Anxiety and Dealing with Panic Attacks

Anxiety is a gift from nature because it aids survival — none of us would live long if anxiety didn't stop us from taking foolhardy risks! But, like anything elsedone to excess, too much anxiety can be problematic and become as disabling as any chronic physical illness. 

Excessive fears and worry, panic attacks, phobias, obsessive-compulsive behaviours and post-traumatic stress reactions are all forms of out-of-control anxiety. If you suffer from one of these conditions, or if your days are blighted by continual low-grade anxiety, you may feel that your life will never be normal again, as if something alien is in control of you.

There are three elements to anxiety

• the physical sensations you experience
• the emotions you have while experiencing them 
• and the thoughts that go through your mind at the time.

However overwhelming high anxiety can feel at the time, it is not something all-powerful and inexplicable. It can be managed very easily, when you know how.   

Self-help

There are many things that people can do to get excessive anxiety under control. We recommend our Effective Anxiety Management CD or digital download and our book, How to Master Anxiety both are packed with useful information and guidance. Further information about specific types of anxiety, such as trauma, phobias and OCD, can be found on these pages.

Professional help

If, however, you feel that you would benefit from extra help to overcome your own anxiety, you might like to seek the help of someone trained in effective psychotherapy, who can help you lift it, whatever the cause. Please visit our page on effective psychotherapy for more information and guidance about choosing a therapist. Human givens therapists are all trained in relieving anxiety (see the HGI's Register of HGI approved human givens practitioners).

Further learning

Continue learning about anxiety with Human Givens College...

Online course: 

• Understanding Anxiety and managing it without drugs

UK based one-day courses: 

• How to Control Chronic Anxiety – the practical skills you need
• Obsessive Compulsive Disorder – understanding OCD and how best to treat it

Please note: the above courses are not a substitute for individual therapy

 

Further articles of interest >