The Anxiety Bible

 So what happens when a person first identifies that he or she suffers from an anxiety disorder?  For all of us, thousands of thoughts are pouring through our brain at the same moment.  I’m a freak!  What do I do?  What’s wrong with me?  Is there any cure?  To further worsen the situation, many of us have lives that are full of all sorts of other drama such as addiction, other mental illness like bipolar disorder, or chaotic or nonexistent interpersonal relationships!  This is indeed difficult to overcome!  What should a person do in order to turn a complete 180 and live a happy and healthy life rather than a sad and miserable one?

Counseling

  The first thing to do is to find a good counselor.  Good counseling can be a hard find, and it can also be expensive.  To find a good counselor, one simply needs to find a personality type with which he or she can work well.  Some counselors are in-your-face and confrontational, while others are very laid-back, perhaps even more anxious than the client at the first meeting.  Sometimes, a person will find that a particular counselor just is not working well with him or her for whatever reason; at this point it is important to remember that the client is the boss of the counselor.  If the client wants, he or she can fire the counselor and see another one – just make sure that the counselor is being fired for an inability to work effectively with the client, and not because of a silly superficial reason like the client disliking the way the counselor asks questions. 

 Keep in mind that the term here used is “counselor,” and that it is used for a very specific reason.  Many other professionals can treat anxiety; these include therapists, psychiatrists, and psychologists.  The reason I recommend a counselor is because a counselor typically takes in the “big picture.”  As noted earlier, those of us with anxiety struggles in our lives often have many other stressful situations co-occuring which serve to increase our anxiety level.  Therapists and psychiatrists will focus on reducing only the anxiety, while possibly psychologists, and definitely counselors, will look at the other stressful situations such as difficult parents, bad significant others, or substance dependency which may be playing an important role in increasing the client’s anxiety level.

 Finally, counseling can be expensive, but it can be made affordable.  Typically, counseling will run somewhere from -5 per hour, which is way outside the range of affordability for those of us without insurance.  One thing to check into is “sliding-scale” counseling, which is where a counselor will lower his or her fee based on the client’s income.  Simply placing a call to the local NAMI (National Alliance for the Mentally Ill), looking in the phone book for counseling agencies (Counselors are more than happy to help.  Feel free to call ANY agency and they will know someone at their organization or someone else’s who can provide sliding-scale services), or asking friends and relatives who are comfortable with this topic will eventually turn up something affordable.

 Counseling is incredibly beneficial, and it does not last a lifetime-only until the counselor and the client are comfortable the client can operate on his or her own.  It helped me to completely turn my life around in a matter of months! There is no shame in it.  Everybody has problems, but most do not seek help.  It takes great courage and strength to admit one has problems and ask for help, but it can be the best decision one makes in life.

Exercise

 The next most important thing to add to one’s life, if it does not exist already, is regular exercise that increases one’s heart rate to 80% of its maximum for twenty minutes three times per week.  Exercise helps to increase one’s confidence and general feelings of well being, while simultaneously adding energy (exercise is like a natural caffeine) and enhancing the quality of one’s sleep, and most important to this article, it reduces anxiety!  Exercise is great in every way for a person’s health.  For more details on exercise’s relationship to anxiety, read ASN’s article entitled Anxiety and Exercise.

Medication

 Medication is a very controversial topic in our society, and it is very wise for each person to carefully consider the advantages and disadvantages of taking medication.  One thing to remember about medication is that different people respond to the same medication in different ways.  I take a low dosage of Lexapro (10 mg), and that works really well for me.  But, another person may try it and receive no benefit whatsoever, or even worse, that person may experience increased anxiety and other symptoms while receiving no benefit at all.  The best thing to do is to keep a brief journal of how one is thinking and feeling in the days after taking the medication.  Give the medication a couple of months to take full effect, and to allow the body to adjust to this new substance.  If things are not going quite right, either switch the medication or go off of it entirely.

 Another point to consider when thinking about medication is how the client would like the medication to work in his or her life.  The Lexapro that I am on is intended to be a medication that I take daily and that is working all the time.  Some people may experience low anxiety most of the time, but extreme anxiety in certain situations.  Medications exist which only have an effect for a few hours at a time, and in my opinion, the less medication that is running through the body, the better. 

 The technical aspects of medication are not my area of expertise; I know only the generalities of medication.  But, what I have given is solid advice.  The bottom line is for clients to realize that they are the expects on themselves, and if something is not working right or is causing more bad than good, it is perfectly okay to change things up or stop medication entirely.

 Finally, medication is not a requirement for recovery from anxiety, but it certainly can be helpful.  It is most effective when used in combination with counseling, diet, exercise, and supportive friends.  For additional details, read ASN’s article Medication – Don’t Believe the Hype!

Biofeedback

 Biofeedback can be another very helpful option in helping anxiety-sufferers to relax.  If a client is seeing a counselor, be sure to ask about it.  Many counselors keep simple biofeedback devices ready and available, or know where to get them for a reasonable price.  The university that I attend has a counseling center that allows students to check out the devices and use them for free, so this can be a viable option for persons in that age range.  Otherwise, I have been told that biofeedback devices that hook up to any household computer can run only about 5 or so.

 Different types of biofeedback devices exist, and the only one I know about is one that has little “caps,” for lack of a better term, that connect to the middle, index, and ring fingers.  These caps are then connected to another device that is attached to a computer.  The caps measure the electrical resistance across a person’s skin.  In this particular biofeedback system, a game, called the Wild Divine, is played that helps to teach the anxious person how to relax.  For myself, I found it moderately beneficial, and I do not have the time to do it these days.  However, it was helpful, and different things can work for different people, so if one is able to try out biofeedback and one finds it useful, use it!

Taking Risks

 The next, and probably scariest part of recovering from anxiety is taking risks.  One can read all the information that exists, go to counseling, or engage in biofeedback all one wants, however, one eventually must take the real risks and begin to approach situations that are terrifying. 

 Probably the best way to do this is to discuss the terrifying situation with a counselor or supportive friend.  People who are outside of the situation can see it more realistically and can help a person to identify his or her anxious thoughts that are not very realistic.  After actually taking the risk, report the happenings to the trusted friend or counselor, and again they will help the client or friend interpret the situation in a realistic sense.  This is the best way to help one realize that the anxious beliefs and thoughts are simply not true. 

 If a person ends up failing and not taking the risk, there is no problem!  Simply regroup, take a break, and get ready to get back at it because limitless opportunities exist for taking risks!

Supportive Social Network

 Another major key to one’s recovery is having a supportive social network.  Many of us live in families where personal problems are not to be discussed.  These persons may claim that mental conditions such as social anxiety do not exist (this is an extreme point of view), or they may simply belittle or mock the problems that other people face (as an aside, other people do this usually because they are trying to avoid problems in their own lives and want to make themselves feel better about their situation). 

 Having a supportive social network means that we can go somewhere to talk to people who have experience with anxiety.  Not only this, but a supportive social network will be made of people who will listen and try to understand what one is experiencing, and perhaps offer some useful advice or sympathy for the situation.  If a friend or family member seems resistant to understanding difficulties present in other person’s lives, one can continue to attempt to help that person understand, but ultimately, it is best to seek out other people who have

The Effects of Consumer Debt on UK Society

The National Consumer Council reports that 6 million families in the UK are already struggling with debt. The UK level of debt recently crossed the £1 trillion threshold, of which approximately 80% is due to credit cards, loans and mortgages. In the past 6 years, the number of people seeking debt advice has risen by 44%, and is expected to rise even further.

People find it difficult to make debt repayments for a number of reasons. Most often, the main cause of non-payment is usually down to some form of change in personal circumstances such as unemployment, divorce, illness or a new arrival in the family. In these circumstances, many people look towards borrowing more in order to pay off creditors or household bills. Unfortunately, taking on more debt to pay off existing commitments is often a recipe for disaster.

However, debt can have an effect on more than just a person’s financial affairs. In fact, debt is a major contributor towards stress, depression, anxiety, mental health problems, relationship breakdown and even suicide in some severe instances. A lack of financial awareness is often cited as a reason for people falling into debt. Although debt is a nationwide problem, and affects people of all ages and backgrounds, the financial cost of debt is not limited to an individual and in fact can impact greatly on society.

Many people believe the Government should do more to highlight the issue of financial awareness, targeting the loan companies and credit card issuers whose advertisements run constantly on televisions across the country. In many cases, consumers become seduced by the promise of lower payments and relief from their debt burden without realising that they could well end up spending more money in the long term as many loans advertised can have repayments run for periods up to 25 years.

If you pay creditors on time, regardless of what it takes to pay them, you are classed as a good payer and therefore, not a risk when it comes to additional borrowing. In fact, your finances might be in chaos and you could be using money from one credit card to pay debts on another credit card, but many lenders will still provide further finance. As a result, outstanding debts are merely maintained, with payments primarily being made towards interest with little or no monies going towards the actual balance of the debt.

Many debtors find themselves in the hands of specialist debt collection agencies. There are many such companies in the UK, such as Capquest Debt Recovery who buy delinquent debts from creditors and then pursue the debtor themselves for the balance owed. However, for many people, arranging an IVA (Individual Voluntary Arrangement) is a viable solution, allowing a lower payment to be made to creditors over a period of time. There are several companies who can provide advice on this course of action.

If people find themselves in financial difficulty, there is a wealth of free financial advice available to help. The Citizens Advice Bureau can help to negotiate repayment plans with creditors and debt collection agencies, so that monthly payments are reduced and become manageable. By seeking out such advice, tackling the problem of debt needn’t be as daunting as it might appear and could in fact have a positive effect on both the financial and social aspects of being in debt and lead to financial problems being a thing of the past.

The Effects Of Human Flaws On Power

It has been said that giving a superhero the flaws of an ordinary person could only lead into inevitable disaster. The concept stems from the old adage “absolute power corrupts absolutely,” as superheroes tend to be in positions of great power. Arguably, any protagonist that exhibits human flaws is going to find himself subject to great scrutiny.  People will always see him as being someone who must never exhibit weaknesses and flaws. Flaws and traits like social anxiety, status anxiety, mental health disorders, and psychosis can all have immense impact on a hero’s actions, which in turn can affect countless others. The “flawed” hero, while an interesting avenue to take in the realm of fiction, can also become a walking disaster, with the level of damage only varying on how badly things go.

Frodo Baggins, from Tolkien’s “Lord of the Rings” saga, can be taken as an interesting case of both status anxiety and performance anxiety. Presented with an all-powerful, all-corrupting object of pure evil, Frodo is made to embark on a journey to destroy the said object. It is made clear in several passages that Frodo does not want the ring and the inevitable burden of having to carry it and disposing of it. His status anxiety plays out in the subtle hints that he is willing to pass the burden on to just about anyone, if only it would let him get back to his normal “status” in his home.

However, he also exhibits mild hints of performance anxiety in that he is unwilling to undergo the long and dangerous journey to be rid of the ring in the first place. Even if he felt inadequate for the task, he slowly came to realize that pawning the ring off to someone else is merely going to delay the inevitable. However, in the end, he comes to realize that the “One Ring” is a burden he has to bear, and faces up to the task. He is corrupted near the climax by the promise of power, but by that point, he has finally accepted his fate.

Another instance of a combination of problems similar to Frodo’s comes in the form of Paul “Muad’dib” Atreides, from Frank Herbert’s “Dune” saga. Atreides, like Baggins, has the deadly cocktail of status anxiety and performance anxiety. However, unlike the aforementioned literary character, Paul’s actions could have had more long-lasting effects for all of humanity. Paul, gifted with the ability to see the future and thus enable plans to ensure his visions occur, foresees what he claims is “The Golden Path” of humanity. However, he also sees that while his vision assures the continued survival of humanity, it also means that he would have to sacrifice his humanity to achieve it.

His performance anxiety comes into play when he realizes that he does not want to make the sacrifices necessary to ensure that his vision becomes reality, as he is too attached to his humanity to abandon it. However, his position as ruler of a galaxy-spanning empire places pressure on him to rule. His unwillingness to let go of his position echoes of status anxiety, as he feels that he must remain Emperor. Yet, by remaining Emperor, he effectively is playing right into the hands of his fear of losing his humanity. In the end, however, he find a way out of his own conundrum by distorting the very faith that made him Emperor in the first place.

However, both Frodo Baggins and Paul Atreides were permanently scarred by their actions. Frodo’s emotional healing never really purged the trauma he experienced during his time with the “One Ring.” In the end, the stress and anxiety of the journey forced him to leave his home and his friends forever, as he felt he could no longer be part of “their” world. In the case of Paul Atreides, years of twisting and warping his own image such that he made himself a “god” had taken their toll on his mental health and how he viewed himself. He had become a hypocrite by enslaving the people he claimed he wanted to free, using religion rather than force to subdue them. His opportunity to make up for his mistakes and have some semblance of emotional healing came when everyone thought him to be dead. Changing from Emperor to a blind wanderer, he then began working on repairing the damage he had wrought by attempting to dismantle the religion he himself crafted.

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