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Helping Someone with OCD

3.3.17

There are many faces of this disorder. It can be difficult to watch someone you love spend so much time on their obsessions or compulsions. You may become irritated or angry at the time spent on what you consider irrational rituals. It is important to take a step back and realize that your discomfort is with the disorder, not the person. It is only when you do this that you are in a position to help your loved one overcome something that is making the quality of their life much less than it could be. One of the best ways to help someone with OCD is to encourage them to seek help from an OCD specialist. This can mean admission to an OCD treatment center or individual counseling with a therapist that understands and has extensive specific exp

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3 Causes of Panic Attacks

3.3.17

Helping someone with OCD takes patience and love but will be worth whatever effort you exert. Therapists can determine what can pre-dispose an individual to panic attacks. Here are three of the most common things that can make an anxiety attack more likely. A Feeling of No Control The biggest cause of anxiety is feeling completely powerless to change a situation. We may feel incompetent or even scared that something bad will happen to us. This causes our body to produce adrenaline, which creates the physical symptoms of anxiety. Poor Coping Skills As children, we learn how to cope with adversity. For those who grew up in environments where these skills were not taught, we don’t know how to soothe ourselves when things don’t happ

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3 Causes of Anxiety and How to Treat It

1.30.17

Anxiety is a response of the mind and body when there is stress in your life. Feelings of anxiety are present in the lives of most people, and when symptoms of anxiety begin to manifest it’s time to find the best therapy to relieve the symptoms. If you have been dealing with feelings of panic, an overwhelming sense of despair, and you find yourself fearing even the most mundane activities, you may be exhibiting signs of an anxiety disorder. Anxiety from External Events If you are overloaded at work, or you are worried about money, you may be experiencing anxiety caused by external events. A natural disaster can spark anxiety, and it’s important to deal with both the stressor and your response to it. Learning techniques such as m

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What an Anxiety Attack Feels Like

1.30.17

Anxiety attacks are scary for both the one having the attack and those who do not understand what is happening. Each person experiences a different set of symptoms during an attack. There are certain symptoms, however, that are the most common and appear in one combination or another. Common Symptoms The symptoms of severe anxiety often feel like those of a heart attack. These symptoms often include: *Profuse sweating *Chest pain *Fast-beating heart *Trembling *Weak knees The emotional feelings can be even worse. These include: *Intense fear *Feelings of losing your mind *An urge to escape How It May Look For those who are near someone having an anxiety attack, the symptoms may not be as easily recognizable. Those with severe anxiety often

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Four Symptoms of Anxiety

1.30.17

Those who have anxiety in their lives are sometimes triggered by specific events. Other times, it’s just the thought of those events that brings on a wave of nervousness. Anxiety as a whole refers to one or more anxiety disorders. These include among others, generalized anxiety disorder, social anxiety disorder, and panic disorder. As you can imagine, everyone experiences anxiety differently. Symptoms may vary depending on the type of anxiety disorder you have. However, by understanding your symptoms, you can work to reduce anxiety. Here are four of the most common symptoms. Upset Stomach/Nausea One place that anxiety is likely to affect you is your gut. Your stomach may start to churn. You’re likely to feel nauseous. You may feel the need

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What is an Anxiety Disorder?

1.16.17

Anxiety is an unavoidable part of life. We can’t help but be nervous for some big life events, like job interviews, public speaking, and asking someone out. However, for some people, they experience that kind of anxiety much more regularly, sometimes even daily. They may have panic attacks or freak themselves out with their depressive, uncontrollable thoughts. These people may have an anxiety disorder. What Is Anxiety Disorder? Anxiety disorder is a catch-all term that refers to a variety of disorders we’ll explain below. Generally, the symptoms include intrusive worrying about daily life events, exhaustion, inability to sleep, muscle tightness, moodiness, concentration problems, and a sense of restlessness. What Are the Types of Anxiety Di

3 Signs of Anxiety in Children

1.16.17

With child anxiety, it can be hard to differentiate between anxiety symptoms and learned behavior. If your child is consistently struggling with anxiety, it’s important to have your child meet with a professional therapist to address the issue. While you can try a number of anxiety management techniques on your own, a therapist will help identify your child’s anxiety triggers and help you develop a plan to help manage the symptoms more effectively. Your Child Is Struggling in School If your child is having trouble in school, this could be due to anxiety. When they are worried about getting homework done or having trouble making friends, this is often due to feeling anxious. When your child is waking up and doesn’t want to

4 Essentials To Help You Enjoy the Holidays

11.28.16

View original article published in Psych Central– The holidays give us great opportunities to continue existing traditions or establish new ones. We reconnect with friends and family. It is supposed to be the most wonderful time of the year. However, for some it can become a stressful and overwhelming season, and for others, one of the loneliest times. Whether you have big plans or no plans, consider these four critical points to help you enjoy your holidays:   1. Make sure to take care of yourself first! That is selfish some may exclaim, but is it really? A great metaphor for self-care is the specific instructions we receive from flight attendants when we travel by plane. They inform us that if the airplane were to lose cabin pressure

OCD: “The Bow that You Have to Keep on Tying”

10.11.16

View original article published in Psych Central– “It just doesn’t feel right. I have to fix it until it is just so!” “I need to figure it out, and once I do, I’ll feel free to move on!” “I have to check all the windows, then I’ll be able to sleep peacefully.” “I have to repeat my prayers until I know God has really heard them.” “Not knowing whether I may hurt my child makes me anxious. I waste too many hours reviewing my behavior to ensure I haven’t harmed her.” What do those statements have in common? When individuals experience OCD, accepting uncertainty seems to be the greatest challenge. They have extreme difficulty moving on with their day unless they feel 100% sure the answers to their doubts have been resolved. Whether it is doing s

Two Ways to Put the Brakes on Your Anxiety

9.23.16

View original article published in Psych Central– Our human instinct is to react and push back when we feel pain and discomfort. When we struggle with anxiety, those feelings are magnified. Our inherent response is to try and get rid of unpleasant feelings and sensations immediately, but does it really work? This is an important question, and ACT (Acceptance and Commitment Therapy) teaches that fighting the discomfort can actually make the situation worse. Mental health providers practicing ACT often use the quicksand metaphor, and the reaction we naturally would have if we were ever caught in it. Even though we know it makes matters worse when we panic and try to get out quickly, our survival mechanisms tell us differently. Trying to

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A guide to help you find relief and happiness in spite of religious or moral OCD (scrupulosity OCD). Learn more about Annabella Hagen's book.
Imperfectly Good - Book by Annabella Hagen

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