ANXIETY

Anxiety has existed as long as there have been humans and before as we can also observe it in primates and other mammals. A paper Sigmund Freud published in 1895, first coined the term anxiety neurosis, and detailed very modern descriptions of panic attacks.

Anxiety is a natural warning system, it would perhaps be unwise to ignore the anxiety you might feel about falling off a cliff if you are standing on some loose rocks near the edge, but another matter perhaps if you feel the same anxiety if your still half a mile away. Thus in the first instance is serves to prevent our death or annihilation.

Again, we have a spectrum of intensity to consider, ranging from mild to moderate, and a range of conditions listed in the psychiatric diagnostic manual, including, social phobias, panic attacks to obsessive compulsive disorder and PTSD.

But putting these labels to one side, anxiety often represents as a symptom, or signal of separation, that is, between one’s true nature or nature of being and our current conscious state. It is a warning signal, and is often a sign that some help is needed. When worked with constructively in a therapeutic environment it can lead to inner healing and transformation.

There is sometimes a ‘double bind’ present, a person may know that he or she needs what lies on the other side of the anxiety to grow and evolve, but also fears being overcome by it which prevents assimilation and keeps the two apart. It is this ‘double bind’ which is thought often produces unbearable feeling of anxiety, and why people often go to great lengths to avoid the anxiety which in itself can cause another whole range of symptoms.

Major trauma can produce overwhelming anxiety, as can a difficult or toxic childhood conditioning. Over time and as different approaches were developed, anxiety has been analyzed and categorized into many forms. I will not list them all but I do want to mention three specific symptoms of anxiety that are perhaps most common.

Panic Attacks

Panic attacks are not uncommon, about one in ten people experience them. As a stand alone symptom, (panic attacks are often part of a larger issue or medical condition), I knew friends who suffered from panic attacks long before I started my training. Exposure to constant stress and pressure, the feeling of having to be constantly in control of your world, and on top of things seems to contribute to this sudden break down of control and intense feelings of anxiety, lasting anything from seconds to thirty minutes. If they occurr regularly, this is a warning signal, and should not be ignored.

PTSD

PTSD, although it is related to anxiety it is a little different. When a person has been exposed or involved in a traumatic event, it can cause symptoms such as recurrent and intrusive disturbing flashbacks and memories of the trauma, night terrors, nightmares which can severely impact the ability to lead a normal life. Shell shock as it was termed in the first world war, now PTSD is particularly common in ex service men and women who have seen combat, and the horrors that someone who has not been exposed to that or a similar environment cannot imagine. What was witnessed cannot be reconciled, the symptoms are a sign that the mind is trying and failing to integrate and assimilate what has happened. EMDR can be quite helpful but and I would advise anyone suffering to seek out counselling and support.

Obsessions and Compulsions

Again quite common, about 1 in 50 people suffer from OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder), and many more from obsessions and compulsions of one sort or another. Symptoms can include recurrent and persistent thought patterns, impulses, which may focus not on major life issues but smaller rules and behaviours, such as the need for recurrent hand washing, checking the power is off on an appliance repeatedly, or the door is locked more than once, repeating words silently, repetitive habits and behaviours, seemingly minor rules that are rigidly enforced, excessive hygiene.

Perhaps one way to understand this is as a learnt strategy to avoid the source of anxiety which cannot be faced or reconciled. Trauma, or stress can cause this. Consider an example of a husband who's job is at risk, his partner can not stop cleaning the house to a strict regimen. There are many such examples which give a clue. In cases where OCD develops during childhood, there is a much stronger familial link in the disorder than cases in which OCD develops later in adulthood. In general, genetic factors account for 45-65% of OCD symptoms in children diagnosed with the disorder. But if exposed to a parent with OCD it could be said a child is more likely to adopt this as normal behaviour as a response to anxiety and stress.

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