Mental health services 'failing'

This was published on the BBC News website today. It is probably something that most people who have sort treatment for anxiety, depression, bi-polar or any other "mental illness" can relate to. I suppose that we should be grateful that at least now it is getting some publicity. Is anything likely to change? In the UK probably not. Our tax system is such that we are unlikely to get proper funding for none physical health problems. It is always easier for governments to take a "pull yourself together" attitude. Of course when stories like this come out politicians tend to be very sympathetic and talk about wha is needed, sadly though this is a long way down their agenda, it's not cool, its not big on the doorstep, and most people still think that mad people either need to "snap out of it" or be locked up, depending on severity. Obviously as we advance this will change, but I wouldn't like to assume that it will be in my life time.

On the NHS for instance there seems to be a policy of rationing CBT, that is to say giving everyone some as opposed to just giving some people access. This is all well and good until you realise that everyobe getting some means everyone not getting enough. There is only one answer to this, to make proper mental healthcare available for all. Frankly if money can be found for a war in Iraq then it can be found for vital healthcare and preventative medicine. I am sure that the longterm benefits for the UK of providing solid mental healthcare will manifest in all areas of society, including financially, therefore we should look on Mental Health Care as an investment, not a black-hole.

The link for this on the BBC news is: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/5389864.stm

People suffering mental health problems are being failed by poor access to key community services, a watchdog says.

The Healthcare Commission review of 174 mental health teams in England found gaps in out-of-hours care, talking therapies and access to information.

The watchdog rated one in 10 as excellent, with nearly half just getting a fair grade.

Campaigners said the findings were concerning, and NHS bosses said there was room for improvement.

The vast majority of people with mental health problems are treated out of hospital by community mental health specialists, including GPs, nurses, counsellors and social workers.

The Healthcare Commission, which analysed performance data and patient surveys, found while the majority of local mental health teams had out-of-hours services in their plan, just 49% of people with problems had the phone number of someone they could contact after office hours.

And 59% of the partnerships, known as local implementation teams (LITs), scored poorly when it came to providing access to crisis accommodation out-of-hours.

The Healthcare Commission rated 9% of LITs as excellent, 45% as good, 43% as fair and 3% as weak.

It also found a greater need for access to talking therapies - such as counselling, cognitive behavioural therapy or psychoanalysis.

National guidelines say all people with schizophrenia or suspected schizophrenia should be offered appropriate talking therapies.

The review found that only half of people questioned had such access and in 20% of LIT areas the figure was "significantly lower".

Weak

It also said the management of medicines for patients with schizophrenia needed to improve - with 84% of LITs deemed fair or weak.

The watchdog said 89% of services had not adequately recorded side effects or how well patients had responded to drugs.

Healthcare Commission chief executive Anna Walker said: "The majority of people who suffer from mental illness receive their treatment in their own community, not in hospital.

"They want to remain in the community and this helps them get better. But for care in the community to work for the mentally ill, more access is needed to talking therapies and out-of-hours crisis care.

"Mental health crises don't keep office hours and the service must be flexible enough to tackle this."

Nigel Edwards, of the NHS Confederation, which represents health trusts, said: "Mental health has often been a Cinderella service in the NHS, yet one in four of us will experience a mental health problem every year.

"So it is reassuring that the review has praised local implementation teams for generally performing well.

"Of course, there is always room for improvement and the report presents some serious challenges for mental health trusts and their partners in the services that they provide."

Mental health charities have expressed their concern at the commission's findings.

Paul Farmer, chief executive of Mind, said: "We're concerned about the large number of people who don't have access to basic treatments, like cognitive behavioural therapy, which is simply not available in many areas of the country."

Sane's chief executive Marjorie Wallace said: "This report shows that the community care policy still fails thousands of mentally ill people and their families.

"It is disturbing that this strong indictment of out-of-hours community care should come at the very time that mental health budgets are being slashed."

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Anxiety Disorder Treatments

In the fifties and sixties they had it, but it was less present in the typical nine-to-fiver and it was not nearly as complicated: I’m talking about anxiety disorder or panic disorder—a malaise characterized by what are today called anxiety attacks that feature symptoms that simulate those of the sympathomimetic system (the fight-or-flight state) in overdrive: increased heart rate; edgy/nervous, “stinking” thinking; intense feelings of dread or impending doom; impeding, irrational thoughts; feelings of light-headedness or vertigo; tingling/chills in the extremities; nausea; tense(d) muscles; constricted chest; dryness of mouth; trembles; shakes; sweats; breathing struggles; and/or odd feelings of being detached, or that things are unreal or strange.

In the fifties, sixties, and early seventies (and sometimes probably now), my mother had panic attacks. She would call for one of us to “go get her one of [her] pills”, would remove herself from the source—usually one of us—of the anxiety, and be fine within twenty minutes to a half an hour. While this is seemingly a now obsolete or defunct anxiety disorder treatment, my mother—whom people labeled as “oh, just a little high-strung”—was actually making use of some of the more effective of anxiety disorder treatments available at the time.

Yes, the sixties were for homemakers and mothers working two jobs a time for pills. The sixties were the place also known as the Valley of the Dolls. But maybe pill-popping as an anxiety disorder treatment is not so antiquated a strategy nor so knee-jerk a solution. The response for some—especially those who are physically ill and therefore more susceptible to the disorder and the panic instances—is the only thing that works.

Others also use one of the oldest self-help anxiety disorder treatments—the paper bag.

Right before I would come to befriend her, one friend in the eighties (now a contemporary of over 25 years) would walk into the classroom before philosophy class began with her backpack, a drink, and a paper bag bunched at where the neck would be. She would breathe deeply into and out of the bag inhaling and sucking the paper with a crackle and exhaling and returning the brown lunch bag back to an expanded balloon state. Evidently, her need for this maneuver was brought on by an anxiety attack (a. k. a. panic attack)—a sudden surge of dread and fear combined with a variety of the above-described symptoms.

THE PHYSICAL PROPERTIES of ANXIETY ATTACKS

The anxiety attack instigates an imbalance of blood gases, for want of the appropriate amounts of carbon dioxide in the blood (often caused by the unwitting hyperventilating the anxiety-stricken individual is doing. Inhaling and exhaling steadily through the paper, then, levels out the carbon dioxide.

Because the anxiety syndrome has become more prevalent in specific cultures and countries, experts in the medical and therapeutic fields have added to their list of suggestions for self-help anxiety disorder treatments. Some of these include talking yourself up (or down, but not depressedly or negatively), taking your point of focus to a place outside of your body and bodily reactions/symptoms, and sitting calmly with a “this too shall pass” approach and attitude or mindset.

Sometimes, the anxiety attacks are not psychologically -based, but are instead symptoms accompanying a physical illness (such as hypertension, for instance). Then, the anxiety disorder treatment you seek might be more involved. Some chronic sufferers consult doctors or therapists or visit clinics dedicated to such disorders. In addition, people access the options and alternatives for anxiety disorder treatment: they partake of medications prescribed for them, get therapy (such as biofeedback/Neurofeedback or psychotherapy), or learn new life-management skills. As well, some experiencing chronic anxiety will endeavor to learn new techniques for breathing, stress-management, and better problem-solving.

While time has passed, some symptoms, syndromes, and treatments have not. And some are new and improved, depending upon severity, need, and response to healing strategies…whether it is pills for the “high-strung” or paper bags for the harangued.

From: http://gravidazero.blogspot.com/2006/09/anxiety-disorder-treatments.html

Tags: anxiety, insomnia, ssri, GAD, Venlaflaxine, effexor, panic attack, phobia, stress management, agoraphobia, dread, cause, cure

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Is there a permanant cure to the problem of depression and anxiety?

It has often been said that old problems are not so much cured but grown out of. That is to say that the things which used to bother us don't disappear, but become less important.

What I am talking about here is of course the underlying causes of anxiety, panic attacks, depression and phobias, especially the more complicated phobias like agoraphobia and fear of flying. What is that underlying cause? It's different for everyone but for many people it is some kind of nameless dread that is never really identified. Perhaps that unidentifiable monster was created early in life, before our logical and linguistic brains had developed enough to make sense of it, perhaps that is why it will always stay out of the reach of our logical minds.

So, if this is the case then rather than remove this thing, it might be the case that we live with it. After all, if it is by its very nature unidentifiable then how can we hope to remove it? We don't know what it is and can't know when it's gone. That is why the statement at the beginning might well hold true. As we grow, and expand our lives, we become bigger than the problem. What was once a mountain will become a molehill.But remember, this simplistic metaphor does not apply where there is no logic or understanding, as is the case with our deep subconscious minds. Sometimes, for some reason, that molehill can flair up and cause trouble again. As we grow, we should be sure to learn to see that coming and to be bigger than it again. Eventually a position can be reached where what used to ruin lives now spoils only half a day, then only an hour.

So, the advice here is to not fixate about destroying a problem, or even changing it, but to change yourself in relation to it!

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Tags: anxiety, insomnia, ssri, GAD, Venlaflaxine, effexor, panic attack, phobia, stress management, agoraphobia, dread, cause, cure

Panic Attacks, Anxiety and Diet - Wheat and dairy.

A lot has always been made about the links between what you eat and how you feel. Everything that happens to us emotionally or physically is chemical, so the theory goes, so how we feel and how our bodies behave must be governed by what chemical we give the body.

One should be aware of over simplifying the food/mood connection. It is not just a case of eating more of X and less of Y. For example depression is linked to low serotonin levels, but eating lots of bananas (which are high in serotonin) is not likely to cure any kind of clinical depression. Broadly speaking, there are two key factors: Having enough of a substance, and having the right balanced of other substances for it to be available.

A real-life application of this would be in eating dairy produce, which is high in the amino acid Tryptophan, with a complex carbohydrate like wholemeal bread. The idea is that the starchy carbohydrate will cause a release of insulin which will remove other proteins from the bloodstream giving the Tryptophan an improved chance to cross the blood-brain barrier. Tryptophan is one of the building blocks of serotonin. Through studiously planned diets people have definitely made a difference to their mood.

There is a whole separate question of allergies and intolerance. Wheat an dairy produce are often the biggest culprits, or at least the most persecuted suspects. Therefore anxiety and depression diet advice becomes much harder to give. Should you eat more dairy to increase serotonin production, or less, or cut it out completely? Likewise wheat?

Checking for allergies and intolerance is a good idea, however you should be sure to keep a balanced diet no matter what. If dairy has to go then make sure you have another source of protein. If wheat has to go don't replace it with simple carbohydrates...find a good rye bread or a corn bread. When you remove a foodstuff, do so for at least three weeks, to really notice if you feel different or if others see a difference in you.

Tags: depression, hyperventilation, anxiety, insomnia, celexa, citalopram, anti-depressant, ssri, GAD, panic attack, phobia, stress management, agoraphobia, wheat, dairy, allergy, intolerance

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How bad medical labels are, especially with minor mental health complaints

A few months ago I wrote an article on the labeling of anxiety sufferers by a medical profession that was obsessed with diagnosis apparently to the detriment of cure or containment. the situation is a perversion: Anxiety and mood disorders are broadly caused by either genetics, some other biological predisposition, a traumatic event(s), generally unhappy environment during formative years, accident, food allergy or intolerance, other environmental factor, and, most commonly, a combination of two or more of the

I think it is safe to assume that often problems with varying causes will have varying solutions. So why stigmatize two different human beings with the same label just because on paper their symptoms are similar at any given moment.

For example, a diagnosis of GAD is often made when a patient has been suffering persistent worrying to the detriment of their ability to lead a normal life. But the criteria state that those people who are to receive a diagnosis of GAD can not have been suffering from panic attacks, agoraphobia, or simple phobias. This seems palpably ridiculous.

It is annoying to say the least when you talk to a doctor and realise that he or she has no real idea about how best to treat an anxiety disorder, and you wonder how much time they have wasted learning daft labels and silly criteria.

The best thing for any patient that presents to a doctor with a specific anxiety disorder is this:

1) The doctor checks, or organises checks, to make sure there is no physical cause (thyroid problems etc).

2) The doctor refers them on to a specialist who decides on a case by case basis the best path to talk (relaxation, cbt, drugs, group therapy, a holiday!)

All of these endless labels are driving as mad and causing misdiagnoses. Anxiety sufferers are not vegetables that can be divided up by variety, they are individual human beings.

Tags: hyperventilation, anxiety, doctor, iinsomnia, celexa, citalopram, anti-depressant, ssri, GAD, Venlaflaxine, effexor, panic attack, phobia, stress management, agoraphobia, CBT, cognitive behaviour therapy, psychotherapy, art therapy, talking therapies, exposure, cannabis, marijuana, mix, mixing, interaction, alcohol, labels

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MRI aid in the fight against anxiety

Hi, I found the following posted on Anxiety Info and I thought it was worth reposting here. I have recently seen, as i mentioned a few posts ago, a documentary on phobias where MRI was used to see how certain parts of the brain react during moments of high anxiety...the same technique can of course be used to see how effective a treatment has been...

fMRI predictors of treatment outcome in pediatric anxiety disorders.

McClure EB, Adler A, Monk CS, Cameron J, Smith S, Nelson EE, Leibenluft E, Ernst M, Pine DS.

Department of Psychology, Georgia State University, P.O. Box 5010, Atlanta, GA, 30302-5010, USA, emcclure@gsu.edu.

INTRODUCTION: A growing number of studies have found evidence that anxiety and depressive disorders are associated with atypical amygdala hyperactivation, which decreases with effective treatment. Interest has emerged in this phenomenon as a possible biological marker for individuals who are likely to benefit from tailored treatment approaches.

OBJECTIVE: The present study was designed to examine relationships between pretreatment amygdala activity and treatment response in a sample of anxious children and adolescents.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: Participants, who were diagnosed predominantly with generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), underwent functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scanning before treatment with fluoxetine or cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT).

RESULTS: Results indicated significant negative associations between degree of left amygdala activation and measures of posttreatment symptom improvement in the group, as a whole.

DISCUSSION: Taken together with research on associations between adult amygdala activation and treatment response, these findings suggest that patients whose pretreatment amygdala activity is the strongest may be particularly likely to respond well to such widely used treatments as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) medications and CBT.

PMID: 16972100 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]

(Text has been reformatted for clarity by the ed at Anxiety Info.)

Source...

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Anxiety 2 Calm news and The Psychotherapy Question.

Firstly, let me apologise for not updating this blog for the last week or so. I have been extremely busy at work and also working on a new home page for http://www.anxiety2calm.com/ because it struck me that the current one, while initially good, has been out grown by the amount of content on the site making it hard for users to find the information they wanted. It will now be split up into sections on the various different aspects of anxiety and other minor mental health disorders.

I am also going to add some new sections, about OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder) social anxiety and depression. So check back in the next few weeks to see them.

Now, onto some interesting things about anxiety. I recently re-watched a documentary about two severe phobics, one with a horror of mice and another with a debilitating fear of feathers and birds. Interestingly both of these phobias could be checked traced back to single early childhood traumas. I should point out that these were simple phobias, and the idea of a single traumatic cause of complex agoraphobia, panic disorder or depression is still an unobtainable Elderado for most suffererers.

To cut a long story short, both of these phobics were cured by exposure therapy (effectively with CBT) after hypnosis and the controversial Dr Callahan's TFT failed to shift them. I, however, am still convinced that some problems are still too complex for the brutal sledge hammer that CBT can be, and am working on a section on psychotherapy, art therapy and other talking therapies. They are long, they are unfashionable, but are they also extremely successful? I would love to hear your thoughts.

Watch this space!

Tags: breathing, breath, hyperventilation, anxiety, doctor, side effect profile, insomnia, celexa, citalopram, anti-depressant, ssri, GAD, Venlaflaxine, effexor, panic attack, phobia, stress management, agoraphobia, CBT, cognitive behaviour therapy, psychotherapy, art therapy, talking therapies, exposure

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Tom Cruise?

Something started me thinking about what Tom Cruise said about Brook Shields and the anti-depressant debacle. While double blind tests of anti-depressants have shown that they work against anxiety the debate as to how well they work, and how much of a solution they provide rages on.

For example, one study I read (and I must admit I have lost the link) consisted of one group of depressed patients being Celexa (citalopram) and the other group being given a placebo sugar pill. The results of the study? Celexa had a significant effect. Great, you might think. But when you look at the details you find that Celexa helped 60% of the depressed patients, while the placebo helped 50%! So much of Celexa's success could have been down to the placebo effect!

Those who advocate SSRI's often state that anxiety is a chemical imbalance which therefore must be corrected with other chemicals. This, I think, is a misconception. There may well be a chemical imbalance and SSRI's and other medication may be able to temporarily correct this imbalance OR make it seem as though the balance is correct, however the balance has not been corrected and the problem is still there. The only exception to this is when the problem originates outside the body and passes naturally, as perhaps in the case of anxiety brought on by injury that causes temporary disability.

This quote from http://anxiety.wordpress.com/2006/01/30/these-are-the-anti-anxietydepression-medications-that-i-take/ shows how tempers tend to fray in this matter:

You have to be kidding…..this must be a pharmaceutical company’s doings. I don’t believe you are a single person writing this. How about a picture of yourself posted on your “blog”???

There is no, repeat absolutely NO proof that “anxiety” is caused by a “chemical imbalance”. Drugs are not the answer. You are doing a disservice to anxious people reading this! Paxil is highly addictive.

In fact, SSRI's can and do help in many cases, it's just a matter of what you are doing to find a permanent solution while you are taking this medication...The above response is typical of those for whom SSRI's did little, and it is understandable. But perhaps they are the lucky ones though, because with drugs that change your mood how can you tell when your therapy is altering your mood? How can you tell when you are finding a permanent solution to your problems? I leave you with that dilemma!

Tags: breathing, breath, hyperventilation, anxiety, doctor, side effect profile, insomnia, celexa, citalopram, anti-depressant, ssri, GAD, Venlaflaxine, effexor, panic attack, phobia, stress management, agoraphobia, Tom Cruise, chemical imbalance, phobias, panic attacks, depression

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Anxiety on the BBC

Hi, I got emailed this from the BBC, who are making a new documentary on phobias. For those who will do anything to get on TV it looks interesting. If you are in the UK and you fancy it, get in touch!

Does the thought of spiders make your skin crawl?

Does your fear of flying send you soaring into panic?

Does your fear of social gatherings make you stay at home?

Do you panic at the thought of using a public toilet or become panic stricken at the sight of a needle?

Has your fear prevented or disrupted holidays with friends and family?

Cost you promotion at work?

Is your phobia destroying your life, ruining your relationships or getting in the way of your happiness?

If your phobia is controlling your life then fear not we can help.

The BBC are looking for people to take part in a brand new groundbreaking programme which aims to help people overcome their worst phobias and alter their lives for the better.

But you won’t have to face your fear alone. Leading experts will be guiding you through the latest treatments and using new, highly successful techniques, they’ll train your mind to overcome your phobia and dramatically change your life forever.

So if you want the opportunity to face your fear and over come it then the BBC would like to hear from you.

Please contact us today on 0808 100 4999

Or email

Panicroom@bbc.co.uk

            Or text Panic

Followed by Your name, address etc to 83199

(Standard rate applie

Tags: anxiety, doctor, side effect profile, insomnia, ssri, GAD, Venlaflaxine, effexor, panic attack, phobia, stress management, agoraphobia

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Anxiety and Breathing

Hi, I saw this question on the Tapir Discussion Board:

Does anyone ever feel like they can't get a deep breath? I feel like I can't get a full breath in and when I keep trying it makes my lungs actually HURT ... its starting to bring on a panic attack. HELP!

This is a common complaint of anxiety sufferers and posters on Tapir gave some good answers and responses:

My last panic attack which was my worst and darkest one made me feel like i couldn't breathe and that i was going to die. Since then every now and then at work, home or when i'm at the gym i remember and become really conscious of my breathing, but as has already been said let go, cos it's automatic anyway and it won't just stop. Just relax, and know that it won't suddenly give way. I get it a lot but i'm learning to accept it.

---

I had that for a bit a few years ago. What I discovered was that after I started taking a low does of asthma medication (allergies) it helped emmensely. Can't remember what it was though. Also, square breathing is great, breath in to 3, hold for 3, breath out for 3, hold for 3, repeat. Its something to focus on, very calming and assures that your not hyperventelating. Most times when someone feels they can't breath they just breath all the harder which in effect turns into a bit of hyperventalation and doesn't do any good at all.
Hope this helps.

   ---

That's pretty much exactly what i go through. it starts out with not getting a full breath and then i think something may be wrong and it goes from there. but ever since i learned that it's just a symptom of a panic attack i just layback and breath in only through my nose and constantly remind myself it's just anxiety and it can't hurt me. like the previous ppl said you won't just stop breathing so when you feel like you didn't get a good full breath just remind yourself oh ya that's just my anxiety and also realize you are getting plenty of air, and don't struggle for deeper breaths that just makes it worse. that works for me, hope it works for you. and if you want the lingering feeling of not enough air to go away then you have to find out the trigger. for me it was over thinking and dwelling. you should try to find your trigger. hope it works.

---

I use to get that all the time! When I was younger my mom would bring me a paper bag to breath in! As I got older I realized I could just cup my hands around my nose and my mouth and breath in and out slowly through my nose would help.

Sounds to me your hyperventilating which is definately part of anxiety!!!! Try not to fight it when it happens. Try the hand trick if your in public and if your at home use the paper bag until you get good at it!!!!

---

i also had that really bad years ago,and it lasted about a year,of course this was before they new much about anxiey.what was happening is my chest museles were so tight from the anxiety every time i would take a deep breath it would hurt,and of course that made me have more anxiety,but after finding out that is was just my musels i slowley began to feel alot better.even whlie i slept i was holding such i grip on my hole body,that really i hurt all over,but of course always noticed how my chest and back hurt the most.i hope you feel better soon.........cathSometimes I feel like my ab muscles are so tight around my lungs that I can't get a good breath in. Then, I start forcing the deep breathing which leads me to hyperventilate. I actually don't experience panic attacks, but I panic at the onset of the side effects of hyperventiliation. Sheesh!

Here is what I am going to try -
1. deep breathing exercises daily while calm
2. when I start to feel like I am not breathing in enough, I am just going to focus on relaxing all muscles in my abdomen (I read somewhere that you should try to go limp) and breathe subconsciously. i'm going to focus on something else besides my breathing - like my favorite beach.

Tags: breathing, breath, hyperventilation, anxiety, doctor, side effect profile, insomnia, celexa, citalopram, anti-depressant, ssri, GAD, Venlaflaxine, effexor, panic attack, phobia, stress management, agoraphobia

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Some sound advice!

Hi, I found this and thought it was quite interesting.....the overall message is very positive I think.  From tomorrow, or maybe later today, I will stop syndicating and start writing my own blogs again...if you wanna follow up the article below the link is http://dayitriedtolive.blogspot.com/

Sunday, September 03, 2006

ONE THING AT A TIME

What are you doing now? Reading this blog whilst simultaneously checking your emails, watching re-runs of Ironside and making a cup of hot chamomile tea? The relaxation stuff is boring, I know, everyone knows it, and this is going to be my last entry on it for now, but honestly, that chamomile tea is a waste if you're doing all this other stuff at the same time.

We're lead to believe that our lives are so busy in modern western culture that this is the only way we can possibly live. The truth of the matter is, if you set your tasks one at a time and put 100% into each one, then not only will your productivity increase and you will get more done, you will also become increasingly aware of your surroundings. When you become increasingly aware of your surroundings you become decreasingly aware of those trivial anxieties that only exist because of your awareness to them. Think about that one.

Multi-tasking is bad.

I remember playing with a thought I had about eating a healthy diet. Not a fad diet, a 'lose weight in 3 hours!' diet, or anything like that, but a naturally, healthy, permanent diet. This isn't something which I was ever brought up to be good at. Thankfully I've never had a problem with my weight or health, but I used to eat far too much junk food for my own good. It dawned on me that much of the time I would eat something it would go down so fast while I'm watching TV or whatever that I could barely remember eating it. So, I would want something else! And off I would go, back to the kitchen, rummaging in the back of the cupboards looking for that delightful treat that would give me my contentment for a short time. It never did give me contentment though, I just always wanted more. Back to the kitchen...

When you're preoccupied in all your blistering thoughts, especially so when you're taking part in several activities at once, the food cannot give you contentment because your mind is elsewhere. So, I began pondering on the thought that if you sit down with your food, in a quiet space, rest your mind onto what you're eating, feel the texture and appreciate every last sensation of the flavour entering your mouth, then finally you can achieve that level of contentment you're looking for. And as you achieve that level of appreciation for this gift that sits on the table in front of you, your usual urge to replicate that event over and over again begins to dissolve. Interestingly, a couple of months later I was listening to the radio and Paul McKenna was being interviewed by Chris Moyles (don't laugh at my sources for this blog!). At that time, McKenna was involved in his own TV show here in the UK which was basically showing people how to stick to healthy diets and lose weight. Now, I didn't watch any of that show, but from what he explained on the radio, much of his wisdom (an alleged ten years worth of studying this) was based around what I've just explained above. For anyone who's ever had any problems sticking to a healthy diet and not eating junk every twelve seconds, I'm sure you can understand how powerful that is. But what it isn't is a crap piece of advice like 'Uh, well just don't eat so much!'. It actually goes very deep, to a level where not only are you eating less on the surface, but you're content with what you are doing and you're reaching some kind of state of fulfillment. Which is where you want to be in your life, right?

Is multi-tasking fulfilling? You might think you'll get everything done, but you're not going to get it done in a healthy state of mind. And if your state of mind is not healthy it is not going to be fulfilled. What it is going to be, is cluttered. All the garbage you've just cleaned out with your relaxation (if you've done it), it's all back again! Back to square one.

If you carry on multi-tasking it feeds the abundance of constant negative dribble in your mind. It does the opposite to relaxation. It feeds the anxiety. It doesn't bring on sudden panic either, it's much more subtle than that. It builds over a long time, very slowly creeping up on you while you remain unaware, until one day it grabs you by the throat and throws you to the floor. It's not that you can't still keep up a busy day. My busiest days are usually my best and most satisfying. Just keep it to one thing at a time, with focus and attention on all of your tasks on an individual basis. You'll not regret it.

It is honestly this kind of balance, along with relaxation, coupled with controlling my negativity that freed me from years of debilitating anxiety, agoraphobia and panic.

End of lecture.

Tags: anxiety, doctor, side effect profile, insomnia, celexa, citalopram, anti-depressant, ssri, GAD, Venlaflaxine, effexor, panic attack, phobia, stress management, agoraphobia

When to quit medication?

Lots of people try anti-anxiety medication and give up in the first few weeks due to severe side effects. I found this post on a blog which shows one person's experience of giving up medication. I should stress that when altering a dose of medication, starting or stopping, you should always speak to your doctor. That said, if you don't persevere with it for at 3-4 weeks you are unlikely to know if it can help you or not. Side effects should always be discussed with your doctor.

from: http://anxiety-be-gone.blogspot.com/2006/08/tryin-to-chill-out-on-rainy-sunday.html

"I've decided to quit taking this anxiety medication after only five days. I hate the side effects, and when the side effects are worse than the actual ailment I think quitting the medication is the best choice. So last night I missed my dose, and I am waiting to feel the withdrawal symptoms - even after being on this medication for a few days I hear that the withdrawal process can be quite awful. I'm hoping it's not much more than a slight headache or something, because I would really like my old self back, anxious energy and all.

The medication did help with my anxiety, but only because it made me absolutely numb to everything. I just didn't have the energy to react to anything, so I couldn't be my high-strung normal self. I noticed that I "coasted through" some situations that may have made me anxious without this medicine, and I didn't once have the urge to throw up my food. All positive things, to be sure. But the debilitating exhaustion added to the insomnia, added to the non-stop hunger, was just too much.

I really think that for me, at least, the best idea would probably be to go to therapy on a regular basis, but being abroad may make that difficult. I knew before going into this "experiment" that I hated prescription medication, because I have always had weird side effects when I've taken something (this is also something that runs in my family, apparently) but I was willing to try something out since my parents insisted that I really had a problem and sometimes medication does work for problems like mine.

So what have I learned after all this? I still hate prescription medication (even more than before) and I will never again be pressured into asking my doctor to prescribe medication for me when I don't really feel I need it. Some good lessons to learn, I think."

Tags: anxiety, doctor, side effect profile, insomnia, celexa, citalopram, anti-depressant, ssri, GAD, Venlaflaxine, effexor, panic attack, phobia, stress management, agoraphobia