 .Phobia

This include all cases in which fear and anxiety is triggered by a specific stimulus or situation. This is the largest category of anxiety disorder.

a. Agoraphobia

This is a condition when sufferer become anxious in environment which is unfamiliar or where he has little control. This anxiety is often compounded by a fear of social embarrassment.

Agoraphobics may experience panic attack in situation where they feel trapped insecure, out of control or too far from their personal comfort zone. In severe cases, the sufferer confined to his/ her home.

b. Social Anxiety Disorder

This is also called Social Phobia. This is described as an intense fear of negative public scrutiny or a public embarrassment or humiliation. This fear can be specific to particular social situation like public speaking or more typically, is experienced in social interaction. Person suffering from social anxiety tries to avoid the sources of the anxiety, in severe cases leads to complete isolation.

4. Obsessive Compulsive Disorder

This disorder is characterised by intrusive thoughts resulting in compulsive behaviour and mental acts that the person feel driven to perform, according to rule that must be applied rigidly, aimed at reducing anxiety by preventing some imagined dreaded events. However these compulsive behaviour and mental acts are not very common disorder. In US 1 in 50 adult has obsessive compulsive disorder.

5. Post Traumatic Stress Disorder

This disorder results from from a traumatic experience such as rape, serious accident or threat to physical or psychological integrity.

6. Separation Anxiety Disorder

This anxiety is due to separation from person or place. Though separation anxiety is common in all age group and its normal but if this feeling is excessive or inappropriate then we call it disorder. This disorder affects roughly 7% adult and 4% children.

REMEDY

- First of all you should find the source of your stress.

- Maintaining a diary of experiences and thoughts will make it easy.

- Then you need someone who will listen to you. Though it may not solve the problem but will help to ease out the pressure.

- Beside this healthy diet, good sleep and relaxation techniques like yoga, meditation helps a lot.

- If nothing is helping take an appointment with your doctor.