Why are we anxious? What makes people with anxiety like that? Is it something in their personality?
I THINK ITS CAUSED BY DIFFERENT FACTORS. ITS A LEARNED RESPONSE TO OUR ENVIRONMENT, ITS GENETIC AND ITS A COPING MECHANISM.IF YOUR PARENTS ARE ANXIOUS,THERES A GOOD CHANCE THEY CAN PASS THAT ON TO YOU. OR YOU CAN LEARN ANXIETY THROUGH FEARFUL SITUATIONS IN WHICH YOU HAVE LITTLE OR NO CONTROL. ANXIETY IS A COPING MECHANISM BECAUSE IT WORKS AS A FIGHT OR FLIGHT RESPONSE AND IT TELLS YOUR BODY THAT THERE IS SOME TYPE OF DANGER IN WHICH CASE YOU RESPOND AS IF THE DANGER IS REAL OR YOU PERCEIVE IT AS REAL. AFTER A WHILE YOU BECOME SENSITIZED TO CERTAIN STIMULI OR SITUATIONS WHICH CAUSE THE RESPONSE TO OCCUR. THIS CAN OCCUR WHETHER OR NON THERE IS A PERCEIVED THREAT.
THIS IS ONLY MY UNDERSTANDING OF IT AND NOT TO BE REPLACED BY A MEDICAL OPINION.
Nothing is permanent. Life is temporary. We may lose everything. We experience pain and fear experiencing greater pain. Those closest to us disappoint us. We disappoint ourselves. All kinds of bad things happen. And, just in case there still was not enough to worry about, someone had to invent hellfire and damnation.
We can attempt to avoid anxiety through denial, escapism, drugs or emotional numbness.
We can consider life and circumstances so transient, that each moment can be thought of as priceless, and not to be wasted on worry. But we still worry!
I began having arrhythmias in my early 20s, and soon thereafter, panic attacks ensued. Counseling or psychiatric help was not even on my radar screen in those days. My brother was in the Army at the time, and a few years later, after he was home, he told me about having been hospitalized with a heart malfunction that involved arrhythmias. I guess it's some sort of a genetic thing that we both inherited. The doctor I saw offered no explanation or assistance. In those days, my heart would race, then stop for several seconds, then start again with an explosive first beat, followed by more racing.
I didn't know what was happening, or what to do about it, so I went on with my life, panic attacks and all. Many times, I thought I was going to die in short order. Looking back, I find it amusing that when I felt these feelings coming on, I would do whatever I could to get away from others. For some reason, I felt that fainting or dying or going into some form of meltdown in front of others would be too embarrassing.
I woke with a jolt one night, sweating, shaking, and heart racing and pounding so loudly, that it was actually making a knocking noise in my chest, and it seemed to be echoing off the walls. Something in me changed that night. Instead of being afraid, I became defiant and inpatient. I told God that I was sick and tired of all the fear crap, and if I was going to die, I wanted to do it then and there. Then I began calming down, and was not long before I was back to sleep (I suspect God had something to do with that too). From that time on, the arrhythmias have never been as bad, and I have zero fear of them. I have had anxiety since then, in fact quite a bit, even to the extent that my immune system was affected, but have never experienced anything as extreme as I did that one night.
Over the years, my anxiety has diminished to the point that I seldom experience it these days. The reason I brought all this up however is to propose my theory that having looked at one situation that elicited extreme anxiety "in the eye," and was willing to accept the worst possible outcome, I sort of put anxiety itself on notice that it would no longer control me or cause me so much suffering again.
I don't know if this answers your question adequately, but I hope it gives you some hope, that along with everything else, anxiety is not permanent.
On the other hand, Love is.
Hugs, Aaron
Wow! Is all I can say. You have a way with words.
Thanks For that!
Dust <><
On 6/10/07, Spiritriver anxiety-cpt4081@lists.careplace.com wrote:
I passed on post traumatic stress to my daughter. I came from an abusive childhood. Prior to that in my early years I came home from kindergarten and found my mother dead on the floor. I then married two abusive husbands and the cycle contintued but unfortunatly my daughter was caught up in MY cycle of problems and anexiety.
We are both ok and safe now but the PTS continues. I have learned to control it and my daughter is working on it slowly. I don’t want pitty but I want to let you know that this does happen. I also want you to know that it can be replaced by happiness and a calm heart. Life is good for both of now and we do NOT EVER let it take over our lives.
good luck to you and your daughter.
Hello. I am away until June 24, 2007 and am unable to read your message.
For me, the anxiety attacks are a result of something i cannot control. I’m too afraid to tell people because I don’t think they will understand and I am ashamed. I feel like if I cannot control certain things I have a panic attack. I can stay up all night thinking about the problem. Breathing heavy, heart beating fast, I shake. Then I feel like I have to go somewhere, go try to fix the problem, be alone, talking to a counselor helps the most. I’m still working on it. The anxiety is a direct result of something that was completely in order and fine, then something changes, and there is absolutely nothing I can do to change the mistake it is out of my hands. Obviously it is over something that is very important to me, and throw in other stressful factors and its an anxiety attack.