OCD\u2014and other anxiety disorders\u2014can be debilitating and devastating illnesses.<\/p>\n
\u201cIndividuals with OCD suffer on a daily basis, some completing hours of rituals, while others are paralyzed by intrusive thoughts,\u201d said Scarlet. People with other anxiety disorders also experience \u201ca tremendous amount of distress\u201d day to day. For some of Scarlet\u2019s clients, it can take hours to get out of bed, while others are unable to leave the house (or another space \u201cthey deem to be safe\u201d).<\/p>\n
\u201cSomeone with illness anxiety disorder may [believe] they have a life-threatening illness\u2026. [People with] GAD (generalized anxiety disorder), or OCD may have recurrent intrusive thoughts about their biggest fears coming true. It is similar to experiencing one\u2019s worst nightmare on loop in someone\u2019s mind.\u201d<\/p>\n
Some people with social anxiety are so afraid of rejection or humiliation that making eye contact, waiting in line or saying \u201chello\u201d triggers overwhelming anxiety or panic attacks, she said.<\/p>\n
And what makes all of this worse is criticism from others, and comments like \u201cjust try to get over it,\u201d Scarlet added.<\/p>\n
Anxiety can be successfully treated in a timely fashion.<\/h3>\n
Even though anxiety disorders are difficult, they\u2019re one of the most treatable disorders. Yet only a third of people seek treatment, said Kevin Chapman<\/a>, Ph.D, a psychologist who specializes in evidence-based treatment for anxiety and related disorders in adults and adolescents at his private practice in Louisville, K.Y. That\u2019s because \u201cMost individuals with anxiety disorders manage their anxiety through avoidance behaviors.\u201d<\/p>\n In fact, many of Regine Galanti\u2019s clients don\u2019t even use the word \u201canxiety\u201d to describe their concerns. Galanti<\/a>, Ph.D, is the director of Long Island Behavioral Psychology, where she specializes in using evidence-based treatments for anxiety and related disorders in children, teens and adults.<\/p>\n Rather, her clients talk about everything they don\u2019t<\/em> do, she said: They don\u2019t drive or attend get-togethers with more than a few people. They avoid public speaking.<\/p>\n Avoidance may provide temporary relief. But it also \u201cmaintains the anxiety long term and creates a vicious cycle of further avoidance,\u201d Chapman said. Thankfully, you don\u2019t need to go to therapy for years to feel better.<\/p>\n Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) is a powerful treatment that typically ranges from 8 to 17 sessions for panic disorder, agoraphobia, social anxiety disorder, phobias, GAD, PTSD, and OCD, Chapman said.\u00a0For a spider phobia, a single prolonged session\u2014several hours-long\u2014can even effect positive change.<\/p>\n To find a therapist Galanti suggested checking out the directory<\/a> at the Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies.<\/p>\n Anxiety is very visceral. As Galanti explained, when something sparks our anxiety, our bodies go into \u201cpanic mode,\u201d triggering a cascade of reactions: your heart beats faster, your breath accelerates, your muscles stiffen, your head aches, and it feels like your stomach is doing somersaults.<\/p>\n These physical reactions lead to more anxious thoughts, which leads to stronger reactions.<\/p>\n Galanti gave this example: \u201cMy breathing quickens when I see [a] spider, which makes me think, \u2018Oh wow, that spider must be really dangerous,\u2019 which makes my heart beat even faster, which is just proof that the spider is dangerous. So the system is self-perpetuating.\u201d<\/p>\n Similarly, Galanti wants readers to know that this visceral reaction makes it difficult to use rational thinking to reduce anxiety.<\/p>\n \u201cMost people with anxiety know they\u2019re being irrational, but it doesn\u2019t help because in the moment, fear takes over.\u201d In the moment, fear convinces us that we\u2019re having a heart attack. As Galanti\u2019s clients tell her, \u201cit feels so real.\u201d In the moment, fear convinces us that we\u2019re going to throw up during our talk.<\/p>\n This is why the best strategy is to gradually, systematically and repeatedly face our fears (as part of exposure therapy, a type of CBT).<\/p>\n Humor can be a great tool for dealing with anxiety\u2014and really anything. But it becomes unhelpful when destructive habits are regularly glorified. For example, as therapist Zo\u00eb Kahn<\/a>, LCSW, pointed out, almost every post on @mytherapistsays (which has 3.2 million followers) normalizes blackout drinking to deal with social anxiety.<\/p>\n \u201cThe memes are funny because they ring true to many young people\u2019s experience of social expectations and romanticized desires to be popular or instafamous,\u201d said Kahn, a licensed clinical social worker in private practice, primarily seeing clients on the Eastside of Los Angeles.<\/p>\n \u201cAs a former staff therapist at several drug and alcohol treatment programs in Los Angeles, I can say that somewhere between 50 to 75 percent of clients began using drugs and alcohol at an early age to self-medicate for varying anxiety disorders [such as] social anxiety disorder, panic disorder or anxiety related to trauma.\u201d<\/p>\n Again, turning to substances to avoid experiencing anxiety (or to dampen your inhibitions) only exacerbates that anxiety. It sends \u201cthe message that anxiety is dangerous and that you need to do something to make it go away,\u201d Galanti said. It also sends the message that you can\u2019t cope with certain situations unless you\u2019re drinking or using drugs. Which only deepens self-doubt and ramps up those dangerous habits. But you can<\/em> tolerate difficult situations (and the discomfort) and thrive\u2014seeking therapy is a transformational way to do that.<\/p>\n Scarlet, founder of Superhero Therapy<\/a>, which incorporates superheroes and comic book and science fiction characters into evidence-based therapies, wants everyone to know that \u201cit takes a great hero to face a dragon on a daily basis.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cLike Frodo in \u2018Lord of the Rings,\u2019 like Harry Potter, like Wonder Woman, people with anxiety didn\u2019t choose the things that happen to them.\u201d But you have \u201cthe knowledge and the wisdom to understand others who may be going through the same experience. Your anxiety is your origin story; the rest of your heroic quest is up to you.\u201d<\/p>\n You can read part one here<\/a>. <\/em><\/p>\n Visit Original Source<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" For something so common, anxiety is still massively misunderstood. There are myths and misconceptions about everything from what anxiety disorders look and feel like to what actually helps to treat these illnesses and navigate anxiety. Which is why we asked several anxiety experts to clear things up. Below, you\u2019ll find <\/p>\n Read More<\/a>Anxiety goes beyond anxious thoughts.<\/h3>\n
Many people use substances to cope with anxiety\u2014and it\u2019s not a laughing matter.<\/h3>\n
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Shared by Margarita Tartakovsky, M.S., Contributing Blogger<\/a> November 27, 2018<\/p>\n