Anxiety is the most common mental health condition in Australia. On average, 1 in 4 people will experience anxiety at some stage in their life. Anxiety disorders are physical and mental conditions that are related with fear, and persistent worry and stress about things happening or not in everyday situations. These conditions affect the ability to function effectively at home, in relationships, at work, school or in other social environments.
There are several types of anxiety disorders, including social anxiety, separation anxiety, generalized anxiety and substance induced anxiety.
Phobias are also a type of anxiety disorder. They are an overwhelming unreasonable fear of objects or situations that may pose little or no danger. They can cause severe anxiety and depression.
Types of phobias include
- Social phobias – fear of social situations
- Specific phobias – i.e. agoraphobia (fear of open spaces), claustrophobia (fear of closed spaces) amychophobia (fear of failure).
Symptoms
- Panic attacks, hot and cold flushes
- Feeling nervous and restless
- Excessive worry about things and expecting the worse-case scenario
- A sense of impending danger or panic
- Difficulty controlling thoughts and emotions
- Focusing and obsessing on negative thoughts
- Avoiding normal situations, people or activities that make you nervous and anxious
- Difficulty sleeping and concentrating
- Being easily fatigued
Self- care strategies
- Regulate your breath, allow the breath to return to a slower breathing rate
- Implement mindfulness strategies, focusing on the present moment
- Spend time with friends and family
- Be gentle and kind on yourself
- Take small steps towards things that make you anxious.
- Understand your anxiety, learn the patterns and triggers
- Limit exposure to negative news stories and social media.
- Talk about your feelings with others, express them in writing
- Develop a consistent sleep pattern
- Focus on your general health, exercise regularly, eat healthy food.
- Recognise this is common human behaviour and recovery is possible
Contact us to book a 15 minute introductory call to see if our counselling services can help you achieve the outcome you desire.