Feeling anxious isn't a comfortable feeling for any of us and the desire to gain some control over our anxiety is understandable. Anxiety can show itself when fear, nervousness, worry and possible paranoia have become fairly common in your life. It's a state of mind that focuses on negative emotions and could be the result of an underlying traumatic experience. A lot of people who suffer from anxiety live their lives in fear and never truly enjoy many of the pleasures that life has to offer them. Although anxiety starts in the mind, in turn it also affects your body. The fear and panic that you feel can show up physically as shortness of breath, heart palpitations, sweating or sickness.
When a person faces a real fear or threat, they experience what is commonly known as the "fight or flight" response. This response is a natural element of human survival and is an instinctive reaction to a perceived threat. When your body is often in a fearful state, your immune system becomes depressed. If you live with anxiety, panic, and fear for a long period of time, your immune systems is subjected to consistent suppression. This can leave your body open to infections, sickness, and disease.
As well as the physical side effects, feeling anxious stops you from enjoying many of life's pleasures, both the great one and the small daily ones. In fact, the fear may become so intense that just carrying out normal day-to-day tasks become almost impossible to do. Scientific research shows that nearly twice as many women as men suffer from anxiety, panic, and fear related conditions.
Accompanying anxiety are phobias and fears. A lot of people face normal fears during their lives and this is to be expected as part of life. Its when people develop unhealthy fears for things that aren't logical, or have a completely over the top response to a fear that the phobia can being interrupt normal life.
There are other anxiety related illnesses such as Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome, it is essential to seek expert help for any anxiety related disorder that you are facing. A course of therapy along with medication might be needed. It could well be a long and tough journey of intensive therapy and other treatments, but the benefits are worth it. Imagine being able to feel peace, stability, security and joy once again.
In addition, aromatherapy is something that can help in many ways and its easy to get started with today. For instance, when you are feeling anxious, an aromatic bath can benefit you both emotionally and physically. Choose tranquil and nerve calming herbs to bathe in so that you're fighting the feelings of fear naturally and let the tension and anxiety be released. A hot bath with ten drops of Chamomile added gives you a relaxing and anxiety-soothing bath. Make sure that you have the time scheduled just for yourself and soak for at least twenty minutes to gain the maximum benefit.
Another way of relaxing and getting rid of your fear is through massage. The feel of your body gently being massaged helps to relieve tension and can leave you feeling so refreshed. To make your own delightful massage oil, use six drops Bergamot essential oil, 6six drops of Clary Sage along with three drops of Frankincense. Mix these essential oils with 1-ounce carrier oil, and enjoy the massage.
Even if anxiety is a part of your life, you have choices available to handle it.
Many anxiety sufferers know this skill exists, and they think deep breathing is no more than just 'breathing'; Well, they might not see the powerful result from this simple exercise when they do it wrongly! Learn the proper skill in this article to counter anxiety effectively when panic attacks...When you think you're out of whack, breatheAnxiolytics have been effective in relieving anxiety attacks. Their efficiency can be measured on its action to induce sleep, calm the ghastly feeling, and shift the moods and perception. But then again, there are risks that go with the use of these antianxiety drugs; risks that you can't get from diaphragmatic breathing.Aside from acupuncture, acupressure, individual counselling, play therapy, and psychodrama, another helpful intervention to alleviate anxiety levels is by "breathing the worry" away. Once the person manifests escalating levels of anxiety, deep breathing will not be successful. Therefore, the mind and thoughts should be in good condition before doing the activity.Before discussing the process on how to perform this type of breathing, it is important that its characteristics will be reviewed:It involves the contraction and relaxation of the diaphragm.- It is observed by the movement of the abdomen that occurs as the result of the contracting diaphragm and downward movement.- The action involves the enlargement of the thorax and the expansion of the lungs.- During exhalation, the diaphragm relaxes, thus allowing the ribs to move downward and inward.- Exhalation decreases the size of the thorax and compression of the lungs.Remember, diaphragmatic breathing is a type of respiration. It is being utilized, not only to control anxiety levels, but also as an exercise after surgeries, and when a client experiences difficulty of breathing. Since it is a type of respiration, any malfunctions in the respiratory center of the brain, which is in the medulla oblongata and the pons, will affect the exertion of the activity.Before performing the intervention, one of the important actions to take is the assessment of respiration. Upon review of the quality of respiration, the person or his care provider will be aware of the abnormalities that could affect the success of the intervention.Some important points to assess before diaphragmatic breathing include the following:- the normal breathing pattern of the person- the influence of other health problems of respiration- any medication or therapies that might affect respirations- the relationship of person's respiration to cardiovascular functionAnother important aspect to note is the age of the person. Children are usually diaphragmatic breathers, and adults experience anatomic and physiologic changes that result for the respiratory system to be less efficient.After knowing the characteristics and the assessment guide, the next step to be familiar with is on how to perform it. Below is the brief summary on how to do this type of breathing:- position should be semi-sitting in bed or chair- knees flexed, and abdominal muscles relaxed- hands should be placed on the abdomen, just below the ribs- breath deeply through the nose, keeping mouth closed- concentrate on the rising abdomen, back should not be arched- breath out slowly through nose, or through pursed lips- feel the abdomen fall or sink- tighten abdominal muscle as exhalation begins to be completed- exercise is done for 5 to 10 minutes, at least four times a dayRemember, diaphragmatic breathing should be done once the person is comfortable enough to do it, or if shortness of breath occurs. Poor condition of the self will greatly affect the success of this intervention.
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Sally Evans has sinced written about articles on various topics from Aromatherapy, Cure Anxiety and Bad Breath. If you want to know more about aromatherapy in your beauty rotine, click over to Sally's site