Anxiety

Anxiety is a normal emotion. Everyone feels anxious now and then. For example, you may worry when faced with a problem at work, before taking a test, making a presentation or before making an important decision. Occasional anxiety is okay. It’s your brains way of reacting to stress and alerting you of potential danger, which is a good thing.

However, for some people anxiety is riddled with excessive worry, or having a sense of dread, or of fearing the worst. Others may feel bad things will happen if they stop worrying. Anxiety makes it difficult to get through the day. Symptoms may include feelings of nervousness, even panic, as well as sweating, difficulty breathing and a rapid heartbeat. Anxiety can make it hard to sleep, or stay still. Excessive anxiety can make a person avoidant of certain triggers like social gatherings, going to work or school, or any other situations that seem like “too much” and overwhelming. With counseling interventions and sometimes medications, many people learn to manage their anxious thoughts and feelings. A trained psychotherapist teaches ways to carefully approach and manage fearful or worrisome situations.