Your heart beats fast. Your palms get damp. You feel dizzy and have trouble breathing. These are all signs that you may be suffering from an anxiety disorder. Anxiety problems affect more than 40 million adults in the United States, according to the National Institute of Mental Health. Without treatment, anxiety problems can grow worse and prevent you from engaging in normal activities. Luckily, controlling anxiety is possible by following a simple treatment plan.
Get a Diagnosis
Don't struggle with anxiety problems on your own. See a doctor for a diagnosis. There may be an underlying health issue, such as a thyroid problem or an adrenal gland tumor, causing your anxiety. A doctor can run tests to find out. A doctor can also prescribe a course of treatment to help you with controlling anxiety. This may include therapy, behavioral changes or medication.
Reduce Stress
Controlling anxiety begins with reducing the stress in your life. Medline Plus recommends keeping a log of the things that stress you out. This will allow you to see if a particular situation, person or circumstance is contributing to your anxiety problems. If possible, limit, avoid or cut out anything that causes you undue stress.
Improve Your Diet
Medline Plus recommends eating a balanced diet to combat anxiety problems. It also suggests cutting back on the amount of alcohol and caffeine you consume and making sure that your diet is rich in vitamin B12, since too much of the former and not enough of the latter can influence your stress levels. Dr. Daniel K. Hall-Flavin of the Mayo Clinic stresses that you should avoid becoming dehydrated. Dehydration also can contribute to anxiety problems. Eating foods that contain the amino acid tryptophan also can help by assisting the production of chemicals in your brain that regulate mood. Foods with tryptophan include bananas, milk, cheese, peanut butter and oats.
Exercise and Coping Techniques
The Anxiety Disorders Association of America suggests learning relaxation techniques for controlling anxiety. One of these techniques is breathing retraining. Breathing exercises invoke what's called the relaxation response. The relaxation response triggers the production of neurochemicals that relax the body. Other ways of triggering the body's relaxation response include repetitive exercises such as walking or jogging, yoga, prayer or meditation.
Exercise not only triggers the relaxation response to help control anxiety disorders, it also increases the circulation of blood in the brain and releases mood-boosting endorphins. A study published in the July-August 2004 Psychiatr Polska by M. Guszkowska found that exercise can reduce anxiety and boost your mood.
Medication and Therapy
Controlling anxiety problems through relaxation techniques and diet may not always help. People with anxiety disorders may need medication and therapy to cope with their problems. Only a doctor can prescribe anxiety medications, so seek medical help if your anxiety is severe.
A doctor may prescribe antidepressants, which work by regulating brain chemicals like serotonin. These medications take weeks to become effective and require regular use. A doctor may also suggest benzodiazepines or beta-blockers. These medications work faster than antidepressants, but also have a greater risk of dependency. Speak to your doctor about potential side-effects before taking any medication for anxiety disorders.
Cognitive-behavioral therapy may be useful in treating anxiety disorders. Cognitive therapy helps by teaching you change negative thought patterns. Behavioral therapy helps by teaching you change negative behaviors and deal with difficult circumstances.
