Many people tend to use the words stress and anxiety interchangeably, but they are actually two distinct conditions. Stress is a response to a stimulus, either external or internal. You may feel stress when you feel frustrated with something (like waiting in line behind a slow person) or when you are worried that you will not meet expectations (such as missing a deadline).

Anxiety, on the other hand, is a feeling of dread, or fear and nervousness. It can be brought on by negative expectations and thoughts, or as a reaction to stress. You may experience feelings of anxiety virtually all of the time and not know why, or your worry may be a reaction to something you are nervous about, such as an upcoming test.

Abnormal levels of certain neurotransmitters in the brain may cause generalized anxiety. Some research indicates that anxiety can be brought on genetically. In addition, anxiety can be induced environmentally, as when a child whose mother or father is often anxious learns to be an anxious person by observing the parent. But frequently, the core cause of anxiety is simply the thoughts that a person is thinking!

Stress and anxiety are subjective conditions. Different people may feel stressed about different situations, and different people may react to their anxiousness in very different ways. Symptoms of anxiety can range from the mild, such as sweaty hands and tense muscles, to the severe, such as irregular heartbeat, vomiting, and anxiety attacks.

Everyone feels some amount of anxiety from time to time. All of us have felt the dry mouth and "butterflies in the stomach" before an exam or public speaking engagement. But when does it become damaging to your health? Research indicates that prolonged anxiety can make us vulnerable to sleep disorders, high blood pressure, depression, and relationship problems

For sufferers of chronic untreated anxiety, there can be negative health consequences that have yet to be fully identified. Many studies have found a link between generalized anxiety disorder and a number of serious health conditions including cancer, heart disease, thyroid disease, respiratory illness, and arthritis. Chronically anxious people may even be more likely to suffer a fatal heart attack.

If you suffer from what seems like a disproportionately high amount of anxiety relative to the circumstances, or if you feel anxious nearly every day, you may actually have an anxiety disorder. Anxiety disorders are chronic conditions characterized by one's inability to function normally because of constant anxiety. Anxiety disorders are serious conditions that should be treated to lower the risk of long-term negative health effects.

Anxiety treatment has long been the subject of much discussion in the medical community. Some medical professionals feel that medication is the best treatment for chronic anxiety. Unfortunately, anti-anxiety medications often produce side effects that are just as bad or even worse than the initial condition.

There are plenty of safe and effective ways to control negative emotional reactions. Exercise is an often overlooked option, but it is highly effective. When you exercise, your body releases endorphins, which are natural mood-boosting and pain-killing chemicals. With regular exercise, you may begin to experience a dramatic decrease in negative emotional responses to situations that would previously have made you very anxious.

The most effective way to cope with worry and tension is to control it from the inside out. Stress management and stress relief techniques are extremely useful in managing day-to-day stress. These techniques can teach you to relax yourself and let the tension leave your body. You make a conscious effort to slow your rate of breathing, release the tension, and remain in a tranquil state of mind. Meditation is an excellent form of tension control in which you focus on mindful relaxation and deep, calming breathing.

However, if you are searching for a proactive method to free yourself of anxiety, hypnotherapy is the most effective form of treatment. When a person undergoes hypnotherapy, their emotional responses and reactions to events are changed at their core. This provides them with the opportunity to handle common anxiety-inducing triggers without the usual fear and nervousness.

Hypnosis can be performed by a licensed hypnotist in a series of regular treatments. More commonly today, hypnotherapy can be learned from self hypnosis programs which can be purchased in the form of DVDs, CDs, or MP3s for individual home usage. No special skills are needed to practice self hypnosis. All you need is a way to play the hypnotherapy program and a quiet place where you can relax and listen.

Another very successful method of anxiety treatment is Neuro-Linguistic Programming, or NLP. NLP is a form of therapy that helps you retrain your mind and body to naturally react to situations in a more positive manner. You can consciously decide to remain calm rather than anxious, and consequently, you are always in control of your own emotions.

In summary, you can see that it is very important to manage our negative emotional responses in order to stay healthy. Understanding how to cope with nervousness and fear can even extend your life. To treat long term anxiety, the best course of action is to use hypnosis to change your attitudes and reactions from within. Then, it becomes easy to use stress management techniques as needed to stay calm in everyday situations.