Anxiety Disorder Guide

Abdominal pain is one of the symptoms of a person experiencing frequent anxiety attacks. The sufferer might think he or she has an ulcer but it more than likely is associated with the excess acid produced by a churning stomach. The underlying causes that result in abdominal pain can be very difficult to suppress for the sufferer but relief will definitely ease some of the stress on the patient. Let's look at a few ways to get anxiety disorder related abdominal pain under control.

You have been applying for your dream job on several occasions over the last couple of years and finally they have called you to come in for an interview. On the big day you get ready to go to their office but you can feel your anxiety level begin to increase. You know you have problems with anxiety disorder anyways but this time your reaction is even more intense and you notice your heart is beating rapidly. In fact, your heart is beating so rapidly that it seems as if there is something seriously wrong-like you are having a heart attack. You end up calling the employer and canceling the interview. All hopes of your dream job are gone. Such is the life of a person suffering from anxiety disorder. And now, you worry about your heart. It is tough on your heart and you need to be aware of just what is causing these symptoms like heart palpitations so you can deal with them.

Most everyone gets a little nervous before a test, even if they have studied hard and done all their homework. This is quite normal and a little anticipation keeps you focused while you are taking the test. But for some people the stress and nervousness they get before a test, can be overwhelming and cause them to forget all the answers and not to be able to concentrate and focus. This is actually a performance anxiety called test anxiety. It is not just being afraid that you are not going to do well or score poorly. The appearance of butterflies, stomachaches, a headache, feeling shaky or in some cases vomiting or passing out, are all signs of this anxiety.

Stress is part of our daily lives. Believe it or not, stress can be healthy for you depending on how you deal with this stress. When your life however, becomes consumed with how to manage this stress, there is reason for concern. Anxiety is a form of stress that can cause great concern as it affects your body in many different ways.

When we look at the physical symptoms of General Anxiety Disorder, we discover that this disorder can affect six of the major body symptoms. Your blood pressed increases with anxiety and that can lead to rapid heartbeats or Tachycardia. There is also constriction of the blood vessels that may occur in both the legs and in the arms. While these blood vessels constrict, the vessels around the skeletal muscles dilate or become larger. These changes in your cardiovascular system can result in headaches, cold fingers and heart palpitations which is the awareness of your increased heart rate. This is just your cardiovascular system.

Do you experience an excessive feeling of fear? You feel as if you can not breathe, chocking, dizzy, weakening in the knee, cold sweat, nausea, stomach ache, or feel like you are dying. These are the symptoms of panic attack. Panic attack can induce physical symptoms that making the sufferer seem to be having a chronic disease. Things like; when feeling a chest pain one would imagining getting a heart attack; or when experiencing a headache, one would think that he/she is about to have a stroke.

Something that happens when an anxiety disorder sufferer has an attack is that the body's internal temperature goes up. There is more heat produced and the obvious reaction the body has is to sweat profusely. Sweating is part of the body's cooling system and if a person did not sweat he or she would be susceptible to serious heat injury to include heat stroke. One particularly troublesome problem for the anxiety sufferer is that the profuse sweating during an attack oftentimes will occur in the most embarrassing of situations and usually within a social context. Imagine giving a presentation to corporate management and breaking out in huge drops of sweat because of your inner anxiety. Those observing on the outside don't really know that the sufferer is having an anxiety reaction so they begin to draw conclusions that this person was not prepared or some other negative evaluation. Of course the sufferer is also aware of his or her situation and experiences embarrassment because of the sweat which can serve to add to more anxiety. This is definitely a symptom the sufferer wants to get under control but how?

Heather Locklear

Star of the 'Dynasty' and 'Melrose Place' is suffering from anxiety disorder and depression. Cece Yorke, Heather Locklear's publicist has confirmed that the actress is currently seeking medical treatment at a facility in Arizona to deal with her anxiety disorder and depression.

A troublesome symptom of anxiety disorder is that the sufferer is always in anticipation of some catastrophic event that threatens his or her safety and well-being. These catastrophic events can be real or imagined but all are real to the sufferer and it keeps the nerves on edge. Being on edge is not always because of the anticipation of negative events. For example, do you remember the last time you were on edge waiting for a potential employer to call after your interview? However with anxiety disorder, the on edge condition usually has to do with the patient expecting the worse. Oftentimes the anxiety sufferer does not even know what the worst is. The solution to being on edge usually involves cognitive behavioral therapy in an attempt to get the patient to learn new approaches to dealing with fears that put him or her on edge.

If there is no physical illness found, you may be referred to a mental health professional. They are trained to diagnose and treat these mental illnesses. Treatment usually consists of both medication and cognitive-behavioral therapy. Since anxiety disorder is a "behavioral" condition, it can only be treated successfully by behavioral techniques. Conventional anxiety disorder treatments focus on a combination of "talking therapies" and drug therapy. The treatment has to treat the root of the cause because treating the symptoms is not enough to remove it. The root cause is the way the Amygdala, or small organ in the brain, has become re-set to a higher level of anxiety than normal and the treatment has to addressing this is the only way to get back to normal.

When a person suffering from anxiety experiences a panic attack, shortness of breath is probably the most obvious symptom for the sufferer. The anxiety sufferer cannot breathe at a normal rate and takes short breaths because getting a full breath is just too uncomfortable. Plus, when the anxiety sufferer realizes he or she cannot breathe the level of anxiety increases. Like many anxiety symptoms, shortness of breath just keeps the symptom-anxiety cycle going. The medical term for the symptom of shortness of breath is known as dyspnea. When you discover that a patient is having problems breathing, you should first help the person to get their rate of breathing under control.