›› Anxiety Cures
The first
confrontations with anxiety and anxiety cures aside (those with my
mother and her “go get me my pills” commands), my
first understanding of alternatives to medicating anxiety attacks came
in a philosophy class in college. My newly found friend (now
a contemporary of over 25 years) had walked into the classroom before
the session began with her backpack, a drink, and a paper bag bunched
at where the neck would be. She breathed deeply into and out
of the bag inhaling and sucking the paper with a crackle and exhaling
and returning the brown lunch bag back to an expanded balloon
state.
Evidently, her need for this maneuver was brought on by an anxiety
attack (now also called a panic attack—a sudden surge of
dread and fear combined). The anxiety attack instigates an
imbalance of blood gases, for want of the appropriate amounts of carbon
dioxide in the blood (often caused by the unwitting hyperventilating
the anxiety-stricken individual is doing. Inhaling and
exhaling steadily through the paper, then, levels out the carbon
dioxide.
Because the anxiety syndrome has become more prevalent in specific
cultures and countries, experts in the medical and therapeutic fields
have suggested other self-help anxiety cures. Some of these
include talking yourself up (or down, but not depressedly or
negatively), taking your point of focus to a place outside of your body
and bodily reactions/symptoms, and sitting calmly with a
“this too shall pass” approach and attitude or
mindset.
Sometimes, the anxiety attacks are not psychically-related, are not
metaphysical, so to speak, but are instead riding on the coattails of a
physical illness (such as diabetes, for instance). Then, the
anxiety cures you seek might be more involved. Some sufferers
consult doctors or therapists or visit clinics dedicated to such
disorders. In addition, people access the options and
alternatives for anxiety cures: they partake of medications prescribed
for them, get therapy (such as biofeedback/Neurofeedback or
psychotherapy), or learn new life-management skills. As well,
some experiencing chronic anxiety will endeavor to learn new techniques
for breathing, stress-management, and better problem-solving.
As with any disorder or affliction that is consistently plaguing you,
your best efforts should include educating yourself on the causes and
effects, consulting medical health and/or therapeutic professional
(depending on physical or mental origins of the anxiety)
guidance, and relevant and appropriate treatment—be
that treatment in the form of pills or paper bags.
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A Healthy Dose of Good Advice
