Problems and anxiety are a normal part of life. Nobody is without them. But too much stress, worry, overwork or loss makes our nervous system oversensitive and when this change occurs we start to view the world differently.
One of the main symptoms is that problems we're well able to cope with normally seem ten times worse than they really are. Problems more major become impossible nightmares. And always feeling anxious can easily make us depressed.
Often we imagine we have major illnesses when it's really our reaction to nervous exhaustion and our nerves playing tricks. But we always imagine the worst case scenario. Our imagination runs riot driven on by fear of the unknown.
Besides health anxiety we can experience agoraphobia and derealisation. These are caused by our mind's unhelpful attempts to protect us by withdrawing us from perceived threats.
One of the most unpleasant symptoms is panic attacks. But exactly what we're panicking about we're usually none to sure. Other people experience irrational obsessions such as fearing imminent death without any reason for it.
I reckon about 40% of anxiety disorder is genetic. Or to put it another way, we inherit a lower threshold to anxiety overload than most.
The more we understand anxiety the less there is to fear. The power of anxiety is limited: it cannot kill you, it cannot disable you and it cannot make you lose your mind. Also, all those aches and pains which we think are harbingers of major illnesses are really phantom symptoms caused by nerves on the blink. Though it's always wise to talk them through with your doctor for certainty and reassurance.
Inherited or not, there are ways in which we can achieve respite and recovery from anxiety disorder. My mother suffered from her 'nerves' most of her life until the 1960s. In that decade two wonderful things happened that made her life near normal for her autumn years: the arrival of Valium/diazepam and the publication of Claire Weekes' first book 'Self help for your nerves'.
The Valium gives instant short and medium term relief from anxiety for which it is much maligned by people who should know better. And Doctor Weekes' method of Face, Accept, Float and Let time pass offered full recovery to those willing to practice it with patience and persistence.
Anxiety doesn't have to be a life sentence, you will not feel like this forever. But there are no magic potions that make it go away instantly never to return. The Yellow Brick Road to recovery is long and winding.
