Anxiety, like depression, can range from unpleasant to incapacitating. Anxiety disorders and depression are the most common of the mental and emotional ailments.
As with depression and other mental and emotional disorders, there is another approach to anxiety disorders besides psychotherapy and anti-anxiety medication. Our approach is to look at the root cause(s) of the uncomfortable feelings or brain biochemistry imbalance.
Types of anxiety disorders
Anxiety disorders include:
- Generalized anxiety
- Panic attacks
- Phobias
- Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
- Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
Other lesser known anxiety disorders include hoarding, hair pulling and skin picking, and some eating disorders. Any substance or behavioral addiction can be considered an anxiety disorder, as these behaviors are often maladaptive attempts to manage anxiety.
Generalized anxiety
Generalized anxiety is one of the more common types. The feelings of anxiety aren’t limited to particular occasions or activities as with a phobia, but rather are present much of the time or easily triggered by just about anything. A person with this disorder might have a pervasive feeling of dread, that something awful is about to happen. Or a commonplace occurrence such as a partner’s not coming home on time triggers worst-case-scenario thoughts. It is common, with anxiety disorder, to feel that the world is a scary and unsafe place to live.
Adrenals release chemicals adrenaline and cortisol to deal with stress. When stress, whether emotional or physical such as toxins, is repeated or continual, the adrenals can become overwhelmed and get stuck in the “on” position.
Panic attacks
With panic attacks, the anxiety, rather than being low-level and pervasive, can come on suddenly and severely. Panic attacks may or may not be linked to a specific stimulus.
A panic attack, with racing and pounding heart and sometimes chest pain, is often self-misdiagnosed as a heart attack.
Panic attacks are sometimes a symptom of chemical sensitivity or toxicity. In toxin-related panic attacks, the body perceives a dangerous situation – the toxin – and the sympathetic nervous system signals the adrenal glands to secrete adrenaline to prepare for a fight-or-flight situation. This rush of adrenaline is perceived as a feeling of panic. After this happens a few times, the fear of having it happen again may be enough to trigger an attack on its own.
Panic attacks can be caused by low blood sugar levels. When blood sugar falls too low, the adrenals release a flood of adrenaline in an attempt to break the fall of sugar levels. The effect of a surge of adrenaline at a time when the brain has lost too much fuel to function normally is often a panic attack.
Phobias
Unlike generalized anxiety or panic attacks, phobias are fears that are triggered by exposure to a specific situation. Phobias can be highly individualized, and can be due to an unpleasant, even if not remembered, experience with the situation, or can seemingly not have any clear reason.
Some kinds of phobias are so common as to have specific names. Agoraphobia is a fear of leaving one’s home, and may be related to chemical exposure and fumes on the road or at the store. Hypochondria is fear of illness to the extent of seeing a brain tumor in every headache, a heart attack in every palpitation. Social phobia is extreme shyness, in which the person freezes in fear over certain or all kinds of social interaction. Even anorexia nervosa is a phobia of sorts; nutritional imbalances caused by extreme dieting can lead to a potentially deadly fear of calories and weight gain in a vicious cycle.
Hoarding of possessions is driven by anxiety, and the thought of getting rid of anything can bring on severe anxiety and even panic. Hoarding can be general, or can be limited to specific categories such as food, cats, or car parts.
Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
OCD is a combination of thoughts and the actions that follow. Obsessions are disturbing thoughts that are persistent and repetitive; compulsions are the need to perform some ritual or routine to relieve the anxiety caused by the obsessions.
Some of the more common obsessive-compulsive behaviors include:
- Excessive washing and cleaning of hands, self, or home
- Checking doors or stove burners multiple times
- Fear that one might harm, or has harmed, someone
- Counting, repeating behaviors a specific number of times
- Rituals such as avoiding stepping on sidewalk cracks
Obsessions and compulsions are linked to low serotonin levels. Tryptophan or 5-HTP is recommended for increasing serotonin, and these supplements can help with obsessions.
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
PTSD, as its name implies, is an extreme reaction that follows major trauma. In that person’s mind, they are not only remembering the event and its associated emotions, they are actually reliving it in all its horror; this can include hallucinations.
After a major trauma, a person may develop severe anxiety in any situation that is reminiscent of the original one. For example, someone who has survived a major earthquake may react with anxiety when a truck rumbles past their house.
The experience of anxiety
Anxiety can cause autonomic hyperactivity symptoms, including sweating, heart pounding or racing, cold clammy hands, dry mouth, dizziness, upset stomach, frequent urination, diarrhea, and high pulse and respiration rate. These symptoms are due to a sudden outpouring of adrenal hormones.
Causes of anxiety
As with all ailments, the key to ending or managing anxiety disorders lies in addressing the root cause. This cause can be psychological, physical, or both.
Stress and anxiety feed on each other – stress causes anxiety, and dealing with anxiety is stressful. Stress is not necessarily emotional stress – toxins are major stressors as well. Detoxifying and avoiding toxins are thus likely to have a positive effect on decreasing stress and anxiety.
Adrenal stress is a major cause of anxiety. The adrenals put out hormones to deal with stress, but one of the early stages of adrenal exhaustion is releasing these hormones in excess or at inappropriate times. Toxins can stress the adrenals. Low thyroid function is sometimes associated with adrenal stress and should be addressed.
Anxiety attacks and the consumption of sugar both cause similar symptoms such as racing pulse, rapid breathing, and high blood pressure. Reducing or eliminating sugar can reduce feelings of anxiety in susceptible individuals.
Low levels of minerals, especially potassium but also magnesium or calcium, can cause feelings of anxiety.
The amino acids tyrosine, glycine, and taurine have a calming influence on the brain. However, don’t take amino acids without having your amino acid status evaluated; taking too much of one can unbalance others.
Homeopathic remedies such as the Bach flower remedies and Rescue Remedy can help, as can some aromatherapy.
