Technorati Tags: daniel mercadante, everynone, goosebumpery, npr, radiolab, unseen-music.com, will hoffman, words

…

How do I enjoy thee? Let me count the ways. But let me do it after I watch this Nick Cave awesomeness.

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A prize awaits the person who can figure out if this is actually Getty stock footage.

Ratatat – Drugs from Blink on Vimeo.

This is how to make a video to which I will respond.

Technorati Tags: awkward, eep and eek, effective distraction, getty, intimately human, ratatat, ze frank

Everything’s a learning experience and every parachute is a coffin. I mean every love is a battlefield. I’m driving at the ineffable nature of the cake’s entry into everyday distractions, like it intends to cohabitate with the mundacity of breathing. Silly cake- I eat you every day.

And oh how I miss this man’s daily bursts into my life. Oh how oh how oh how? Like that.

Here’s some (I vote yes) I’ve encountered with my bad self:

A Pirate Ship With Pirate’s Island Swag!

“The Only Wholly Admirable Man in History“!

This Filthy Blog and its Filthy Home!

The Loneliness of Mornings!

A Legit Petit-ion To The Cyanide & Happiness Audience!

Tall People That Like To Tell Me I Look Like Rosie the Riveter So I’ll Flex For Them!

Enthusiasm!

That’s my cap, exclamation point-wise. Just imagine me being excited for the duration of the day. Now, back to bed with you, little girl, and to the making of things in an hour or two! (that one slipped out)

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“Tourism is our community’s industry, and we have to support it to support our community… We live in an area I would describe as sublime (both awe-inspiring and terrifying, at times). Yes, our area is rife with caution signs and the dangers they describe. But to focus on the dangers of any community, especially one that relies on tourism as its main source of revenue, is a beast akin to the struggles the generations before me witnessed with fear of communism, fear of nuclear holocaust, fear of poking one’s eye out with a stick, icicle, spoon, et cetera. Our community has made every effort to keep both visitors and residents alike safe from the hazards of our rocky coast, and has succeeded on an immeasurable level. So next time you’re at the beach, focus on the sound of the ocean, the smell of salt in the air, and the friendly people around you. Let the inactive part of your brain do the worrying about killer logs, and sneaker waves, and tsunamis. That’s what it’s for- to apprehend dangers instinctively, and keep you on your toes lest anything hit the fan. So don’t let modern-day scare tactics keep you away from the natural beauties our coast has to offer, and the many ways in which it can be enjoyed.”

Technorati Tags: community, fear of communism, fear of nuclear holocaust, fear of poking one's eye out, how to be ok at stuff, investment in the community, killer logs, modern-day scare tactics, natural beauties, nuclear holocaust, sneaker waves, the sound of the ocean, things you wrote forever ago, tourism, tsunamis

I am falling in multiple loves with SMBC Theater.

Technorati Tags: how to be ok at stuff, saturday morning breakfast cereal, smbc theater, susie and the internet, the internet

Or construct sentences half as convoluted and obfuscatory.

Anyway- be sure not to hop on the bandwagon so you don’t miss the boat- Scenes from a Multiverse. It shall rock ye old socks.

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But these times cannot exist if they have no counterpoint. Our desire to do and be more than what we are is, by definition, balanced by some time when we didn’t. When we were content to just be. Just be, in general. To merely exist is such an awe-inspiring event that I question those who must clutter their lives with purpose. Mankind has been searching for purpose, for meaning, for a light to guide us home, since we first splooshed out of wombs, whenever that was.

I must pose the question, then; what makes us think we are better than cats? Cats are fed, bathed, petted, loved, and they don’t have to fill out timesheets or meet quotas to earn those privileges. Sure, some cats, many in fact, remain unclaimed, unloved, unattended. But sensible souls know that for a cat to be healthy, to be in full fine fettle, it should be offered love, and physical affection, enough to eat, fresh water, and roaming room.

Why don’t we always offer ourselves the same conditions? Why, since the advent of agriculture, are we so prepared to accept UNSATISFACTORY living conditions?

And it’s a real question, so feel free to answer, though by now I’ve found my own means of coping (part of which includes building a lifestyle where I can go without a post for a month or two without being stabbed in the face or thrown down an improperly decommissioned well).

The rest of my cope-age is to revel in the awe of how amazing it is to just be.

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Dreams are feelings you can mainline from your heart to the page. Not only are they a surefire method of tapping into your most visceral of experiences, but they’re great for when you’re stuck on a plot point, or can’t figure out a happy (or sad, or scary) ending.

And yes, people will think that you are lazy, and sleep all the time, and aren’t going anywhere with your life. But chances are that people would think those things whether or not you were getting anything done. Like right now, when I’m sure those who are aware of my existence assume me to be sleeping or slacking or generally gadding about.

But really, I’m living. And sometimes the truth is that living requires a lot of downtime, and that clear thinking is more about giving yourself time to process than it is about anything else.

Or I might secretly be half-three-toed-sloth. Who knows? My point is that you should feel entirely free, nearly compelled by my instructions, to incorporate dream-images, dream-phrases, dream-feelings (in short, dreambits) into your writing. It wouldn’t be the same without them. I know mine wouldn’t.

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Hunter S. Thompson shuffled right on out of his mortal coils and on to the great buffalo in the sky in the middle of my senior year. I remember a teacher I had reading the announcement aloud from the paper, and I remember noticing, but not knowing who he was talking about, and moving on. When I finally did get my first taste of his work, he had already been dead for several years, which didn’t curb my enthusiasm for him one bit.

Transmetropolitan, as Wikipedia tells us, is an homage to the late great gonzo man himself. And oh what an homage. The city as she is constructed in the series is a glimpse of our frightening, curious, crowded future. Spider himself is at once separate from and essential to the workings of the whole ecosystem of the city. He’s the immune system for a city attacked on all fronts by its own progress toward a million different goals, and he manages to draw lines with his journalism in what to everyone else seems to be quicksand.

So if it’s been a while since you read anything gritty and delightful, pick up the trade paperbacks, starting with the first, to which I have kindly provided a link below.

Enjoy!

Technorati Tags: comic book, darick robertson, frightening curious crowded future, hunter s. thompson, spider jerusalem, transmetropolitan, warren ellis

My next stab in the dark was to start reading in earnest again. During the month of November, I had limited myself to writing and reading Mark Z. Danielewski’s House of Leaves. Having finished House of Leaves and my 50000 words, I felt an emptiness in my days, but began to take up the slack by rereading David Foster Wallace’s Infinite Jest, one of my favorite books and a testament to another genius who died young. It’s pretty hefty, and my days, sadly, don’t consist entirely of reading, so I’m still working on it.

Between Infinite Jest and a great deal of Stephen King(including his essential On Writing, a book I think all writers should be required to read), in addition to my daily internet wanderings and absorption, I began to develop a backlog of ideas and themes that I started to record, attempting to amalgamate a document that would later help me with the construction of a novel people would read, I mean really read, and enjoy.

I can’t stress to you how vital it is to let yourself accrue ideas by reading. Without reading a great many examples of what it is you want to put out, you will be missing out on insights into the methods that work. I want to make it clear that I in no way condone plagiarism- I am simply urging you to observe the world around you, and learn from the mistakes and triumphs of others. If you don’t, you will endlessly and futilely reinvent the wheel, and the process will make you weary, might even turn you off of writing altogether.

And this accretion, it’s not an instant process. It’s not as though you can get up in the morning and say to yourself, “Today I will find and read all of the books I need to absorb to poop out a book of my own.” It takes time, and you will become impatient, yes, but the best and brightest of your flashes of inspiration will come when you least expect them. You have to maintain a sort of detached vigilance. You can’t worry about finding insight- you can only wait.

This step doesn’t take any set amount of time. For some, it might be only a couple weeks, and for others, it could be a couple years. I have found that ********* are crucial.

For the mystery crucial bit above, tune in tomorrow.

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I was fulfilled at the end of it, though not sated. There was this “and then?” feeling about finishing, and it probably had a lot to do with the ending of the novel I had written. It wasn’t totally crap, by any means. It was a great deal more tied-up than a lot of endings I’ve read (or written, for that matter), but I could feel the absence of crucial information, though I couldn’t pinpoint what was missing. And I knew that there were massive novel-shaping questions I hadn’t even decided the answer to yet. And I was aware that the whole someone-does-something-important part of the novel was fetal, at best.

So what do you do when you’ve reached 50,000 words, and it isn’t enough to tell your story?

There were a couple of stabs-in-the-dark I took at this question:

1. Line By Line, Word by Word

I printed out a copy of my novel and started going through it with a fine-point marker, making notes on word choice and deleting lines and just generally making a big mess. This did not work. I want to repeat: THIS DID NOT WORK. Four pages in of that kind of close reading of my own work and I wanted to pull an Oedipal eye-gouge and be done with the thing. It made me see my own work in the same ballpark as any book I had ever analyzed academically, and that scared the crap out of me, like seeing someone’s child run out into the street pretending to be a car. I felt small and crappy immediately.

I want to make clear that I don’t think you should never consider the details of your novel- revel in them. This just shouldn’t be your first post-ending method, in my opinion. It will turn your relationship with your novel into one where you lick every inch of your lover’s body only to find out some parts don’t taste so good.

2. Blank Slate

After I realized this (or rather, after I tasted something bad and just stopped trying), I started from the ground up, and I did the first thing I would have done had the entire work been a paper for school. I went back through the entire thing and just read it, front to back, forming paragraphs from the rough bulks of my writing sessions as I went along.

Sounds simple, but it was something I hadn’t done yet, and having such low expectations for my task freed me up to just see the things I had made visible with words, and whether or not they worked together, and how I was going to turn this pile of pages into a book.

Tune in tomorrow (no fooling this time) to read about the next stab in the dark. I swear I make progress.

Technorati Tags: 50000 words, close reading, editing don'ts, editing my novel, editing your novel, i won nanowrimo, i'm back, line by line, nanowrimo, nanowrimo winner, nanowrimo winning wordcount, novel in a month, word by word

So forgive my overwrought happiness. It’s a side-effect of this pursuit. Oh how I briefly mourn (before again being distracted by my outsized jubilation) all the Novembers that came before this one, and how I didn’t participate in National Novel Writing Month.

I always assumed that this sort of lightness, freeness, possibility, was what other people felt all the time, but now that I’m actually in it, I think that I am in something other people would also like to be in, feeling-wise.

So joy, and upon discovery of it, a fledgling plan for a trip to Newport tomorrow night for a write-in at SKW Brewing. Another bonus to this- there’ll be some minor socializing (at least being in the same room with humans) to come out of it.

I’m almost too jubilant (and my hands are almost too cold) to have much else to say, but I will tell you these things.

I’ve recently had the pleasure of the company of some people I used to be able to call coworker, and as glad as I am that i quit the cafe, I am doubly glad I still get to have these people in my life. They’re superdedoop, and it’s always a challenge to find, in a new or recently-returned-to locale, to find the superdedoop among us. So yes, we might just be drinking ourselves soggy and playing Rockband until the adolescent hours of the morning, but that can be a rad thing with the right people, and these are the right people.

So now that I’ve toned down the joy a bit with my Rockband interlude (I’ve conquered you, Tom Petty, but oh how the Jackson 5 elude me), I’d like to take a moment to tell you, my captive audience, thanks for being there. Even if I do have to leave you hogtied in the basement with a bowl of soft food and a matching bowl of water to get you to stay.

I am in the perfect place to finally be writing again, and it took me so long to realize it that I briefly felt like a fool, but I’ve moved past it, to the great productive ride into the sunset that I am rededicated to creating in my life.

Technorati Tags: anxiety, control, depression, happiness, help, how to, how to be ok at stuff, how to be ok with stuff, how to deal, jackson 5, keeping myself busy, nanowrimo, november, rockband, sean connery, SKW brewing, superdedoop, survival, tom petty, treatment, write-in

I’m in love with the community of people doing this internationally, the idea that people can set goals like these and meet them, and the concept of having birthed a novel by the end of the month (even if it might be born with its eyes closed and a thick sheen of placenta hanging over it). Not to mention the addiction of the numbers- how many words today, how many words tomorrow, how long did it take, how long will it take, are they writing more in Russia or in China, and will I win?

I can’t tell yet whether this idea is to me and I am to this idea like a kid in a candy store, a bull in a china shop, or the light at the end of the tunnel and the long-trapped miner.

I’m going to try to keep my Write or Die widgets updated, and as soon as I get around to it, I might put up a NaNoWriMo widget as well, so that you can check out my progress and, hopefully, be motivated to progress yourself.

Many woot-woots, and a tired but satisfied goodnight.

(Mommy, can I make every month such a goal-filled month?

Yes. Yes, you can.)

Technorati Tags: anxiety, depression, help, how to, how to be ok at stuff, how to be ok with stuff, how to deal, keeping myself busy, nanowrimo, natural remedy, november, november is for novels, positive, positivity, survival, write or die

Wikipedia, being my constant companion, helps me bring you some aspects of what green means to me, see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green. To begin with, the etymology, stating that it’s “closely related to the Old English verb growan (“to grow”)”. Being all about personal growth (all about it) at this and all moments in my life to date, this strikes a chord with me. Being around green and growing things (with the connection between chlorophyll and plants being one of the most obvious ways that green means growth) has been a major tool for me in overcoming the symptoms of both my depression and my anxiety. In dealing with my small garden, and being around the constant greenery that is the scenery in this area, I have found a greater peace than has previously been available to me. The twin goals of having a smaller negative impact on the world around me, and a larger positive one, are much easier to channel when I can give to each of my actions the meaning that I see in it, and when more of those actions have to do with the concept of green, as I see it.

Wikipedia also states that, “Green is restful to the eye. Studies show that a green environment can reduce fatigue.” Fatigue being one of the burdens those of us who experience clinical depression must bear, the help that the color green provides can naturally help to remedy.

The section that relates the color green to its various roles in culture states:
“In the metaphysics of the “New Age Prophetess”, Alice Bailey, in her system called the Seven Rays which classifies humans into seven different metaphysical psychological types, the “third ray” of “creative intelligence” is represented by the color green. People who have this metaphysical psychological type are said to be “on the Green Ray”… In Hinduism, Green is used to symbolically represent the fourth, heart chakra (Anahata)… Psychics who claim to be able to observe the aura with their third eye report that someone with a green aura is typically someone who is in an occupation related to health, such as a physician or nurse, as well as people who are lovers of nature and the outdoors.”

Of course, there are various associations with things not quite so positive, such as the association between a green face and nausea, or its superstitious associations with misfortune, or the association I make between green meat and DO NOT EAT. But nothing is all positive, or all negative. Everything has shades, and gradients, and a leaning toward that which it is not which defines it as that which it IS. The peril of assigning meaning to anything is that there will be those who assign the opposite meaning, but the joy of pursuing meaning is that it is a thing you pursue, and not a thing you catch. Things you catch are also things you get caught by, and if you can remain in a state where you are constantly in pursuit, you will have mastered the tightrope walk. Walking the tightrope is both difficult and rewarding, and I wish you all the best in your personal journeys to do so.

Technorati Tags: anxiety, depression, green, how to be ok at stuff, how to deal, keeping myself busy, natural remedy, positive, positivity

Here are some goals I have for the immediate future (action plans to take effect before the end of the year):
1. Start running again- I’m not a pro, and I have floating patellas, but I’ve never felt better than when I can get some exercise in- and taking Gollum (the family Lab/Akita mix) gets him out in the air, too.
2. Get 4 hours of work in on my writing every day
3. Go to esozone (where I predict I’ll be conquering a great many of my anxiety symptoms)

Though my feelings about quitting things are centered largely around how much I don’t want to be a quitter, I’ve realized there are occasions when to quit something is a much better choice than to continue. One of those instances being when something makes you miserable, and facing it everyday is not hitting just you (because there is nothing that hits you that doesn’t also hit your loved ones), but also impacting your self-image. I’ve spent so long trying to remove toxic influences from my life, that when this one came along, I was so convinced that I had already mucked out the stables of my mind that I didn’t even notice it.

So join me in my resolution to make a habit of mucking the stables everyday. Let’s incorporate the practice of wellness, and happiness, and busyness, and love, into our every movement, and for the sake of the universe, let’s quit.

Technorati Tags: anxiety, debt, depression, etsy, exercise, family, keeping myself busy, quitting, self-image

So in the interest of dealing, let a resolution be made, for myself and the anyone who is reading this:

We will make every effort to be ourselves, despite the stigma that who we are (of which depression and/or anxiety are undeniably a part) is something of which to be ashamed. To be ashamed of being an anxious depressive is to give it a great deal of power it doesn’t need, as it has power of its own.

We will not listen to the voices that call us names for who and what we are, and we will accept the fact that we no longer have control over the circumstances that brought us to the point of who we are now. We will accept that having the final say in some arguments is driven by our fear of the loss of control, and will do more harm than good to ourselves and, sometimes, others.

We will accept that we have a place in the universe, as does everyone else. We will accept that our place in the universe is to be exactly who we are, and that the universe will suffer just as much as, or more than, we will if we deny who we are or try to be someone else.

We will accept that no one thing we do, or way we act, or job we have, or person we associate with, defines who we are. To try to define who anyone is, you must be that person, which you cannot be, because you must be yourself.

We will not avoid doing the things which make us happy, or happier in any way, or which we have any inclination to do which passes all the fail-safes against action that we have already installed in our beings.

And we will be much kinder to ourselves, because there is nothing we could do that would make us exempt from kindness. And this kindness that we show to ourselves, it will overflow into everything else, and everyone else around us. And if we can all do this, in any small or large way, then who knows what awesomenesses we can perpetrate? Our limits are none, and our abilities are many, and we are stronger and more beautiful than we know.

NOTE: I will be posting much more frequently. My long absence gave me material, and brought with it growth.
So be excited! I certainly am.

Technorati Tags: anxiety, clinical depression, control, depression, fear, help, irrational, natural remedy, negative emotions, resolution, shame, survival

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Depression symptoms may improve with exercise. In addition, people with GAD often have other anxiety disorders (such as panic disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder and phobias), suffer from depression.

Are you stressed because you can't figure out if you have a clinical anxiety or depression disorder? Use our interactive tools to help you discover more . Learn how the symptoms of Depression, anxiety disorder, and bipolar disorder compare.

Symptoms of anxiety in depression: assessment of item performance of the Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale in patients with depression. Guide to antidepressant medications, including how effective they are for depression, safety concerns, side effects, and the treatment alternatives.

A resource for anxiety and depression related mental health and emotional wellness issues. Learn about social …

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This article about the intense subject of depression anticipates two ways of reaction. The question is: Will it be – in your case – shock or relief?

When you read about depression, you will encounter many passages like the following:

“These brain chemicals – in varying amounts – are responsible for our emotional state. Depression happens, when these chemical messages aren’t delivered correctly between brain cells, disrupting communication.”

What could be probably wrong with that statement?

It is based on the unquestioned belief that human beings are machines. Although this assumption is widespread, it is simply not a fact. Machines are built, operated and cared for by conscious human beings. In an analogous way our body and mind exist because of our existence as conscious beings.

It is not matter, which builds consciousness, but it is consciousness, which forms matter. That is actually our observation everywhere.

The matter of depression must be totally reevaluated from this new perspective. It is not a fact that brain chemicals are responsible for our emotional state, but vice versa. Our emotional state leads to the production of certain chemicals in our brain and body.

Of course there is an interlink between the two planes. Emotional states can definitely be influenced by certain chemical substances. But there is some substantial loss of information, as the “positive” state induced by chemicals cannot be compared with a natural positive state derived from the firm foundation in the conviction that life is wonderful.

Here we have arrived at a crucial point.

Depression is not caused by chemicals in the brain, but rather causes chemicals in the brain. Depression is a state of mind, wherein the affected human being has lost his/her connection to the original quality of life, which is bliss, knowledge and eternity.

Neither will medication help to overcome depression, nor superficial psychological treatment. The only way to help the depression sufferer is by unalloyed love, which is rare in this world. This sort of love will not further push him into the state of a helpless and powerless victim, but will empower him to take his fate into his own hands.

In this way the person suffering with depression will be given the chance to see live from a new perspective. He will learn to love himself despite of any shortcomings, because – by feeling appreciated and loved – he will come to love his real spiritual personality, which is always beyond the polarity of material despair and happiness. When he finds shelter in the ultimate quality of pure consciousness, which is unconditional love, he will feel the natural bliss of life.

Consequently this article ends with a request to doctors and psychologists: Become unconditional lovers! All other cures are temporary, like shifting a hurting heavy weight from one shoulder to the other. If you want to solve the root problem, you have to solve it first and foremost in yourself.

Friedrich Asen
http://www.articlesbase.com/non-fiction-articles/depression-from-a-spiritual-perspective-133573.html

Probably there’s no one in the world who has not tasted the bitter taste of depression at some point of their lives. Like death it is an ailment that spares none. Leave alone human beings, depression doesn’t even spare non living things. Surprised what am I talking about? Well if you are aware, depression doesn’t even spare Mother Nature and economics.

Different types of depression occur in the crust of the earth. Geologically there are varied types of depressions like tectonics, blowout, impact crater, graben, and kettle etc. In all these conditions there is a sinking in the earth’s surface. Due to certain abnormalities in the elements of nature like air and water there arises certain condition that creates a difference on the surface of the earth. The phenomenon is given a name that has got a very literal meaning. As the above mentioned phenomena give rise to conditions where there is a sinking in the surface of the earth, it is termed as depression.

In case of economics too we get to see Depression. Depression in economics refers to recession in the economy or extreme deflation. In 1930s there was a great economic slip down which is referred as ‘The Great Depression’. This depression affected all the countries including the developed ones. The stock markets crashed down and so did the markets and prices.

So you see depression reins all aspects of our lives. If it can’t bother us by occupying our minds it wrecks our lives by either coming into the economy or by tempering with the surface of the earth, as if reminding us that no matter how hard we try we can’t slip out of its tight hold.

But we the human species are not among the ones to sit back and let depression rule our lives. Though we have not been successful in keeping depression fully out of our lives but still some of us have slogged tirelessly to carve out cures for the human breed. Commonly known by the name scientists, these people have ultimately searched various cures for the vice known by the name depression.

Depression in human beings can come up for so many diverse reasons that we can’t sit down to count them. But whatever the reasons equally effective cures have also been invented. For example there are a number of anti depressants available in the market to tackle the problem. Apart from anti depressants there are other cures like talk therapy, psychiatric help etc.

In the field of anti depressants Xanax is a drug that has many success stories in its account. You can avail xanax online from some online pharmacies on medical consultation. Just a click on order xanax button, and your anti depressant would be shipped right at your doorstep. However one word of caution in case of anti depressants is that they are not without side effects and sometimes can have really adverse impact on certain patients. So if you are thinking to buy xanax just like that, drop the idea. Such kind of rash behaviour can wreck your lives!

Denzing Jones
http://www.articlesbase.com/health-articles/did-you-think-human-beings-are-the-only-victims-of-depression-think-again-219498.html

Who among us has never been in a large group of people and felt timid, nervous, and even downright terrified? Feelings such as these can happen from time to time, especially if we are a generally shy person. But when feelings of fear and panic are present in all situations such as these, you may be exhibiting signs of social anxiety – persistent and severe heightened fear and panic in social situations. When these feelings take over and begin to impact the way in which you socialize and engage in personal relationships, it is thought that treatment can significantly benefit the way in which we manage these overwhelming feelings.

Social anxiety is defined as feelings of fear or panic in anticipation of social situations – or while participating in social situations. These psychological feelings that people are judging you or you are under a microscope can lead to physical symptoms that may include increased heart rate, difficulty breathing, sweating, shaking, headache, and diarrhea, among others. While social anxiety is considered an occurrence, social anxiety disorder falls within the umbrella of anxiety disorder that encapsulates everything from generalized anxiety disorder to obsessive-compulsive disorder, and phobias.

A diagnosis of social anxiety disorder is generally made when there is ongoing and persistent feelings of panic and apprehension associated with commonplace social situations; daily life is thwarted by these feelings of anxiety and the sufferer sees the ramifications in their relationships – familial, platonic, and romantic. People who experience this type of anxiety feel as if their every move is being watched and they are convinced that they will humiliate themselves in a room full of people. Often the fear is so palpable that all social interaction is avoided in order to avoid the feeling.

In fact, for anyone who has ever experienced stage fright while performing in front of a group of people, the feelings associated with social anxiety are much the same thing. Those who suffer from this type of anxiety feel in a constant state of stage fright whenever they are in social situations – as if they are expected to perform.

Not surprisingly, those who suffer with this anxiety – and are not aware of the magnitude or definition of what they are managing – will often attempt to self-medicate with alcohol or drugs during social engagements. Such substances often have the ability to lower inhibitions enough that sufferers can mange their social time without feeling incapacitated. But this is hardly the safe or effective way to treat anxiety.

Treating this anxiety can be done in a number of ways. Cognitive-behavioral therapy with a licensed and reputable therapist teaches the patient how to rewire their thoughts and change their behaviors associated with the source of anxiety. Often there is a certain amount of exposure therapy wherein the patient is introduced to sources of anxiety – but in a controlled and safe environment. The hope is that continued exposure with positive outcomes will eventually desensitize the patient from this type of anxiety.

Medication is also available that treats a wide variety of anxiety. Your doctor is best in the position to determine what medication may work for you and will monitor your progress. In most cases, a combination of therapy and medication works most successfully in treating social anxiety.

M. Jedediah
http://www.articlesbase.com/health-articles/what-is-social-anxiety-128814.html

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Duration : 592621 hrs 29 min 46 sec

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(Yeah, sure, I’ve gotten the spiel w/r/t Wikipedia from professors, and how nothing that isn’t authored by experts and maintained in a static form is worth a damn. But I’m particularly good at not listening to authority figures when they spout off, as they tend to do when you show them something new. Personally, I have too much faith in humanity to believe that open-source isn’t the way to go. We ants far outnumber the grasshoppers, and we don’t need to bow to their one-shot expertise any longer.)

So- back story. My grandma has had several falls in the past several of years, two of which broke both her ankles in the months before the last reunion we held at their house, three years ago. My grandmother also has a long history of being on this or other heavy-duty medication. Within the body of the Wiki article on Clonazepam, an increased risk of falls and impairments in the elderly is mentioned, in addition to the following:

An individual who has consumed too much clonazepam may display one or more of the following symptoms:

* Coma
* Hypotension
* Impaired motor functions
o Impaired reflexes
o Impaired coordination
o Impaired balance
o Dizziness
* Labored breathing
* Mental confusion
* Somnolence (difficulty staying awake)
* Nausea

Now, I don’t want to be alarmist about this, but my grandmother has been suffering from certain of these conditions for some time now, and it would be silly of me to write this off as a coincidence.

Of course, my grandmother is also part of a generation that espoused ideas like “now that it’s regulated by the FDA, everything is safe- it’s not like the old days of patent medicine and snake oil”.

News flash: The medicines of today, while there has been vastly more R&D funding thrown at them, are not too far off from the idea of patent medicines, because they are still primarily funded by corporations with a greater interest in making money than in keeping people healthy.

I’m not the biggest conspiracy theorist out there, by any means, but if a pharmaceutical corporation, under the concept of separate legal personality, is allowed, “to act as if they were a single composite individual for certain purposes. . . most commonly lawsuits, property ownership, and contracts”, then it isn’t that great of a stretch of the imagination to see the patent medicine salesman and the pharmaceutical corporation as the same oily beast, bent on making a profit regardless of the well-being of the person consuming their product. And though I may draw fire for this, I won’t accept the idea that none of these institutions are familiar with the idea of planned obsolescence and the idea of “hooking” a patient on a product to maintain their profits.

But I digress. Basically, seeing the fams let me know that my depression and anxiety are by no means something that originated in my generation alone. It’s both comforting and kind of scary to hear stories from my elders about their lifelong battles with depression- comforting to know I’m not the only one in this boat, by any means, and scary to see their progress or lack thereof towards healing and solutions to their most debilitating symptoms.

BUT

The more you know about the past, the more control you have over your future.

So I go into the future now, well-armed with my past, and a healthy dose of skepticism about chemical remedies.

Toodles for now, folks-

I’m off for a job interview at a cafe where I can interact with enough people to take me out of my head, to take an organic gardening class this weekend which will enable me to reach some earth-touching goals, and into the great wide wonderwhere, where kittens roam free and neighbor puppies show up on the doorstep, reminding me that what I need is perspective, and how to get it is by being OK at stuff.

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Duration : 1 min 9 sec

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Duration : 11 min 48 sec

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Depression is a disease, a mental affliction. Getting the right depression treatment at the right time is vitally important. To someone suffering from depression, it is not only extremely stressful for the patient themselves but also people who are concern about them, especially their good friends and relatives.

Some symptoms of depression include mood swings, feelings of hopelessness, insomnia, suicidal thoughts, suicidal attempts, the frustration and helpless of not being able to snap out of it. Some other signs of depression include feeling of worthlessness, incapability to work (threatening to leave), inability to concentrate, inability to remember things, total detachment from favorite things, constant talk about afterlife, death, God, and so on. Basically, the earlier you notice the signs of depression, the easier it is to treat the depression.

Fortunately, doctors nowadays are well trained in depression related issues. They are well trained in giving enough information to the people out there about what is depression, its symptoms, how to avoid it and how it can be treated. In the old days, depression was associated with madness and mental instability. Such misunderstandings are minimized today. Today, people suffering from depression receive a more sympathetic viewpoint from other people and they are treated with dignity and care. You can get the correct depression treatment at any medical facility. The sufferer should only be able to recognize that he/she is not really feeling in control anymore and that aid is needed.

The best depression treatment is to identify the signs of depression as early as possible and find out the core reason that is causing the depression. The longer you wait, the worst the depression would get, and the longer it would take for the depression treatment to recover the condition. At early stage, depression treatment can be very effective. It also has a very fast recovery rate. Therefore, it does not seem smart to suffer and wait to snap out of your blues forever.

There are good amounts of anti-depressants and depression medications which can help ease depressive symptoms. Some drugs are to be taken with water and some are for chewing. Though there are number of anti-depressants and depression medications, the depression treatment will have to be customized as per individual condition. This is not like having fever, or a cold which has standard medicines and care. It takes special care and individual attention to ensure that the depression treatment given to the person actually works. Hence, no two depression cases may be alike, and no two depression treatments would be similar either. Depending on your condition, your doctor will be able to recommend the right medication for your particular type of depression, whether mild or severe.

Since the marketplace is full with anti depression medication, it is vital to note that never take over the counter anti depression pills/ medication. This is very risky and not meant to be experimented with. In case you take the incorrect medicines or in the wrong dosages, there can be enormous disasters. Always medicate yourself only after you consulted a medical doctor. Only the medical doctor will be able to advise you the correct dosage. I have known people who have taken this particular advice as a joke with very terrible consequences. Depression can lead to suicide if not checked in time. Hence, it is extremely imperative that it is rather prevented than cured.

Besides anti-depressants and depression medications, another alternative is to look for the cures which are natural based. This is because, in general, most of the anti depression medications have side effects. These side effects can be terrifying but most side effects will subside after a while. Inform your doctor about your side effects to find out if they are standard and keep a record of how long they last. If they persist for too long, you may have to either change your medication or reduce the dosage. Your doctor will be able to make that decision. Never make it on your own.

Besides taking chemical or natural anti depression medication, you should go for exercise, fresh air, and meditation. It is also true that one should be happy and proud with whatever God sends their way; high expectations are usually a very important trigger for depression.

The good news is that the amateur has understood that depression is a treatable and curable malady, just as the flu, which can and should be treated with the correct medicine and sometimes psychiatric treatment. This does not signify that the person is psychologically unstable or that he/she are on their way to become mad, as the belief was some decades ago.

Depression is treated with sympathy and care. Besides medication, meditation, yoga and positive thinking are other factors that help battle and treat depression time and again. Quality off-time and therapy sessions and anti-depressants also can bring you back from your blues; however, the best way to wrestle depression is regular relaxation of both mind and body.

Cindy Heller
http://www.articlesbase.com/non-fiction-articles/all-you-need-to-know-about-depression-treatment-93014.html

Duration : 40 sec

Technorati Tags: anxiety

At one time or another we have all experienced anxiety; a natural reaction to particular stressors in our lives. Juggling career demands, personal relationships, and family schedules can provoke anyone to have moments when the anxiety becomes palpable and manifests itself in a number of physical symptoms. It is only when anxiety is persistent and pervasive – interfering with everyday activities – which sufferers turn to anxiety treatment to help manage their symptoms and bring balance and order back into their life.

Anxiety treatment – like the anxiety that we experience – is varied; depending on the severity and frequency of the episodes and the personal needs of the sufferer. Those battling ongoing anxiety often experience persistent heightened levels of panic and fear – either in general or in response to particular situations. The treatment that will bring relief must be decided between patient and doctor and only comes after a comprehensive examination and proper diagnosis.

Most often, those who turn to treatment options are experiencing what has been defined as anxiety disorder – an umbrella diagnosis that refers to many different forms of anxiety including panic disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, social anxiety, and general anxiety disorder. Not every treatment works for every sufferer so it is vitally important that each person who seeks treatment does so in accordance with their medical practitioner. Your doctor will be able to run a series of tests to first ensure that the symptoms experienced as a result of anxiety are not instead manifestations of a physical ailment or disease.

Once anxiety has been diagnosed, a treatment plan is put into place. One such anxiety treatment is what as known as cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT). CBT is conducted by a licensed therapist – a reputable practioner that your primary doctor can recommend – and focuses on changing the thinking and behavior of the anxiety sufferer. Individual catalysts of anxiety are identified with each patient – particular situations that most often provoke anxiety. Once these provocations are identified, the therapist can then work with the patient to put tools in place to help the patient work through the anxiety during particular situations. Often – after much work has been done – the therapist will expose the patient to situations that provoke stress; in some cases, frequent exposure can actually desensitize the patient to the situation and anxiety levels are lowered considerably. CBT can take months to fully reveal its benefits. But often it is well worth the work as patients can learn to manage their anxiety without the use of medications.

Holistic anxiety treatment is another method used to manage anxiety. Such treatments include the taking of herbal remedies that have been shown to have effectiveness in anxiety management. However, it is important to work with a doctor in determining what herbal treatments may work for you; some are not recommended in conjunction with other medication so it is important to proceed with care. Other patients report success with such therapies as acupuncture, biofeedback – a form of self-hypnosis – and other relaxation techniques such as meditation, and therapeutic massage.

When anxiety continues even after the implementation of therapy and holistic remedies, a doctor may prescribe medication to help control anxiety symptoms. Luckily, medical advancements have made medication safe and effective when used under the care of a doctor; and many people report substantial success with the help of medications. Your doctor can prescribe the medication that is most likely to work with your particular situation.

Finally, it is important to take extra care of yourself if you suffer from anxiety. Anxiety treatment also relies on the patient knowing to what best their body responds. A healthy diet, regular exercise, and plentiful sleep can go a long way toward helping lower anxiety levels.

Samantha Kay
http://www.articlesbase.com/medicine-articles/different-forms-of-anxiety-treatment-128143.html

Depression can be brought about by many factors: winter weather can trick the mind into believing that thoughts and emotions should be as gray and dull as the world. The death of a loved one can erase hope and quickly turn happiness into despair. The break up of a relationship, the dissolution of a family, the loss of one’s job – the list of causes is endless, and the list of repercussions is as equally infinite.

Depression can tax both on the mind and body. Constantly dark thoughts have driven people to despair, self-mutilation or even suicide. Deep, bottled-up emotions can lessen one’s appetite, or raise it considerably, causing extremely high changes in weight. Inner rage and anger can raise blood pressure, causing body organs to function improperly, or even leading to greater chances of a heart attack.

If you are suffering from depression, you may be subscribed antidepressant medication. This medication, however, can work only with the proper environment and mindset. You may need to modify your outlook or channel your energy into other activities that can help you ease your depression. To turn your blue day into a red letter one, take note of these ten depression-easing tips.

1. Express your feelings through art. Painting pictures of what bothers you can help you devote more energy into the task of making your thoughts manifest. Your concentration will therefore be on turning your work into art, not in focusing on your state of depression. If you are not into painting or drawing, you can also make sculptures.

2. Write poetry. Writing about what you feel can be a way of channeling your energy away from your thoughts, and into making plain words beautiful. If poetry is too difficult for you, you may want to write essays or short fiction.

3. Keep a gratitude journal. At the end of every day, list ten things that you are thankful for. A gratitude journal can change your outlook on life, and allow you to focus on what is good in the midst of what you might believe to be ugly or evil.

4. Do not engage in a menial or routine task too frequently, such as tilling the soil for gardening, or washing dishes. Such tasks can make your mind wander back to your depression. If you are doing such tasks, make sure that you have a friend to perform them with, so that you can conduct a conversation and keep your mind off your state.

5. Do thorough research on your antidepressants. These medicines may have side effects that have not yet been documented in marketing literature, so you may want to check out contraindications.

6. Join an online group that helps depression patients or sufferers share their stories. Support and human interaction can help you through your depression. If you have a local depression support group, then you can also join it and widen your circle of friends.

7. Get out of your comfort zone. You may find the house to be an all-too welcoming haven, or your routine tasks to be comforting. Your comfort zone, however, is also the place where your depression reigns, and you must try to escape it. You will struggle, no doubt, but with patience, you can rise out of your depression. Rising out of your comfort zone simply means that you should do things that you had never done before, such as engaging in sports, watching movies alone, or even eating in a restaurant you have never been to.

8. Clean your house every day and repeat these words to yourself, ‘I am taking away all the sad things of yesterday, and I am putting in happiness for today.’ You may also try variations of the statement, but make the meaning clear: you are cleaning your house free from whatever is shackling you to your depression, so that you can let happiness and goodness enter. Cleaning your house is simply a representation of your resolution to be and do better.

9. Be convinced that you can rise out of your depression. Think positively! Medicine can only go so far, and will need a willing body to be able to work. If you believe that you can get out of your depression, and if you acknowledge that it is only a temporary state, then you will survive.

10. Be patient. You can think positively all you want, but you will find that every day is a struggle. Recognize that you need to take small steps to recover, and that if you recover too quickly, you may sink back into depression again. Great rewards take long to reap, but with patience, half the battle is already won. Depression is only a phase, and with the proper attitude and know-how, you can indeed recover and have a better life.

Bill Urell
http://www.articlesbase.com/self-help-articles/ten-tips-for-easing-depression-125186.html

I understand your pain. My dad gave some metal parts to the war effort way back when and the next week he needed one of them. After that he never got rid of anything. He died in “93 and I am still disposing of his stuff. I have a lot of stuff too. The best advice I ever received was from my best friend. “If you haven’t used it in th past year, you probably never will.” Be brutal. Get rid of it. The extra cash will make you feel better and knowing someone else is enjoying it, will be a hoot. If you need to collect, find something that doesn’t take up much room and is likely to increase in value like coins or classic jewelry.

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A: I went to speak to a psychologist due to my binge eating…i have struggled with my weight + body image since being 14yrs old, and my weight fluctuates. had been in the binge eating and starving cycle for 5 years. it’s uncontrollable + i used to hate myself for it. i hid this problem from Everyone! even from my bf and mum. i felt so ashamed of it! finally went to a psychologist about 6 months ago, and am so glad i did! most eating disorders have an underlying cause, and you’ll be amazed at what these causes are, which you would have not thought were related to your binge eating.
im currently resolving my issues and my binge eating has reaallyyyy decreased! for 4 weeks i have not binged once, and am eating healthily, save for the odd chocolate or cake (but it’s exam time & im continually studying :S boring! lol )

good luck…you can resolve the issue
btw, exercising helps also

Technorati Tags: binge eating, eating disorder, psychology

Maybe they are just being nice and they are really not interested. How can I tell?

I know I have sabotaged things many times. Real nice, beautiful women with an interest in me, if they really were interested.

Brian
Yeah, when I think about it, what I really wanted to hear was how others are successful despite disabilities. Thanks everyone.

Well , I’m a girl who loves a guy ( I’m able bodied and he is visually impaired ) , I’m pretty sure that he has the exact problem as you , Sir I want to tell that when a woman says she likes you or acts interested , SHE IS REALLY ! so stop complicating your life , may be you will loose someone and you’ll spend the rest of your life regretting it …
Don’t do it …

Technorati Tags: dating, disability shame, self sabotage

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I wrote two books based on my family. I worked on them until they were almost in final draft. Then, for some reason I couldn’t finish them. I think the reason is that writing them was just a way for me to express myself. But finishing them and getting them in publishable form would have been work and I figured very few people would ever read them, so why bother? Most people write about things that are of pressing emotional importance to them. What I did was take traumatic situations from my childhood and then fictionalize them. So the family dynamic was true and the emotional experience was true, but the events were partly true and partly made up. Self-doubt is normal. I don’t know what the answer is. I guess people who are published writers have enough ego to believe the world needs their book. The ego thing was a big problem for me. I was full of ego when I started my books. But as I went along I began to kind of nauseate myself. I would see people on t.v. talking about their books and it seemed like they were all puffed up and living in a fantasy of thinking they were all that. But that’s just me. Obviously the world needs books and someone has to write them.

Technorati Tags: fiction, giving up, publishing, self doubt, self expression, writing

And thanks for all the great answers so far!

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Manic depression or as it is also known Bipolar Disorder is a mental illness that causes the sufferer to have rapid shifts in mood of such a magnitude to affect an individuals normal functioning.

The symptoms of manic depression are quite wide ranging. They normally include large mood swings, ranging from an extreme high, occasionally with irritability, to an extremely low and hopeless mood and back again. In between these two poles of mood are periods of normal mood. As a ratio, the low and depressive mood is most common at a ratio of 3 to 1 manic, or high, mood.

Manic Depression Symptoms – Manic Episode

When a person has symptoms of manic depression and they experience “mania” it is known as a manic episode.

A manic episode is usually characterized by these manic depression symptoms:

* An extreme increase of energy, increased participation in physical and mental activities or restlessness

* An extreme high or euphoria and an overly good mood.

* Heightened irritability

* Fast talking and occasionally jumping from on topic to the next as a result of ideas and thoughts racing through the individuals mind

* A reduction in concentration levels and being distracted very easily

* Not needing a lot of sleep

* Egomania and a belief in one’s abilities and powers regardless of how unrealistic they may be.

* A lack of good judgment

* Spending money regardless of whether it is available to spend or not

* The abnormal behavior lasts for a long period of time

* An increase in sexual drive

* Abusing drugs, in particular alcohol, cocaine and medications to aid sleep

* Aggressive, invasive or confrontational behavior

* Denying that there is something wrong

The diagnosis of a manic episode mostly occurs in an individual when there are three or more manic depression symptoms and they are accompanied by an elevated mood. Then again, if the mood is primarily characterized by high irritability then it must be accompanied by another four symptoms. In either case, the manic depression symptoms must be noticeable for most of the day, nearly every day for at least a week.

Manic Depression Symptoms – Depressive Episode

During a depressive episode, the manic depression symptoms may include:

* Relentlessly feeling sad or empty

* High levels of anxiety

* Feeling hopeless/pessimistic, Dwelling on negative thoughts

* Feeling guilty/worthless

* A lack of motivation and/or energy and feeling like there is nothing worth making an effort for

* No interest in activities usually found pleasurable

* Low or no energy

* Feeling like you are being slowed down or fatigued

* A loss of memory and trouble concentrating on one thing at a time

* Can’t make decisions

Annoyance, rage or petulance

* Having not enough or too much sleep

* Appetite change and/or weight loss/gain without any explanation

* Physical symptoms that are not caused by physical illness or injury, such as aches and pains

* Suicidal or death related thoughts, possible suicide attempts

A person in a depressive episode who is suffering with manic depression symptoms needs all the help they can get. Throughout the depressive episode, there is a greater possibility of suicide and it is strongly advised that professional help is found as soon as a person starts talking about suicide.

Henry Anderson
http://www.articlesbase.com/health-articles/manic-depression-symptoms-131309.html

Apart of Manic Depressive Disorder (also called Bipolar Disorder) the two main known types of depression are Major Depression and Dysthymia. Both types of depression can easily be distinguished from each other although intertype episodes, especially of Major Depression in Dysthymia patients, are commonly experienced. So what are the differences between those two types of depression?

Major Depression

Arguably Major Depression is the mental disorder that a layman would associate with the term “depression”. As the name of the illness implies it is the case that patients suffering from this type of depression show many or even all classic signs of depression in their most severe form. Such symptoms include a change in natural sleep patterns leading to excessive sleepiness and / or insomnia; a loss of appetite, motivation and drive even for simple activities and ones, which had previously been enjoyed by the patient; (often unexplainable) deep sadness; anxiety episodes; the inability to meet and entertain people, including close friends and relatives; a general lack of self-esteem; and potentially strong thoughts of terminal disease, dead and suicide. Major Depression can happen as a single devastating episode often associated with a so-called “life-event” such as the death of a dear relative or close friend, or an accident leading to permanent disablement. In such cases it may pass away after proper treatment, usually by combined application of anti depressants and psychotherapy, to never appear again. However, in many instances episodes of Major Depression happen without a major life-event though some external trigger can normally be identified. Triggers of Major Depression may for example be a seemingly minor incident such as a family quarrel, or a more severe incident such as chemical poisoning. Also, there are many cases where this type of depression occurs more then once during a patient’s lifetime.

Dysthymia

In a way Dysthymia is the less severe of the two mentioned types of depression as the usual symptoms of depression described before commonly occur in a weakened form and are less debilitating. However hard it is for her the Dysthymia patient usually is still able to live her life and to pursue her work (although it costs her much effort), while someone suffering from Major Depression may not even be able to leave his bed in the morning. In other words: The Dysthymia patient does not function properly – the Major Depression patient may not function at all. However, the downside of having Dysthymia rather than Major Depression is that the former is a chronic disease that may need constant treatment during a patient’s life. Also, Dysthymia patients often experience one or more episodes of Major Depression on top of their Dysthymia disease during their lifetime.

While Major Depression and Dysthymia are closely connected but different types of depression they have in common that they are both types of depression that can be treated very successfully. The usual treatment for both types of depression includes anti depressants, talk therapy and a change in lifestyle towards proper nutrition, sports and selected recreational activities, etc. Treatment does possibly though not necessarily result in a cure of the disease, i.e. the disorder never reappears after treatment is stopped. In any case it does definitely lead to an increased standard of living as there will be prolonged episodes without disease. Thus, while both types of depression are severe mental disorders they have lost lots of their threatening potential due to today’s medical achievements.

Alexander Matis
http://www.articlesbase.com/medicine-articles/two-types-of-depression-major-depression-and-dysthymia-132407.html

Technorati Tags: anxiety, control, determinants

Absolutely there is a difference, bipolar people are fine whilst they are on their medication, unfortunately, they think oh, I’m better now then go from one extreme to the other, with clinical depression, its usually a dark hidden secret that they feel that they can’t share with anyone cause then they would have to face it and that’s their worst fear, there are many types of depression, inability to cope with day to day life, the black hole that you feel you are being sucked into, but hang on for dear life, then their are those who just let go, medication can helps, but don’t think that it can go away quickly, its a long haul and can come back again (although usually not as bad as the first time) at anytime, their are usually triggers that set us off, and we often don’t know what they are, anyway, that’s just whats happened to me or around me, hope this helps, good luck!

Technorati Tags: bipolar disorder, clinical depression, fear, medication

Try smoking pot. MUCH less dangerous than the drugs you are taking now.

Technorati Tags: ativan, generalized anxiety disorder, klonopin, smoking pot, SSRI, zoloft

I am the same exact way. I have been experiencing panic/anxiety attacks for a little more than a year. It is one of the scariest feelings in the world when you think something is wrong with your heart. I experience heart palpitations very often. I am constantly wondering if I am going to die, but the doctor keeps reassuring me that my heart is healthy, and I am absolutely fine.

To answer your question, yes, a great deal of stress, can cause a heart attack, but I don’t think you have anything to worry about at age 21. Obesity, is also a factor in heart disease, but again, if your doctor has assured you that your heart is healthy, then my advice is to take his word. When you feel that your heart is skipping a beat, remember your conversations with your doctor. If you need immediate reassurance, visit the ER, most likely, they will give you something to calm you, and then send you home. I’ve been there and done that MANY times.

A psychotherapist would probably give you the strength to over come your anxiety attacks on your own. I am just beginning to self cope myself. Sometimes, I wonder if I suffer from hypochondria.

Also, be sure to ask your health professional about any prescription drugs that can help you overcome your fears. I hate being prescribed meds, but I was taking .05 mg of xanax 3x per day, and you’d be surprised at how much it helped me. It was a little expensive though, so my doctor suggested klonopin. 1mg, 2 tx per day. It works great as well. I suggest you discuss your options with your doctor, and see if that helps.

Panic attacks are by far the most scary things I have ever experienced, and sometimes, they are hard to get through. However, It sounds to me like you are experiencing the same problem. Just keep eating healthy and I think you will be just fine. I hope you can find something to help you cope with this disorder. No one should have to live their life in fear.

I have found that talking with others with the same problem is one thing that always made me feel more comfortable. Try not to think about it, that only makes things worse. Remember, many people have this disorder, and you will be ok, and hopefully someday be able to overcome these attacks all together! Good luck with everything and take care!

Technorati Tags: anxiety attack, coping, disorder, fear, health anxiety, heart attack, hypochondria, klonopin, obesity, panic attack, stress, xanax

In a world where many of us are working to live, plagued by doubts and insecurities, divorced from a clear sense of identity in a planet which increasingly threatened, more of us are becoming depressed.

And I wonder whether depression is not so much an illness as an appropriate reaction when faced with the world we live in.

Is Depression a reasonable reaction to a dysfunctional society?

There is a difference between everyday depression and clinical depression. I would agree that the former is a reasonable reaction to life , and that to be unwaveringly cheerful is evidence of denial or psychosis! (Check out the Buddhist 4 noble truths for an elaboration). Living in a dysfunctional society only makes the problems of living more obvious, but even the people with the best quality of life have to face reality eventually. The irony is that in a culture as dysfunctional as the modern West we are constantly told that that we *should* be happy.

Clinical depression can be a useful state in forcing us to wake up to painful truths, and I think is really only a problem if prolonged e.g. by trying to ignore it, or suppress it with antidepressants which only serve to gloss over important issues. M.Scott Peck wrote a short and interesting chapter on this topic in the famous A Road Less Traveled, his best book. Another interesting take on this subject is Viktor Frankl’s ‘Man’s Search for Meaning’.

Technorati Tags: a road less traveled, antidepressants, clinical depression, depression, doubt, dysfunctional society, insecurity, m. scott peck, man's search for meaning, painful truths, viktor frankl

When to seek medical advice
Feeling shy at parties or nervous about giving a speech doesn’t necessarily mean you have social anxiety disorder. If your fears or anxieties don’t really bother you, you may not need treatment. For instance, you may not like making speeches but you do so anyway without being overwhelmed by anxiety.
What sets social anxiety disorder apart from everyday nervousness is that its symptoms are much more severe and last much longer. Social anxiety disorder disrupts your life, causes you distress and affects your daily activities.
Common, everyday experiences that may be difficult to endure when you have social anxiety disorder include:
Using a public restroom or telephone
Returning items to a store
Interacting with strangers
Writing in front of others
Making eye contact
Entering a room in which people are already seated
Ordering food in a restaurant
Being introduced to strangers
Initiating conversations
Social anxiety disorder symptoms can change over time. They may flare up if you’re facing a lot of stress or demands. Or if you completely avoid situations that would usually make you anxious, you may not have symptoms. Although avoidance may allow you to feel better in the short term, your anxiety is likely to persist over the long term if you don’t get treatment.
Tests and diagnosis
When you decide to seek treatment for symptoms of possible social anxiety disorder, you may have both a physical and psychological evaluation. The physical exam can determine if there may be any physical causes triggering your symptoms.
There’s no laboratory test to diagnose social anxiety disorder, however. Your doctor or mental health provider will ask you to describe your signs and symptoms, how often they occur and in what situations. He or she may review a list of situations to see if they make you anxious or have you fill out psychological questionnaires or self-assessments to help pinpoint a diagnosis.
To be diagnosed with social anxiety disorder, someone must meet criteria spelled out in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM). This manual is published by the American Psychiatric Association and is used by mental health professionals to diagnose mental conditions and by insurance companies to reimburse for treatment.
Criteria for social anxiety disorder to be diagnosed include:
A persistent fear of social situations in which you believe you may be scrutinized or act in a way that’s embarrassing or humiliating
These social situations cause you a great deal of anxiety
You recognize your anxiety level is excessive or out of proportion for the situation
You avoid anxiety-producing social situations
Your anxiety or distress interfere with your daily living

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It works pretty damn good for me. I really don’t feel sleepy at all just better.

It’s more like your relaxed now that you don’t have anxiety. It was a change for me because I couldn’t think of a time where I was not panicky except when I was a little kid.

I started taking zoloft for anxiety/depression going on 2 months now.
I started at 25mg and am now at 100 mg, and I think I’m staying at 100.

It is truly amazing for anxiety. Anxiety has made me miserable, but not anymore.

I haven’t had a panic attack in about a month now, and let me tell you it is great. I can go out in public now without a problem, Heart palpitations from anxiety are gone, and it also helps with my obsessive compulsiveness.

Good luck, you won’t regret it!

Technorati Tags: anxiety, depression, fear, obsessive compulsive disorder, panic attack, relax, zoloft

There is a phase in everybody’s life when one does not feel nice about many things or anything, and for no particular reason. If it is a short period, there is nothing to worry about, but if it stretches too long it could be depression. This kind of depression is some times disabling. When the patient is considered as a disabled person, s/he is also eligible for social security benefits.

But, how to treat depression?

This condition can be diagnosed by a psychiatrist. He can help you overcome the condition. However, in this case no help is better than self-help. Besides, no amount of help from anyone can actually work without your own effort.

Depression is found to be very common among Americans, as around 9.5 percent of the population in the United States suffers from the problem. The worst part is that people suffering from depression normally do not get themselves treated, which, in turn, makes this disease worse. For a layman, cheering up someone may look like a very easy task, but when it comes to someone suffering from depression, it is an uphill task.

For one who is suffering from chronic depression, it is necessary to visit a cognitive behavioral therapist and to take the medicines as and when prescribed by him. No doubt the treatment for depression often comes with a heavy expense but that is nothing compared to the pain borne by the patient.

Often considered as a mild problem, depression can sometimes even lead to suicide. It also affects the normal day-to-day activities of a person and the person starts loosing his self-confidence and begins keeping himself or herself secluded.

There are different symptoms of depression which include gradual loss of interest in something that the patient used to enjoy a lot, getting sleep disorders, becoming unfriendly, preferring isolation or talking about deaths. The list of symptoms is endless. And if such symptoms are noticed in someone, it is important that the person is rushed to the psychiatrist at the earliest so that the progression of depression could be checked in time.

Depression not only affects the patient but also the near and dear ones of him, as they feel helpless in doing anything for the patient. After spending some time with the patient, even the relatives start feeling completely out of sync with the patient.

The best way to deal with depression is to face it full and square. Normally, cognitive negative reinforcement therapists prefer cognitive behavioral talk or interpersonal talk with the patient as they are considered to be among the best methods. Efforts have to be made to make the patient realize that depression is nothing but a state of mind and he or she can get rid of it by trying to be happy.

Medications do help but nothing helps better than the patient’s determination to fight depression. The moment he or she realizes that the cure lies in believing and fighting back, half the battle is won.

Ashish Jain
http://www.articlesbase.com/self-help-articles/depression-taking-the-bull-by-the-horns-133095.html

First off, you should not take an anxiety pill which is supposed to be prescribed, unprescribed. That is dangerous and can harm you if taken wrongly.

Please go see a qualified doctor or psychologist to get a prescription if he/ she sees fit.

However, generally the effects normally can be felt within a 2 hours to a week, it definitely is not instant. And due to the nature of the medicine, the effects will not be obvious, although it will help gradually.

You might want to try some relaxation techniques such as deep breathing, or consult your parents or trusted friends.

Technorati Tags: anxiety pill, crushanxiety.com, prescription, relaxation exercises

Hi B,
I am so glad you got off the meds. All the things I have read about meds for anxiety and other disorders will just add other medical problems, like RLS.
It is not easy, but make your self get out at least three times a week, in a mall, movie, park, just get out. Everyone has some kind of problem, and remember you are very smart. Asking shows me you are brave. People are so judgmental- just tell yourself that everyone has problems or he or she would not put you down, that should make you feel better knowing you are not alone.
Good luck!!

Technorati Tags: anxiety meds, general anxiety disorder, nervous, social anxiety, stutter

But, I start panicking because I am under a time crunch, and I am losing time when I am trying to meditate or relax.

It seems to be a double-edged sword! How do I solve such an impossible problem?

I get anxious and panicked very easily, and I have lived with it since middle school, but it is getting too much. (And my health is going down hill too).

Thanks!
I really do not want any type of drug to manage it, however.

If you don’t want to try Xanax, there are other strategies you can employ.

Make a list of things you have to do. then highlight the things that are of absolute importance. Carve up your projects into bite-size chunks. Delegate, if possible.

After this time crunch is over, you need to start to address what is underneath your anxiety. Even if drugs are not for you, talking to people about this is important. I keep a fear journal, where i write my fears and then set them aside.

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The physical symptoms of anxiety and stress can be quite detrimental to one’s health. Unfortunately, many people may be so stressed that they do not realize the extent of it or the impact the stress and anxiety is having on their health. In some cases, the more stress or anxiety an individual experiences the less able they are to recognize it. Quite frequently in these situations the individual may have even become so accustomed to their level of stress, and the physical symptoms it produces, that they feel it is normal. Due to the fact that some people may not be aware of their emotional response to stress and anxiety they may need to rely on physical manifestations to identify it. This makes taking the time to learn about the physical symptoms of stress and anxiety an important step. Tuning into the symptoms of stress and anxiety can help you to identify potential triggers in your life and in turn help you to better manage them and alleviate the stress and anxiety in your life.

It is important to be aware that the physical symptoms of anxiety and stress can vary from one person to the next. Some symptoms may be more serious than others and can even be life threatening. It should be noted that one symptom on its own may not necessarily indicate the presence of stress or anxiety; however, where there are multiple symptoms this is a strong indication there is stress or anxiety present. Some symptoms you experience may be short-term while others may be long-term symptoms. Short-term symptoms include the following:

Paul Dylan
http://www.articlesbase.com/self-help-articles/understanding-the-physical-symptoms-of-anxiety-and-stress-90224.html

That’s the worst s h i t you can ever take. Anxiety is normal, everyone has it. It’s how you deal with it that matters. No medication is going to teach you how to deal with life, overcome fears, deal with worries, stress, etc. Even depression can be a factor with anxiety, and often it’s because of the way we think that ends up in a cycle of depression. How we think ends up in how we feel. It’s the habit of thought process that ends up in the negative emotions. How you learn to deal with your thinking, your outlook, your attitude (positive or negative), your level of faith, confidence, etc. I would far more recommend counseling than medication (even group therapy). Also, relaxation exercises, physical exercise, yoga, spirituality, relaxing music, taking time out, play time, etc. Anxiety medications especially the ones in the family of valium, Xanax, Librium, Attivan, etc are all from the same chemical structure. Once you get it on them, they actually cause a syndrome of anxiety that can increase 10 fold. You’ve heard of housewives that become addicted and end up having psychotic or mental breakdowns. It’s a nasty rebound affect, the medication that was suppose to help in the end is the disease. That kind of stuff is only good for VERY short term. Never stay on it for long term, look for other answers I’m not a big believer in alcohol. But honestly, you would be BETTER off taking a glass of wine 2-3 times a day than taking a valium 2-3 times a day to relax a little. I wouldn’t recommend the wine necessarily either, but it’s a better option than anxiety medication. By the way I was on it from age 16-21 and I ended up with an anxiety disorder and ended up spending 21 days in the hospital to get off the stuff and get my mind back. It took a long time before I ever felt normal again. My boss’s son is in his 30’s and he’s a MESS from Xanax, so is his wife. They wonder why they can’t overcome their anxiety disorder. The mother started it because of travel anxiety. She recommended her son for mild anxiety attacks he would have. Now their both 10 times worse off being on that crap. They don’t realize the medication is what’s crippling them. Millions are going through the same thing right now on the same stuff!

Technorati Tags: anxiety, anxiety attack, attivan, confidence, depression, librium, negative emotions, relaxation exercises, stress, valium, xanax

My English isn’t perfect but I’ll do my best to tell you how I got out of it. I’d been struggling with serious depression from January till about June this year. I think I am healthy now, but consider myself depression prone and going to pay attention to my life style for the rest of my life.
My answer to your question is make your life as positive as possible and give yourself 6 months to feel better.
1. Watch positive movies, TV programs and laugh a lot. Avoid TV news and newspapers – they are depressing. Avoid thrillers, dramas, horror movies etc. In general avoid anything negative.
2. Read positive, inspiring books.
3. Listen to joyful music.
4. Regularly exercise.
5. Avoid toxic people, even if they are members of your family. / Spend time with positive,uplifting people.
6. Meet friends on regular basis.
7. Make a list of your life achievements, and focus on it every morning and evening.
8. Every night, before going to sleep make a list of good things that happened to you that day. Be grateful for them.
9. Meditate every day.
10. Sleep well, and try to go to bed always at the same time.
11. Every day give yourself time to spend with things you love to do.
12. Bless your enemies.
13. Make your home a peaceful place. You should always feel “at home” when you’re at home.
14. Yes, have a healthy diet.

I’d also recommend the following books:
1. Creating Optimism – Bob Murray & Alicia Fortinberry
2. Change Your Brain, Change Your Life – Daniel G. Amen
3. The 4:8 Principle – Tommy Newberry

Hang in there!

Technorati Tags: alternatives to medication, depression, depression-prone, exercise, healthy diet, home, medication, optimism, positive, positivity, toxic people, weight gain

At what point does depression become depression?

being sad about something is not the same as depression, although many people say “im depressed”. feeling down is a normal response to a bad day, a fight with someone, failing a test. within a few days or a couple of weeks, the sadness dissipates-every day you are less sad.

Depression on the other hand is a medical condition. it interferes with ones ability to function normally to varying degrees depending on the severity of the depression. those who suffer from it don’t normally say “I’m depressed because…”-there is no reason, which is frustrating-depression has physiological causes-chemicals in the brain get out of whack-it is more than being sad. if your “depression” gets in the way of leading a “normal” life (school, work, friends, family, diet, exercise, sleep, etc.) you should see a doctor. drugs and/or therapy are very effective, although getting the right combination and appropriate drug can take some time.

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I have an anxiety disorder I know…you’ll find one horrible disease that sounds similar and insist you have it.

At any rate, depending on the attack it can last that long. If you aren’t taking steps to calm yourself down once it has started, they can last longer. Are you on any medication or eating a lot of caffeine or sugar? This could trigger them. If you want more information from other people in the same boat as you please visit www.stresscenter.com.

I hope you feel better soon!

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I can only answer from experience. Coming from a small country area, and moving to a big new city was a huge change for me. For the first 3 months I went from being a big fish in a small pond to a small fish ina big pond.

It was overwhelming, and I am typically a confident male (now 36, graduated, got a great career and love it).

I’d say these things…

1. Try and go to where you will be going to college for a couple of weekends if you can before you go there. Maybe take a friend or relative your own age so you can orientate yourself with respect to “being out on your own”. It will also help that you have some local knowledge to begin with, so you are not totally overwhelmed with the newness of everything!

2. There is heaps to take in, and it always seems like everyone else is managing 10 times better than you. Take the time to cultivate friends, and maintain a healthy social life as well as keeping up with your studies. As an engineering student, our schedule was full of both study and beer, but in the early days I didn’t keep up with either and felt the stress.

3. Typically the friends you make at college/university are the ones you carry through life. They are the ones who are most formative in your ‘adult’ stage.

4. Take the opportunity to engage in a new pursuit. You will never be so able to make so many choices with the time, flexibility and variety (as well as relative cheapness) available.

5. Anxiety, you either control it or it controls you. Make it your friend, recognise it for what it is…a healthy adrenaline reaction to an uncertain situation. Try not to make the ‘parting’ such a huge insurmountable object. Initially, I would not hesitate to say that you should stretch the wings before you jump out of the nest. Make a definite date when your folks can come and see you or you can go see them. Even better, make a weekend of it where you can take some new friends out to see where you come from. Remember, it’s all new to everyone else too. You take some home, and soon they’ll be taking you off for a weekend.

6. Maybe examine whether you would not be better off deferring for a year until you feel more emotionally independent? Get a job with some exposure to the field of study you intend to undertake, and gain some independence and confidence for a year before college. I wish I had done this!!

7. Best of luck, follow your heart. Be proud that you have a relationship with your folks that you cherish. Imagine how it’s going to feel for them when their fledgling flies

I survived…and so did nearly everyone else I went to college with. The only ones that didn’t were the ones that liked drugs or beer too much…remember, everything in moderation….and jeez I realise that I’ve turned into my dad

Technorati Tags: depression, how to deal, moderation, separation anxiety

I take Zoloft for my anxiety. I know it is an antidepressant, but it also works as an anitanxiety medicine.
I first discovered that I needed to take medication when I was in seventh grade and I realized that I had a bunch of irrational fears about dying. I didn’t tell my parents, and my anxieties took over my life. My grades started dropping and I quickly became depressed. Then, the next year in eighth grade, it was even worse. I almost failed eighth grade because I couldn’t concentrate. Still, I didn’t tell my parents. My parents yelled at me and I felt even worse about myself. My self esteem got even lower, and I was determined to fight my anxiety and pass high school. In night grade, I tried my hardest to push away my anxieties, and I found that I thought that I could fight them by doing certain rituals which I would perform when I felt anxious, like pulling my hair, squeezing my skin, among other things to get my mind off of it. I managed to pass 9th grade with C’s, but I wanted to do better than that. Then, in 10th grade everything came crashing down when I had an awful biology teacher who triggered my anxiety and I basically broke down. I would cry every night, I would have about three to four anxiety attacks a day, and I wouldn’t do my homework at all. I felt like I was in a funk that I coudln’t get out of. Then, on the last day of the second marking period, I faced my fears and went to my guidance counselor about my anxiety. She called my parents and my parents got me help. After about three weeks on Zoloft, I felt so much better. Now, my anxiety only comes up everyone once in a while, and I know who I can talk to about it.
If you are having any problems with anxiety, catch it before it gets worse. My anxiety took over my life and it got way out of hand. I got help though, and you can too. Talk to someone close to you and they will get you help, if you need it.
I hope this helps!

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Duration : 59 sec

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When does someone get the point where help from medication is needed. I know someone who is suffering from a form of depression but is worried that the antidepression tablets will have worse side effects. Its hard to know if its severe depression or even depression at all.

According to the diagnostic and statistical manual IV, “Major depression” is classified as at least 5 out of the 9 symptoms, one of which must be:

1/ Feeling depressed/down
or
2/ Feeling like nothing interests you anymore – even things that you used to like doing

for most of the day, for most days of the week

The other 7 symptoms are:
Fatigue
Poor attention
Change in appetite/weight
Sleep changes (sleeping more or sleeping less with or without early morning wakening)
Everything slows down (the person moves slower, speaks slower, etc.)
Feeling excessively guilty / at fault / worthless
Suicidal thoughts/thoughts that life isn’t worth living

Yes it is true that there are side effects to the medications, but if the person is quite depressed that it’s affecting their life substantially, medications might be needed – if only to help them pick themselves up again.

This is especially the case if suicidal thoughts are involved as their safety is of significant importance.

However, one thing you need to keep in mind is that these medications take a long time to work.. at least 6 weeks for them to start to feel better. They may even feel worse after a week or 2. They also need to continue the medications for 12 months for it to be effective.

Counseling might be an option initially if the person you’re talking about is wary about taking drugs and worried about their side effects, but if there is any indication of suicidal ideation, it could be quite serious and counseling might not be enough. All the best!

Technorati Tags: antidepressants, depression, diagnostics, guilt, suicidal thoughts, symptoms

Anxiety is a normal and natural emotional response to a threatening condition. Feeling of nervousness, fear and unease affects just every one of us at some stage of life or another, whether at a speech conference, an interview, examination or at work. Commonly, most of us experiencing anxiety would adapt to the stressful or tense situation and this feeling will eventually subside in due course. Nevertheless, when the state of anxiety reached an excessive, intense and prolonged phase which affects ones ordinary activities, it implies a potential mental state generally termed as anxiety disorder. As anxiety disorder is a treatable medical condition, one should seek the appropriate treatments and medication to control and cure the condition and should not view it as a weakness or instability of character.

Recovery is a possibility if the combination of appropriate treatments is sought. With a great number of medication treatments available for the varying anxiety disorders, the doctors and psychiatrist are best able to diagnose your anxiety complaints to suggest and get you started on the most appropriate treatment for your specific medical condition. On a personal note, is it important that you appreciate the fact that if the effectiveness of a treatment course falls short of your expectation, there is other combination of treatments that would best control and alleviate your anxiety disorder permanently.

From the wide selection of available remedies and treatment options, you should evaluate the suitability of these alternatives and its effect in order to settle on the products or methods that best reflect your condition. Again, remember that it is always best to discuss and consult the with your doctor or psychiatric specialist to better understand the nature of these remedies and to gauge if the treatment selections are best fit for treating your anxiety and panic disorders.Traditionally, psychotherapy and prescriptive medication have been most commonly used and recently, complimentary and alternative medicines have gained popularity for its natural healing power. Although the effectiveness of alternative medicines in healing anxiety disorders have yet to be fully established but many trials have shed some lights on its use for such purposes.

Conventional treatment of anxiety disorder is no other than the traditional prescription of medications for lowering the chemical substances in the body that leads to constant anxiety. These medications, some of which can relieve the symptoms of anxiety quickly with few side effects, are also commonly used for treatment of depression. Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs), Monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs) and Beta-blockers are few examples of these medicines. Generally, medication alone is not enough and the treatment normally has to involve some forms of psychotherapy simultaneously. The main reason is that while medications allow the patients to better deal with anxiety disorders and relieve those adverse effects felt by them, long term use may lead to over reliance on these drugs.

Introduction of earlier techniques of Acupuncture and Ayurveda in controlling anxiety disorders has gradually been accepted as an option of alternative anxiety treatment. These treatments can help to restore comfort and release tension and negative sensation by stimulating internal energy flows that relieve the imbalance of tension build-up in the specific organs. They use essential oils derived from flowers, herbs and plants as well as sterilized acupuncture needles to stimulate the effect of relaxation and energy through scent.

Another alternative anxiety treatment is Gemstone therapy. Here its believed that gemstones have properties that can correct imbalances within your body. Each gemstone that is used in this treatment has healing properties and colors. The right balance can be achieved by placing a gemstone at a specific point on your body.

The choices of alternative therapies and anxiety management techniques are not only numerous, they can be very diverse in nature which extends from exposure therapy, relaxation techniques and supplements, self esteem therapy, cognitive therapy to anxiety education, attention training, nutrition, exercise, assertion and so forth. As long as the core anxiety can be addressed in a structured and supportive anxiety treatment course, full recovery is a certainty.

Thomas Bronson
http://www.articlesbase.com/health-articles/free-yourself-from-the-agony-of-anxiety-disorder-now-with-effective-treatment-89516.html

If you think that living with anxiety is not really a very big deal, then you obviously know little about this extremely debilitating disease that plagues millions of people worldwide. Yes, anxiety is a disease of the human mind that can affect a persons day-to-day living in ways previously thought unimaginable.

Identifying Anxiety:
If you have a serious problem with an anxiety disorder, you may feel symptoms such as a rapid a rapid heart rate brought on by stressful thoughts. This fast heartbeat may cause you to feel dizzy, cold, or clammy. It may seven cause you to faint and lose consciousness. This is one extremely severe symptom of an anxiety disorder, and it is commonly known as a panic attack. If this happens to you, it is in your best interest to see a medical doctor as soon as possible.

Another symptom of an anxiety disorder is the in ability to feel comfortable around other people. This is known as Social Anxiety Disorder. Such a problem can cause a great deal of stress and panic for the person suffering from it. Dealing with friends, family, coworkers, and even strangers can become a seemingly impossible task. A person suffering from Social Anxiety Disorder may not feel comfortable enough around others to hold a normal conversation. He or she may panic when asked a question, or feel incredibly self-conscious when all eyes are on him or her. Eventually, someone with social anxiety disorder will try to hide from social gatherings at any cost. He or she will keep to himself or herself and come across to others as extremely introverted.

Anxiety has other ways of coming out and wreaking havoc on the human brain. Some people have an incredibly difficult time even getting out of the bed in the morning, all due to the fact that as soon as they open their eyes, all they can think about is the negative things the day might bring. This type of anxiety is typically aggravated and set off by an underlying problem in the persons life, such as a death of someone close, the dissolution of a romantic relationship or a marriage, or another devastating event. In these cases, the anxiety can become so overwhelming that the person will eventually lose the ability to properly function mentally.

Managing Anxiety:
Although anxiety can, in some cases, be almost impossible to live normally with, there are many steps that can be taken to control the disorder. A person suffering from anxiety can see a medical doctor known as a psychologist, who deals with treating anxiety. A psychologist can routinely monitor a patient with anxiety and suggest relaxation techniques. Sometimes simply having someone to talk to can better the situation. In certain cases of extreme anxiety, where the anxiety is too disruptive in the patients every day life, a patient can be prescribed anti-anxiety medication. This medication can help control anxiety and enable the patient to feel calm. Some popular anti-anxiety medications include Ativan, Lorazepam, Xanax, and Valium. Anyone dealing with anxiety should seek medical treatment as soon as possible. In this way, everyday life can become happy once again.

Matthew Hick
http://www.articlesbase.com/non-fiction-articles/anxiety-attacks-living-a-normal-life-89603.html

Usually they will adjust the thyroid medication. There’s a difference in what part of the brain passages are affected, and the major difference is cause– clinical depression is caused by an imbalance of dopamine in the brain, thyroid depression may also involve imbalance of dopamine but the imbalance is caused by the thyroid condition.

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You need to relax by doing deep breathing, meditating, and lots of praying. You need to prioritize your tasks by doing the most important things first and try not to worry about the small things too much. And always remember that God will make a way for you because he never give you too much that you can’t handle. You can overcome ANYTHING if you just believe. Also, try to stay away from negative people and surround yourself around positive attitudes. Stay strong for your kids!

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Negative emotions (like sadness, stress, anger, etc.) causes your Serotonin production to be low; when your Serotonin level is low, you are more prone to getting Anxiety, Panic Attacks, Depression, etc.

Medication like Antidepressants (SSRI – Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitor) helps to boost Serotonin level.
But there are natural ways to do it without medication. There’s this strange herb called “St John’s Wort” – it is said to be more effective than Prozac. No, it is not for mild depression only and ignore those sayings. In fact, it does help anxiety and panic-attacks as St John’s Wort works like prozac. Other natural ways will be exercise, diet, more exposure to light, etc.

The problem is that, even if your Serotonin is balanced… you have that “learned behavior” in your mind. You need to break that initial cycle to destroy that learned behavior – Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) does this. A technique that you can use without CBT will be Distraction… There are several other techniques to help cope them!

Technorati Tags: antidepressants, anxiety, cognitive behavior therapy, depression, distraction, negative emotions, panic attacks, prozac, sadness, serotonin, SSRI, st. john's wort, stress

Take a deep breath and go to your appointment. Nothing ventured , nothing gained. Proper diet and exercise will help as well.

Technorati Tags: anxiety, depression, diet, exercise, psychiatrist

She shows symptoms of chronic depression, withdraws from social life, has low energy, can spend days in bed, is messy etc.She’s on medication too.

I fear that the next phase will be schizophrenia. She’s 32 now and has been suffering from depression since she was 15.
Though I said her performance at work is erratic, i don’t think it is suggestive of bipolar. She has been fired once before for apathy at work. Since then she is scared to lose her job. When her poor performance at work gets noticeable and she thinks her job is in danger,she bucks up and works harder.

And she cannot, unfortunately, retire from work. She lives in a country that doesn’t give benefits. And her aged parents cannot take care of her. She has to earn her living. She would very much like to retire or at least work part time, but is unable to do so.

The symptoms of “Though her performance at work are highly erratic. Periods of poor apathetic performance interspersed with periods of high performance.” suggest that she is bipolar.

Depressives don’t move on to schizophrenia. They move on to suicide.

The danger with medicines is that they give you the energy to do what you need to do. And anyone that says “suicide is a permanent solution to a temporary problem” has never battled depression for 17 years. They just don’t understand.

She probably needs assistance with affairs of daily living; if you are battling depression, you can’t keep the house clean, and if you live in a pig sty, it’s even harder to battle depression. If you could come in, straighten things up, do some laundry, cook a few meals, it would really do a long way towards making her life tolerable. Don’t just jump in and take over, though; she’s already suffering feelings of impotence, and if she feels like you’re treating her like an invalid, that will make things worst, so *talk* to her, and ask *permission* to help with those things. (She will feel undeserving, so feel free to plead with her, to be allowed to treat a deserving friend like the friend she is.)

It may be necessary for her to retire on disability. Social Security disability is getting harder and harder to get, but she probably qualifies, if the doctors fill out the forms correctly.

And never underestimate the value of hugs. She’s been through hell, and there doesn’t seem to be any end in sight.

Technorati Tags: apathetic, apathy, battling depression, bipolar disorder, depression, feeling undeserving, feelings of impotence, how to help, schizophrenia, suicide, work performance

Ativan and xanax are antianxiolytics, but are extremely addictive. They work very well to quell anxiety but you build a tolerance that requires a higher dose in a very short period of time. Any good doctor will only prescribe these meds for short term use and will suggest you get some counselling help to learn how to control your anxiety. Long term that’s your best bet…it seems if you are self talking already, that’s a start. The antidepressant paxil is good for social anxiety and might be what you need. It’s not addictive and I’ve seen it make a huge difference in a few of my friends lives who were becoming rather reclusive because of post menopausal anxiety. Best of luck to you.

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Anxiety becomes a disorder when you start to worry and worry so much to where you just can’t stand it. Like you really can’t stop thinking about what you are worrying about! Mostly, shy people have problems with anxiety and it eventually becomes a disorder because shy people don’t like being in the spotlight and talking to people and they worry about that. I should know I have an anxiety disorder! I take medication so I don’t worry as much and so i don’t have mood swings. So anxiety disorders are a big deal and they are where you worry a lot and can’t really stop worrying about it, until it’s over! Most people who worry too much shake and get all nervous in front of people like something simple like giving a presentation, or like getting so nervous to where they can’t hardly think at times probably have a disorder. Like just the other day, I had to read my play in drama class and I was so nervous because the teacher was making everyone read theirs. My legs were shaking I was so nervous and afraid or rejection I could barely talk, but I tried…. Oh gosh. That’s what it’s like. It’s to where, everyday you try not to worry about little things, but you do.

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You should probably see a doctor before your depression gets severe. I’ve been getting worse for the past 2 years and I wish I would have gotten help in the beginning. But what I do is just try to write music. Exercising is also good. Really the most important thing is to find a lot of hobbies you enjoy doing to keep your self-esteem high. And make sure you get out of the house often or you will get pretty depressed.

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“What most people need is tools to deal with their life, not to drudge up all the crap from the past.”

Good advice and that has helped with me. Why is your mom against treatment for your depression? If you had high blood pressure or high cholesterol or anything physical, you’d get treatment for that, wouldn’t you? This is no different really.

I’ve found that cognitive behavioral therapy helps me quite a bit.

Technorati Tags: treatment, zoloft

Anxiety attacks and Panic attacks are the same thing. There’s no difference. However, scientifically speaking, it is impossible for your body to maintain a state of panic for more than 30 minutes. That is because the parasympathetic nervous system will kick in and stop the flow of adrenaline through your body. Your sympathetic nervous system is what creates that “fight or flight” response in your body. Regardless of how horrible and vulnerable it makes you feel, and believe me, i’ve had panic attacks before, ones which are just terrible, they will end. Keep that foremost in your mind, and tell yourself, “I will live through this”.
You will pull through. Im still dealing with my own, and its a long, uphill journey, but every day is a victory. Keep your chin up!

Technorati Tags: adrenaline, anxiety, anxiety attacks, depression, panic attack, parasympathetic nervous system

What are the leading causes of anxiety and depression in women? Please provide as credible sources as possible. Thank you.
Great answers so far!

I think it’s hormonal and that women today live very stressful lives. Think about it. Women are expected to work full time, get married, raise families and keep house. They are tending to everyone else’s needs but their own. There is so much guilt and worrying doing all of these things

Technorati Tags: anxiety, depression, women

prozac, my boyfriend started taking it a couple monthes ago and he is on a high dosage and he never experienced nausea and it works really well. good luck?

Technorati Tags: depression, nausea, prozac, treatment

slow deep breaths with my eyes closed. i try to think positive during it and it seems to help. also chewing gum. it takes my mind off of things.

Technorati Tags: anti-anxiety meds, anxiety, obsess, overwhelmed, positive, positivity, think positive

I would not take any medication. From personal experience at least. But if you your doctor says its okay should be fine as long as you don’t get addicted.

Technorati Tags: anxiety, counseling, medicine, meditation, relaxation

Why ask us? Ask your doctor.

Technorati Tags: antidepressants, anxiety, depression, medication

Here in Iraq, it’s been the most prominent. I would get depressed and feel empty inside and this will last for a week and then I would feel better for a week and get depressed for another week and feel better for three weeks. Usually, my depression is sudden. I would be at work and I will feel fine and then all of a sudden I would feel this uncontrollable sadness and empty feeling inside me. Almost like disappointment or like I lost something. Which would eventually turn into irritability and hostility and back to silence again.

I want to see a real psyciatrist but don’t know what to do. Thanks.

If you are serving in the military, start with asking to see a chaplain or medical officer. The American Consulate should be able to help you find a medical professional.

Technorati Tags: empty feeling, hostility, Iraq, irritability, loss

Hi,

Great question. Good to see you are seeking information.

My bet is that the time the ‘pushing away’ occurs is during Depression. There are a few kinds of Depression, mainly Depression and MANIC Depression. here’s a bit of FACTUAL information on both which might help you work things out….

To cut to the chase, BIPOLAR (as you might already suspect) means “two poles” and is simply the new “in” word for Manic Depression where a person cycles between “very big highs” (mania) at one end of the ‘pole’ and “very low Lows” (depression) at the other end of the ‘pole, which is a far wider range than most other peoples – and it lasts for more than a couple of weeks.

Many famous and highly intelligent people have/had manic depression including Sir Winston Churchill, Stephen Fry, Carrie Fisher, Spike Milligan, Ben Stiller, DMX and many others. Managed properly, it can be lived with, and in fact because the “mania” (the highs) are so exhilarating, most manic depressives wouldn’t swap their manic depression for being normal. There are three treatments for Bipolar, and only one of them involves antidepressant drugs.

Depression is far more common than most people think because most people either don’t recognize it or hide it. In fact, I think the stats show that up to one-in-five people suffer from Depression, all over the world. It’s good that you’re getting it out in the open and seeking advice. Just be careful of the myths and here-say, though. A lot of people don’t know what they’re talking about and just seem to make things up as they go along.

I sincerely hope this information might help you, and that I haven’t given you too much text here – but I felt it important to lever you away from (sometimes) harmful here-say, gossip and myths. People suffering Depression are not alone, you know. Depression is treatable in the majority of cases and it’s truly not as bad as people think it is. Armed with the FACTS of what Depression is all about, makes it ten times more easy to handle.

Technorati Tags: bipolar disorder, celebrity sufferers, depression, mania, manic depression, treatable

these people will continue to attach “yets” to your life, regardless of the distance at which they now live from you, their failures to accomplish anything of note, and the insufferable tone of voice they are unfortunate enough to produce.

normally, i don’t think this would piss me off that much, but when was the last time i was in a “normally” kind of situation?

(my guess is age eight, but that’s my guess for most things of note in my life- also, i admit to being fairly crappy at any guessing that has to do with numbers- and i’m shitty at the concept of time).

you is one

so to the next weiner with which i attended secondary school who thinks it’ll be a good idea to pop up out of nowhere just to be an ass, just think “man- she was already kind of on edge when i used to know her- how much more dangerous could she be now?”, and back the fuck off, dude.

i’ll shove a yeti up your ass, for lack of tangibility to the word yet.

Technorati Tags: ass, high school, how to, how to be ok with stuff, how to deal

Dolores Huerta was the speaker at the Chicano commencement, the ceremony i would’ve taken part in. (rock on!- got to babble at her in person at the California State Labor Federation in downtown L.A. a couple of years back- so exciting!)

For those of you who don’t know my schedule, or the school i came from:

I am not a morning person.

I am a member of the inaugural class at University of California, Merced.

For those of you who wonder what I was doing at the state labor fed for CA… well, though it should, and will, be another story, I used to be a union representative.

So anyway. wake up this morning, move slowly out to the kitchen for a cup of tea, and my mom’s on the phone with whoever (she’s on the phone pretty much 24/7 these days- these days being the last five to ten millenia), and she goes, “Obama’s wife was at your school!”

This despite the fact that I told her this upwards of a month ago, that I am an unusually sensitive person (read: crybaby), and despite the fact that whatever she says, some of my abandonment of school had to do with her telling me she needed me to stay with the boys in Oregon while she went to a conference in San Diego.

But fear not, for I am well-practiced in the art of not giving a shit.

Onward, troops, to glory! Let our enemies eyes be rolled in the dust of our leaving until they look like donut holes. Cinnamon ones.

(p.s. it turns out it was my mom’s “evil” twin she was on the phone with. alright, alright- not EVIL, per se, but definitely not very good at the game of tact. not that anyone gives two shits, or has too much of an idea what goes through me head anymore.)

Technorati Tags: dolores huerta, graduation, michelle obama, obama, UC Merced, University of California

My depression culminated in an attempted suicide at age 10.

The modern view in medicine is that suicide is a consequence of failing to cope with “depression”.

There is plenty of information regards this topic online, but hardly any on how a person can overcome depression without medical help, this is why i want to know what you think is a persons reason/s for leaving depression behind without medical help.

Thanks.

I think that would depend on how severe the depression and what was causing it. Everyone gets depressed. EVERYONE. It just depends on a lot of factors. But yes, I think that you could hit a rut, stay down for a while, and then pull yourself back out if you know how to do that. But I think that some depression is so severe that without coping skills you probably couldn’t overcome it. That does not mean that you will definitely kill yourself. I think that there are many people that have lived their whole lives with depression, never did anything about it, and didn’t die by committing suicide.

Technorati Tags: depression, suicide

Duration : 1 min 4 sec

Technorati Tags: help

now that i describe it, i realize it was maybe a little creepy all around, but it was way more fun than toilet-papering. we never got caught, and we never admitted to it, to the best of my recall. that secrecy and forceful giving generated some of my best memories, and i would live off of the rush for weeks. i would look forward to it more than i did to the receipt of gifts on christmas day, counting down the days until our next “prank” as i thought of them. i miss it terribly.

this morning, i got a chance to get back a little of the magic, though the anonymity isn’t as present this time. my mom’s boyfriend is an insurance agent, and one of his clients needs some help. i’m hazy on the details, but i gather that there are two adults and a 12 year old child. they traveled up here to take care of an ailing relative, i believe, but upon arriving at the woman’s fathers house, were told that they couldn’t possibly stay in the family home, because they’re not married.

i call BULLSHIT on you, sir, and i slap your face with my flappety glove of justice, and challenge you to a duel.

what is marriage but the paperwork? what is marriage but the legislation of human relationships? marriage does not equate to love, nor love to marriage. marriage does not mean a faithful, supportive, or financially solvent relationship. marriage does not mean maternity or paternity, and it should not be used as a wedge between family members.

my mom caught flak from her born-again twin sister when my mom’s boyfriend moved in. holding aside my feelings about this (as much as i can), i find it odd that someone who shared the womb with you could cast such ridiculous aspersions on your intelligence and integrity. but i digress.

i enjoyed packing up cooking utensils, coffee, hot cocoa, salt, sugar, matches, candles, toilet paper, sleeping bags, towels, etc., for this family. and they are a family, for those of you who would challenge me. they are each others only family right now. we will be getting them started at a local campground later today. i hope to gather things for them that will give them comfort, in addition to things that will help them survive.

for those of you who’d like it, there’ll be another, (hopefully) less angry post tonight, and i’ll try to keep you updated on the family in question.

and i hope that if, before you read this, you were alienating a member of your family, that you STOP. because for shit’s sake, isn’t there enough being thrown at us without our family being catapaults?

i’m no longer a practicing mormon, but i’d like to think of myself as a practicing human. and practicing is all we can do. otherwise, how do we expect to get good at it?

so yes, giving is a rush for me. but i guess it’s safer than crack.

Technorati Tags: 12 days of christmas, camping, charity, comfort, donation, family, how to, justice, LDS, marriage, mormon, survival

a few days ago; I wrote a blog entry on my 360 page about “the five mahalos” a technology from old hawai’i that helps change the way you think consciously and subconsciously.

Feel free to read the blog entry. I would also recommend getting two of the following crystals.

Agate, Amethyst, and Obsidian

Take one of each and place them under your pillow, then the other three carry them on your person 24/7

Technorati Tags: autism, conscious, hawaii, mahalo, natural remedies, natural remedy, side effects, subconscious

I’m going to be 25 yrs old in November and I realize that there are so many things that I would have wanted to accomplish by now, but my depression has prevented this.

I keep reading about how depression is caused by ‘chemical imbalances’ in the brain, and it feels like I don’t stand a chance at beating it without going on Anti-depressants, but I don’t want to go down this route cause I’m worried about the side-effects.

Can anyone suggest natural ways to beat depression that don’t involve medication?

Exercise, St. John’s Wort, positive mental feedback (tell yourself good things, not bad), good ole night’s sleep – amazing what sleep will do for you. Try melatonin and/or valerian root if you have trouble sleeping. Hugs – it sounds silly, but really, hugs.

It is often imperative to also get some therapy along with medication, if only to change the negative thought patterns you have developed while depressed.

Technorati Tags: chemical imbalance, clinical depression, depression, medication, natural remedy, treatment

firstly, try to avoid him. then, when you fail, as you will, play videogames poorly, so that he will think you have lost your touch.

arrange with your little brother to have him cast aspersions on your suitability for romance by insinuating that you are now a heroin addict, or a recovering heroin addict. (when the truth is, you’re more addicted to heroines)

talk too much in front of his mom.

turn around whilst on the way out of town so that you can give him a ride to the grocery store. do this because your mother has a theory that kindness kills.

remember that he is a vegetarian, especially while he is waving tubes of mechanically separated turkey at you.

break into sweats that smell of fear and drench your clothing, rendering you even less attractive. this is a useful defense mechanism often employed by skunks and other such critters.

hint that you are now a ferocious and eager lesbian. that’ll hearken back to his fear that you would cheat on him with a woman.

loan him a roll of toilet-paper so that his parents don’t have to go to the store for the fourth time.

talk to him about graphic novels. insult his taste. give him the names of several primo comics, which he will write down but probably later lose, judging by his loss of you.

listen to his shitty music inattentively.

allow him to call shotgun only once, during which he will shittily DJ, playing the only velvet underground  song on your ipod (who loves the sun), in addition to other songs with themes revolving around you breaking his heart.

willfully drive past the turnoff to his apartment complex (despite your impeccable sense of direction and the fact that you’ve dropped him off before), like a man who pretends not to know the name of his rival, substituting similar names instead. (ex. “oh, hey ted.” “fred. it’s fred.”)

become incredibly frustrated when your mother’s boyfriend comments on the ex’s reappearance in the story. drop the grilled cheese sandwich you were making on the ground. eat it anyway.

become irritable when people mention him.

tell your brother one of the many reasons you ended it, to further steel your resolve. for maximum effectiveness, let this reason be the one about the letters, where you wrote him dozens and he never wrote you back.

mourn your choices.

get over the mourning.

realize your little brother is taller than the ex. this will somehow help.

Technorati Tags: ex, fronting, how to, second person

General anxiety disorder is a common form of anxiety. It’s characterized by excessive or unrealistic worry or concern. This worry is normally associated with a persons life and life situation. There are many theories as to the cause of anxiety but no clear reason has emerged as the primary cause of the disorder.

There are many theories as to the cause(s) that surround the identification of anxiety disorders.

1. Certain medical conditions that can cause hormonal imbalances has been known to cause anxiety symptoms

2. Stress is a suspect in the development of anxiety. Though associated with anxiety, stress may also be simply a symptom or greater underlying problem

3. Some people may simply have the type of personality that’s more easily identified or associated with anxiety.

4. It seems to run in families. That is, anxiety may be hereditary

As you can see, the ideas offered as potential causes of anxiety are very weak. Experts tell us that an anxiety disorder can be recognized as more than normal worrying by how long it lasts and how it is allowed to affect your life.

This is problematic given the fact that the cause has not been identified. Consider someone who is under a lot of stress at work, and believes they are at risk of losing their position and that is critical to their families economic situation. It could be considered quite normal for someone in that position to be constantly worried and concerned.

A person in this situation could be considered having an anxiety disorder. While medication may help stabilize the general mood, it’s only by changing modifying or removing the root cause of the anxiety can someone be expected to return to a previous state of “normality”.

So often we treat the symptoms of an issue without understanding the underlying cause. The rapid growth of people suffering with anxiety disorders seems to suggest that possibly our society and lifestyles are not conducive to good mental health. There are simply too many of us suffering from a variety of anxiety related mental disorders to easily fit into the series as to what causes anxiety in the first place.

With tens of millions of people diagnosed and suffering with anxiety related disorders, along with millions more who are suffering in silence, other answers as to the cause of this anxiety epidemic need to be found

Abigail Franks
http://www.articlesbase.com/health-articles/anxiety-disorder-is-society-or-your-lifestyle-killing-you-89550.html

Technorati Tags: confident, hot stuff, swagger

Duration : 3 min 49 sec

Technorati Tags: sleep

“blog, blog, blog”, grunts my moms. and no, i don’t want to deal with the techie issues today, moms. i’ve half a mind to go back to sleep. unfortunately, it seems i only have half a mind for right now. morgie bear has been calling me “the retard” this morning. politically incorrect, yes, but what are we to do with the seventeen year olds of today?

well, moms is ranting about casa blanca, and her laptop being a gin joint, or something, so i better be off for now.

p. s. damn raucous neighbors. or rather, strangers. this time it was somebody’s dad, coming over to ask my mom to drop the charges against the dog. “it’s 20 dollars a day. not just 20 dollars. 20 dollars A DAY.”

well, mister, i don’t give two shits. also, what’s with the sudden influx of people walking up our driveway just to stand outside me and morgie bear’s window and whinge?

Technorati Tags: treatment

i see myself as the same sort of loony-bird jerry is in the movie, and i tingle with anticipation to think he found someone.

GERONIMO!

this, after having the med-withdrawal shakes all day, which i cleverly covered up at one point by holding the family chihuahua, Dottie, so that it looked like both of us were either recovering alcoholics with the tremors, or really, really cold.

so- this morning was the shits, for real. woke up early-ish, then rolled around for a couple of hours. why didn’t you just get up, then, you ask? because i had the ineffable feeling that if i got up, as in awoke and greeted the day, i would have explosive diarrhea all over everything. i don’t do so well with mornings under the best of conditions, and these are not the best of conditions.

i waddled over to my brother’s speakers (you will all recall that i share a room with my seventeen year old brother), and turned them down to nothingness. i barrel-rolled back into the bottom bunk, or, as i call it, “the hole”, and tried to catch a few more z’s with the old sleep-net.

i had probably been asleep for about 45 minutes when i heard some commotion out front. BEAR WITH ME, BECAUSE THERE IS A STORY HIDDEN IN MY RANTINGS OF GENERALIZED ANXIETY AND CLINICAL DEPRESSION. to cut to the chase, my mom’s voice can be heard saying, “I WILL SHOOT THE SHIT OUT OF YOU.”

to clarify, my mom’s a nice lady, and we don’t wake up to such statements on the daily.

so i barrel-rolled back out of the hole, morgie bear on my heels (not really, though, ’cause it would’ve been hard to walk), crazy post-med dreams of whatever crazy crap-stuff i dreampt of last night still bouncing around my electrically charged bed-head, and ran out front, where the noise was coming from. come to learn, the neighbor’s pit bull had jumped the fence and attacked one of our dogs (tiny Honey Dog, or Sweater-Dog, to morgie’s friends). mom was outside at the time, and managed to avert the worst, but for fear of a repeat performance, and knowing that these particular neighbors have been oodles and oozes of trouble before, we called animal control, and eventually got the dog impounded.

just to clarify, Honey is about ten pounds, has four teeth to her name, tops, and happens to be VERY hard of hearing. so she would have been but a tasty treat had my mom not been there to play superman. or superwoman. whatever.

all this as i go through the bitter nasties of withdrawal. last night, there was many a crying jag brought about by not too much, but i’ve had a little more control today. even made some semblance of progress on work-type stuff, as well. barbecued some killer steaks (a little well-done for my tastes, but i’m always over-cautious with meat at home- nobody to blame for food-poisoning but myself when i’ve made it, huh?), and even changed my shirt. Unfortunately, the shirt-changing didn’t come about until I had already displayed yesterday’s shirt (“today i’m not a ho”) to the officer who came to take our report on Honey’s encounter today.

C’est la vie.

Technorati Tags: animal control, attack dog, pet, pitbull

Technorati Tags: anxiety, depression, how to be ok with stuff, medication, new beginning, paxil, perfectionism, withdrawal