I have suffered this for a long time. I'm going to try again to talk to a dr. but I know he'll just whip out the prescription pad. I don't want to be dependent on pills, but I have to do something soon so I quit feeling so totally overwhelmed. Any suggestions welcome... Try the Natural Cures for Stress/Anxiety.
Symptoms: The body and the mind react to any stress factor. A large number of physical changes take place at the time of stress-induced arousal. The brain and nervous system become intensely active, the pupils of the eye dilate, digestion slows down muscles become tense, the heart starts pumping blood harder and faster, blood pressure increases, breathing become faster, hormones such as adrenalie are released into the system along with glucose from the liver and sweating starts.
All these changes take place in a split second under the direction of the nervous system. If the stress factors are immediately removed, no harm accrues and all the changes are reversed. Stress in its earlier and reversible stage leads to poor sleep, bad temper, continual grumbling, longer hours of work with less achievement, domestic conflict with spouse and children, repeated minor sickness, absenteeism, and prolonged absence for each spell of sickness, accident proneness, feeling of frustration, and persecution by colleagues and complaints of lack of cooperation and increase in alcoholic intake.
It is essential that these symptoms are recognised early by the patients or their well-wishers and remedies measures taken to overcome them. If, however, stress is continuous or repeated frequently, a variety of symptoms appear such as dizziness, stiff muscles, headache, vision problems, breathing difficulties, asthma, allergies, palpitation, digestive disorders, blood sugar irregularities, backache, skin disorders, bowel disorders and sexual difficulties.
Causes: Stress may be caused by a variety of factors both outside the body and within. External factors include loud noises, blinding lights, extreme heat or cold, x-rays and other forms of radiation, drugs, chemicals, bacterial, and various toxic substances, pain and inadequate nutrition. The factors from within the body include feelings of hate, envy, fear or jealousy.
Treatment: In dealing with stress, the patient should completely change his life style. He should adopt an optimum diet which should be able to meet the nutritional demands of stress. Such diet should obviously be made of foods which, in combination, would supply all the essential nutrients. It has been found that a diet which contains liberal quantities of (i) seeds, nuts and grains, (ii) vegetables, and (iii) fruits would provide an adequate amount of all the essential nutrients. Each of these food groups should roughly form the bulk of one of the three meals. These three basic health -building foods should be supplemented with certain special foods such as milk, vegetable oils, and honey.
There are many foods which are helpful in meeting the demands of stress and should be taken regularly by the patient. These are yogurt, blackstrap molasses, seeds, and sprouts. Yogurt is rich in vitamin A, B complex and D. It relieves insomnia, migraine and cramps associated with menstruation. Blackstrap molasses, a by-product of sugar refining process, is rich in iron and B vitamins. It guards against anaemia and is good for heart diseases. Seeds such as alfalfa, sunflower, and pumpkin and sprouts are rich in calcium and quite effective as deterrents of listlessness and anxiety. Steam cooked vegetables are best as boiling causes many vitamins and minerals to be dispelled into the water.
The leaves of holy basil, known as tulsi in the vernacular, are highly beneficially the treatment of stress. They are regarded as adaptogen or antistress agents. Recent studies have shown that the leaves protect against stress significantly. It has been suggested that even healthy persons should chew 12 leaves of basil twice a day, morning and evening for preventing stress. Certain nutrients are beneficial in relieving stress. These are vitamins A and B, minerals such as calcium, potassium, and magnesium which reduce the feeling of irritability and anxiety. Vitamin A is found in green and yellow vegetables. Some of the valuable sources of vitamin B are cashews, green leafy vegetables, yeast, sprouts, and bananas. An element of vitamin B complex, pantothenic acid is especially important in preventing stress. It has a deep effect on the adrenal glands and the immune system and adequate amount of this vitamin along with vitamin A can help prevent many of the changes caused by stress.
Potassium deficiencies are associated with breathlessness, fatigue, insomnia and low blood sugar. Potassium is essential for healthy heart muscles. Nuts and unrefined grains are good sources of potassium. Calcium is a natural sedative. Deficiencies can cause fatigue, nervousness and tension. Dairy products, eggs, almonds, and soyabeans are rich sources of calcium. Magnesium is known as nature鈥檚 tranquiliser and is associated with the prevention of heart attack. Deficiencies may lead to excitability, irritability, apprehension, and emotional disorders. Magnesium is also necessary for absorption of calcium and potassium and is found in many fruits, vegetables, seeds, dates, and prunes.
There are certain foods which are associated with stress and anxiety and should be scrupulously avoided by patients. These foods are caffeine and many soft drinks, which causes nervousness, irritability and palpitation; salt which has been associated with heart diseases; cigarettes which cause tension, irritability, and sleeplessness and which have been linked with cancer, and alcohol which depletes vitamins of B group consider essential for reducing stress.
Regular physical exercise plays an important role in the fight against stress. Exercise not only keeps the body physically and mentally fit, it also provides recreation and mental relaxation. It is nature鈥檚 best tranquiliser. One can jog, run, walk, or play games, depending upon one鈥檚 liking. Walking is the simplest and safest exercise. One should take a brisk walk for 45 minutes or so daily. Yogic asanas, kriyas and simple pranayams, beneficial for maintenance of general health and mental relaxation, can serve as the best shock absorbers against stress. These include asanas like pavanmuktasana, sarvagasana, halasana, ardhamatsyendrasana, bhujangasana, dhanurasana, yogamudra ,padmasana, trikonasana, kriyas like kunjal and jalneti and pranayamas such as kapal bhati, anuloma- viloam, sitali , sitkari and bhramari. Recreation and rest are equally important and patient should set a definite time for recreational activities. They should also take a holiday at regular intervals. And above all, they should simplify their lifestyles to eliminate unnecessary stress.
Hope this helps, Good Luck. You can try St.John's Wort. That works for many. Other than that, deep breathing exercises and yoga really, REALLY help me. Eating properly and avoiding caffeine help a lot too. Make sure you have enough B vitamins, fish oils and magnesium in your diet. Those are all important for mood disorders. I hope that all works for you.
I ended up having to also go on a low dose of prozac (20mg) and take three 1 mg ativan (lorazepam) a day.The doctor will wean me off when I'm ready. Take a chill pill. No, really you have to take something... unless you want to see a therapist weekly. Or you can always smoke marijuana, I would consider this an herbal remedy not a drug. Go to aromazap.com and you can vaporize the marijuana so that you dont get harmful smoke in your lungs. I'm proud, finally someone who doesn't want to rely on medication to fix their problems. I agree with WiserAngel, those all seem to be good suggestions. And perhaps a low dosage of something wouldn't hurt, temporarily though.
Also, as much as I would like to agree with 2GOOD4U!, I have to say that is all very naive. I've been smoking for years and while it has contributed to a lot of mental awareness, it has helped in minor ways to control my anxiety. If you continue to smoke for prolonged periods of time you are doing just as much harm as you would be doing with prescribed medications. You never want to trade one dependancy for another.
Good luck though. I'm still struggling to find my peace of mind. There are many natural or holistic ways of dealing with your anxieties. Physical involvement such as yoga may help to destress you so that you're not agitated so easily.
I found that an herb called HOLY BASIL is wonderful for altering your mood, not just physically, but spiritually or emotionally. It has been used in eastern Asian medicine for centuries, and it did have an astounding grounding effect on me. Yes, you're still taking pills, but at least they're not addictive or harmful.
General exercise such as strong walking, jogging, or gym workouts might help, again, to destress the body so that the mind wouldn't be so activated by whatever triggers the attacks.
I don't really know. I'm not a doctor. I know from my own experience these things work somewhat.
But if you're talking about a sudden onslaught of incredible panic, just seeping thru your whole body and perception, that's something totally different. I get that if I'm on a roller coaster, and it's mostly from feeling out-of-control.
But I've found the Holy Basil works well in general. There are different brands which may work differently in your body, so you may have to try a few to find one that works well enough for you.
Good luck. I know what you are going through. I have just read in an article about this very thing and it seems that there are a couple new things coming into place. One is acupuncture, I had heard of some good things happening in that area of medicine. Another is a kind of biofeedback, also hearing of a lot of success. go to alternative medicine.com they might have some answers, I myself am going to look into it because just like you and many others we are tired of the drugs that give us more health problems to add to our own or that only work half way or quit working after awhile. good luck Ear Accupuncture. It'll work. It's been proven. Google it and do your research, then google some more for a LICENSED person near you. Watch out for quacks... I mean, they are sticking needles in you.... There are several things you can try. Meditation can help you relax after a stressful day. Bach Rescue Remedy is a homeopathic solution that might work for some people. Another possible homeopathic solution is Calmes Forte by Hylands. It's also homeopathic and it helps some people. I say "some people" because I've found that some homeopathic meds work on certain people while others don't. For herbal solutions try St. John's Wort in pill form or Chamomile tea. Also look at how you breathe. People who suffer from anxiety often breathe wrong. Seriously. If you breathe shallow and fast - you're setting yourself up for an anxiety attack right there. When you feel yourself starting to get anxious or panic, stop, concentrate on your breath and focus on taking deep, even, measured breaths. The practices of Yoga (including breath exercises) and Tai Chi can also help. Also, if you smoke (and I know smokers get so tired of hearing this and I apologize) try to quit. When I used to smoke - I was more anxious. Also, people who consume a lot of caffiene are more prone to anxiety. So you might consider cutting back there, too. Try Bach Flower Rescue Remedy. I keep a bottle in my car, one in my house, and one in my purse. I use it with my children and pets. It works wonders, but you cannot drink coffee while using it or it will not work. I put several drops into my bottled water and just drink it all day long when needed. You can also use it directly on your tongue in an emergency situation or for shock. FES (Flower Essence Society out of Nevada City, CA) has many, many other remedies and an entire textbook that can help you discern which flower remedies would be best for you.
I especially agree w/ the writers who have recommended calcium, magnesium, B vitamins, chamomile, passion flower, hops, linden tincture or tea, oatstraw tincture and oat products, soy to you. These have all been long used in naturopathic medicine and herbalism to help heal anxiety.
There is also a homeopathic product called Calms Forte that might be of good use to you.
Whenever I find myself under stress, which is pretty much all day every day, as I am a single mother w/ two children, one of whom is physically and mentally disabled and a very, very old dog who is having lots of old age health problems, I pay special attention to my self talk. Inevitably, it is negative, critical and unhelpful when I am maximally stressing out, and so I change it as immediately as I can, and "talk myself down". I tell myself that this too, shall pass. I ask myself if this will be important in 5 years. I ask myself what the hell is wrong w/ me that I am talking to myself so negatively and I immediately speak in a much kinder way to myself and others, if I can. It helps cool me out!
Have you had your adrenal function and your blood sugar tested? If either of these are off (or your thyroid is either), massive anxiety and mood swings can be the result. Are you sure to eat regularly and sure to eat protein w/ each meal--at least 3 oz per meal? If you're not eating regularly and not eating enough protein, anxiety can again be the result.
Be kind to yourself and go slowly! May the blessings of the Gods and Goddesses be on you this day and all others! www.u-cure.com for a great treatment
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