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anxiety: general & social

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nowhere within the emotional feelings network of sites is any opportunity for me to make any profit from any of the 28 + sites within this network. this network of sites has been put together as a personal mission to help others by informing those who need information concerning mental health, eating disorders, lifestyle factors, and every other topic listed within.

navigational hint: all underlined link words open up a new window instead of changing your present one, taking you to another site within the emotional feelings network of sites - or to another site referencing the underlined link word!

welcome to the emotional feelings network of sites

for more information concerning anxiety disorders... click here to visit anxieties 102... the sister site!
 
for more info on just generalized & social anxiety.... click here! You'll go directly to the generalized & social anxiety page at anxieties 102!

"Hatred is the anger of the weak."

Alphonse Daudet

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ANXIETY the definition

Anxiety is the fearful anticipation of further danger or problems accompanied by an intense unpleasant feeling (dysphoria) or physical symptoms. (the "what if?" feeling)

Generalized Anxiety Disorder presents itself as a state of exaggerated worry & tension that is unfounded or much more severe than the normal anxiety most people experience.

For more information about "ANXIETY" as an emotion or feeling - click here to visit "emotional feelings" - then simply click the provided link there to come back to anxieties 101

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Anxiety disorders are the most common psychiatric illnesses affecting children, teens, adults & senior citizens.

Anxiety disorders may develop from a complex set of risk factors, including:

  • genetics
  • brain chemistry
  • personality
  • family history
  • gender 
  • & life events

Anxiety disorders are highly treatable, yet only about 1/3 of those suffering from an anxiety disorder receive treatment.

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"The most persistent threat to freedom, to the rights of Americans, is fear."

George Meany

We're expanding... running out of valuable space, but won't take anything away from what's here either! A new site - anxieties 102... it's being constructed just for you. Hang in there & you'll be delighted to find the page links at the top & bottom of each of these pages within the site as soon as they become available for you!

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welcome! to anxieties 101!
 
after looking things over here at anxieties 101, try out "the layer down under," (part of the emotional feelings network of sites) & read a special "i just gotta say it" column concerning porn addiction by clicking here! Be sure to scroll down towards the bottom of the right hand column to find it!

click here to read "i just gotta say it!"

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What is Operation Helmet?

Founded in 2003 by Dr. Robert H. Meaders whose grandson is an active duty Marine in Iraq, Operation Helmet is a nonpartisan 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to providing safer helmet pad upgrade kits to the troops in Iraq & Afghanistan. To date, more than 6,000 kits have been shipped to the troops in the field.

click this bar to find out how you can help!
click on the bar for more info!

How this site works best for you!
 
You'll notice that there are many underlined link words in each article below. The reason for this is that you have reached not only, "the layer down under that," but the emotional feelings network of sites. There are many sites included within the network that'll be visited by clicking on these underlined link words.
 
The reason for this opportunity is very simple & yet you may be unnerved by all those underlined words! I've been in recovery from post traumatic stress disorder, depression & many other dysfunctional ventures & thru it all I've discovered that emotion & feeling work may be the missing link that many people miss when trying to find solutions to their problems.
 
Developing a sense of curiosity about why you feel the way you do, is essential in finding the solution you so desperately are searching for.
 
If you can't find what you came here looking for, visit the homepage for the emotional feelings network of sites by clicking above & read the options on the homepage for the networks index of sites. Try to be specific when looking for an emotion or feeling word & click on the site you need!
 
It's very simple & very interesting to follow your way thru the layers of your buried or stuffed emotions & feelings that have accumulated throughout the years!
 
when you've reached this point, or this website, you know you're making progress!!!! this part gets difficult because now is the time to look within & become emotionally honest with yourself!!!
 
Best of luck & if you're still stuck, send me an e-mail anytime, by clicking here & I'll be glad to send you an immediate personal response!
 
Sincerely,
Kathleen

the faces of anxiety

anxieties

What is Anxiety & How Do You Find Real Anxiety Relief? - By Paul Dylan

While it's no secret that we all feel anxious from time to time, for some people anxiety can become so overwhelming it becomes difficult to function.

One of the first steps in finding anxiety relief is defining anxiety & separating how it's different from a simple case of nerves.

In normal doses, anxiety can actually be beneficial. It's what helps most people face difficult situations & make it thru deadlines. Major problems can occur; however, when anxiety moves from being a normal & beneficial emotion to becoming a true illness.

Anxiety is often genetic, running in families. In some cases, anxiety could be associated with the life experiences of the person impacted by it; however, because it is biological in makeup, there also may be no clear cut association with any recent event in the person’s life.

It should be noted there are a variety of different anxiety disorders & each one possesses its own marked characteristics. Therefore it's important to find an anxiety relief method that will relieve the root of the problem & not merely mask the symptoms.

Persons who truly suffer from an anxiety disorder may feel anxious a large percentage of the time without any apparent reason at all. In some cases, the person impacted may become so uncomfortable it's difficult for them to function.

Because of the anxiety they experience, they may eventually withdraw from everyday activities. In other cases, the anxiety may only be experienced occasionally but the anxiety attacks are so intense the person experiencing it becomes terrified & may even be immobilized by it.

Other symptoms of a generalized anxiety disorder may also include the following:

* Headaches
* Irritability
* Trembling &/or twitching
* Muscle tension
* Hot flashes or sweating
* Nausea
* Exaggerated startle response
* Difficulty concentrating
* Fatigue
* Feeling as though there's a lump in your throat

When considering possible types of anxiety relief it should be noted that anxiety disorders are the most common of all the many different types of mental disorders.

An anxiety disorder is nothing to be ashamed of or even embarrassed by. The important thing is to find help & anxiety relief techniques that will work in order to help you get back your life.

Due to the large number of people of do suffer from various forms of anxiety disorders researchers are continuing to study the causes of anxiety & different anxiety relief techniques that can help to alleviate the problems associated with them.

It should be understood, although there's often a misconception about this fact, that anxiety
can't simply be overcome by sheer willpower.

This isn't a problem that an individual can simply make up their mind to get over. That said; however, there are certainly steps you can take to relieve the symptoms of anxiety disorder.

While there are a number of different anxiety relief techniques that are currently available it's important to discern the difference between anxiety relief methods that merely cover up the symptoms of anxiety & the methods that'll get at the root cause of the problem so that you can begin to recover & get back to normal again.

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for more information concerning anxiety disorders... click here to visit anxieties 102... the sister site!
 
for more info on just generalized & social anxiety.... click here! You'll go directly to the generalized & social anxiety page at anxieties 102!

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Generalized Anxiety Disorder:

  • Must last a period lasting at least 6 months of continual extreme anxiety & worry

  • Is accompanied by multiple associated symptoms

  • Prominently featuring the fact that the experienced anxiety can't be pinpointed to a cause or specific fear

  • A continual state of expecting the worst to happen

    GAD in children is often referred to as "Overanxious Disorder." 

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    heads up for news connecting heart attacks !!!

    sept.2006
    A quick personal note: If you're a regular visitor, you might already know that my family recently experienced the traumatic life event of my husband's first heart attack.
     
    He has no family history of heart disease, no high blood pressure & his cholesterol levels were fine.
     
    He did smoke. Notice, I wrote - "did" smoke. He quit.
     
    He has been very active for his age, just turned 60 this month and he's always in great health.
     
    We didn't expect it. One thing I've noticed since this heart attack is his state of mind has changed - of course! - but he is always on edge or "anxious" now. Five weeks later, he did visit the cath lab and have two medicated stents implanted into his arteries, he had another event. We're not sure what that was about, but his doctor isn't sure if he's okay and has added nitro to his other 4 drugs he must take daily.
     
    Having a heart attack is a very "emotional" event. I'm soaking in the experience to see how I can bring more information regarding traumatic life events, such as an unexpected illness like this - or life threatening physical events - that may wreak havoc on our minds!
     
    Please note that the information will also be added to the emotional feelings sites within the network as well as info regarding the connection between physical health and mental health, re: sickness, injuries, etc. life changing events.
     
    kathleen 

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    People with this disorder usually expect the worst of all possibilities. Worrying excessively about money, health, family or work even when there are no signs of trouble; they're unable to relax & often suffer from insomnia.

    Excessive worries pertain to many areas, such as:

    • finances:

    • potential misfortunes

    • impending deadlines: The disorder typically runs a fluctuating course, with periods of increased symptoms usually associated with life stress or impending difficulties.

    Worry & GAD  - Worry - Dealing with Worry & Ruminations

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    Generalized Anxiety Disorder

    • About 2.8% of the adult US population ages 18 to 54 - approximately 4 million Americans - have GAD during the course of a given year.

    • Developes more often in women, with a sex ratio of about 2 women to 1 man

    • 50% of those experiencing GAD began having symptoms as a child

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    Some research suggests that GAD may run in families & it may also grow worse during stress. GAD usually begins at an earlier age & symptoms may manifest themselves more slowly than in most other anxiety disorders.

    About 20 million Americans between the ages of 18 & 54 will experience an anxiety disorder each year according to NIMH, the National Institute of Mental Health.

    The Surgeon General reports that anxiety disorder is also the most frequently occurring mental health problem in the US. The number of annual office visits for anxiety: 4.8 million (1997) Source: Vital & Health Statistics Series 13, No. 143

    Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) is a real medical illness that can be successfully treated with medication & therapy

    The numbers will only increase....
    the numbers of those affected are climbing....
    as the stigma is eliminated from mental illness....
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    Contributing factors in GAD....

    Transference. Transference is where you displace conflicted feelings you may have towards important people in you life onto the therapist. You start to play out the conflicts of significance to you with the therapist. i.e., if I'm a very anally fixated person, I'll get into a competition with the therapist about who is in control of the session.

    The therapist would conclude that because I'm having issues of control, then I must be fixated in the anal stage.

    If I'm fixated in the phallic stage, I'll be in competition with the therapist about everything. The therapist is going to take this clue & use it to access the person’s repressed issues. 

    The patient can become completely engrossed in the relationship with the therapist even if they don't really know the specifics about the therapist.

    The idea behind keeping the therapist fairly unknown is that if I don't know the therapist as a person, I can project all of my conflicts with whoever messed me up in childhood onto the therapist; he is like a blank slate.

    I have the freedom to project all of my issues with the people in my past on to the therapist.

    Freud called this transfer neurosis , where all of the conflicts & neuroses of the patient should play themselves out in the therapy context. The ultimate goal is that the therapist & patient will gain insight.

    Insight is emotional catharsis; thru talking with the therapist, you can get an intellectual understanding of the issues. The analyst provides a safe environment & helps the person work thru.

    There are several reasons why transference is unique & why the conflicts played in therapy are unique from conflicts played out thru childhood.

    For an adult, the conflict is less intense than it was in childhood. There's room for cognitive analysis, because the conflict isn't as intense in the therapy context as it was during childhood.

    Although the patient is projecting all of their issues with their parents onto the therapist, the therapist isn't the parent. Lastly, the patients are older & more mature, making it easier for them to analyze their issues.

    Projection. The ego’s function is to allow the id to express its impulses in a controlled manner. One defense mechanism Anna Freud discusses, which the ego uses to do its job, is projection. In projection, you impose your own unacceptable impulses onto someone else. i.e., say I'm in love with my sister’s husband. I can't admit this to myself, so I'd say that he's been hitting on me.

    • Family history

    (parents: are your arguments & fights truly over when you think they are?)

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    wondering why you may have an anxiety disorder? what causes them? those of you visiting anxieties 101 that may have experienced abuse or neglect in your lives can put your finger right on what might be the triggering cause of your anxiety disorder or depression or both!
     
    the web links in the next article are a combination of those provided by DiscoveryHealth.com & our own emotional feelings, feeling emotional & your unemotional side!  also there's a new sexual abuse page that you can get to off of the abuse page in emotional feelings!!!!

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    from discovery health.com's health encyclopedia..
     
    abuse of spouse or partner
    By Karl M. Jacobs, MD

    Abuse of spouse or partner occurs when one partner attempts to harm the other in a relationship in which the 2 people are:

    • dating

    • married

    • or living together

    A recent study of girls in 9th thru 12th grade found that one 1 of 5 girls was physically &/or sexually abused by a dating partner.

    Abuse can take different forms, for example:

    the emotional feelings network of sites include the site - abuse 101 - for those of you experiencing now or in the past - some kind of abuse! just click here to visit there now!

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    What are the signs & symptoms of the injury?

    The physical signs of spousal abuse can include:

    The emotional signs of abuse aren't as easy to see. The victim may have these traits:

    What are the causes & risks of the injury?

    Spousal abuse happens to people of all religions, ethnic origins & income levels. It happens in both man-woman & same-sex relationships. Women are the victims of domestic violence in 9 out of 10 cases, most often when they're between the ages of 19 & 29.

    Recent studies show a man is more likely to abuse his spouse or partner if he has been violent in the past. A partnership also has a higher chance of becoming violent if one or more of the following risk factors are present.  

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    • At least one partner has committed child abuse before

    • At least one partner hasn't finished high school

    • At least one partner is a blue-collar worker

    • At least one partner is between the ages of 18 & 30

    • At least one partner is unemployed

    • Each partner has a different religion

    • The couple lives together but are unmarried

    • The couple has poor living conditions

    • The male partner saw his father hit his mother

    When 2 of these factors are present in a relationship, the risk of violence doubles. A couple w/ 7 or more of these risk factors is 40 times more likely to have an abusive relationship.

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    Experts know that teens who have been abused are at higher risk for other health problems.

    However, we don't yet know whether the health problems came before the abuse or if the abuse increased the risk for the health problems. These problems include:

    What can be done to prevent the injury?

    The best way to prevent abuse is to teach children how to solve problems without using violence. Teenagers & young adults should be taught that it's never OK to abuse a partner. Parents & doctors should