Living with anxiety is like living in this world with a spotlight on you. You feel conscious, you start to overthink how others might see you, and there's this someone in your head who never gets tired of speaking negative words to you, with every word echoing inside your head. Not just that, but your body starts reacting to that negative voice, and then the next thing you knew you're running from the crowd with your body shaking and your heart beating so fast you couldn't breathe.
How to know if you have anxiety?
Anxiety disorder involves fear, nervousness, and agitation that impair your daily functioning. Worry and fear are natural responses to threats because that is your survival instinct, however, if your response to threats stresses you out to the point that it interferes with your daily functioning, it's a symptom of anxiety. Relax. Take deep breathes. There are several treatments to help you manage your anxiety.
1. Medication
The most popular anti-anxiety drug is Benzodiazepine which is also known as a tranquilizer. Psychiatrists also prescribe Xanax, Klonopin, Valium, and Ativan. These drugs are clinically tested to provide instant relief within 30 minutes to an hour which means they can instantly calm you down. But these drugs will only be given under a prescription from a psychiatrist after a proper diagnosis has been made. These anti-anxiety drugs work by reducing the level of serotonin in your brain which is responsible for that extreme fear and nervousness.
Anxiety and depression occur together. When you feel scared your immediate response is to run away from that fear-inducing object/individual. Isolating yourself will then result in loneliness and low self-esteem. So oftentimes anxious people are also prescribed to take antidepressants.
2. Therapy
If you don't want to go under medication, there are therapies available for you. If psychiatrists prescribe medication to people with anxiety, psychologists prescribe mental therapy sessions to calm them down. The most popular therapy proven to help people with anxiety is Cognitive Behavioral Therapy which believes that fear is just all in your head. This therapy works under the premise that when you change your thoughts you change how you behave. Throughout your therapy session, your psychologist will mainly identify and understand the negative thoughts that create extreme fear in you and then replace them with a more realistic thought so you don't feel scared anymore. There are other therapies you can have, you can consult your psychologist for other options.
3. Alpha-Stim Anxiety Treatment
If you think you can't commit to therapy sessions, then there is a more convenient way to give you relief in times of panic attacks or extreme nervousness. Let nothing stop you with Alpha-Stim. It is a device that uses electrical currents to mimic the natural/normal/typical electrical activity in your brain to calm you down. It does not control any chemical in your brain so expect no dependency on it. You just need one 20 minute session in order to get instant relief. You can read more here https://www.alpha-stim.com/alpha-stim-technology/anxiety-treatment.
Takeaways
Do not add up the stress of having anxiety by worrying about your anxiety. There are treatments you can take to cope and manage it and you're not alone in this struggle. There are people who bravely face the world despite their anxiety. If they can do it, then you can too. You are so much stronger than your anxiety.