Anxiety

Anxiety is part of our natural physiology. It is our body's way to increase our awareness of threat, and much like fear; it is part of our natural defense system. However, the threat can be real or imagined and many times occurs around events we have little control over such as the past and the future. How often have you found yourself stuck in your thoughts that are focused on evaluating past events or ones that have yet to occur?

Anxiety is not always bad, it can be helpful. For example, a manageable amount of anxiety motivates us to excel, be cautious when appropriate, and /or provide us with an opportunity for greater self awareness that something is not quite right. Perhaps, it can be a yellow light signaling to slow down and pay attention when we are living in the fast lane. However, anxiety becomes a problem when the fear driven feelings and thoughts start to consume us and interfere with our ability to perform or feel good about ourselves. How often do you find yourself dwelling on the "what ifs" and the "I should haves" that characterize the problematic nature of anxiety when it is taking over.

Anxiety can take on many forms including specific phobias (e.g. spiders, heights), social phobia, obsessive-compulsive disorder and generalized anxiety disorder. Frequently individuals struggling with any of these types of anxiety try to manage by avoiding things which trigger the anxiety. While this can be helpful in the short term, avoiding ones fears only make them worse and can interfere with a rich and meaningful life. Individuals overcome anxiety by continuing to engage in activities which are meaningful to them even when the activities cause anxiety. Essentially we must be willing and able to experience some anxiety in order to reduce overall anxiety.

Symptoms of Anxiety:

How to get help

If you or a friend is experiencing symptoms of anxiety or you would like more information come visit us at the Student Development and Counseling Center. Your meeting will be completely confidential. You can call us at +1-508-831-5540 or stop by to make an appointment at 157 West St. (off Institute Road across the street from the bridge).

Experiencing relief:

The following suggestions have been proven effective in relieving the symptoms of anxiety.  Attempt to approach the following suggestions like you would research. 

Get to sleep!

Panic Attack/ Panic Disorder

Panic attacks are fairly common occurrences; an estimated 10% of people per year experience symptoms of panic. Panic attacks (also called anxiety attacks) seem to come out of nowhere and can last as long as a few minutes or up to a few hours. Typically many of the symptoms listed below occur during a panic attack.

•         Racing heartbeat

•         Chest pains

•         Terror

•         Fear of dying

•         Dizziness or lightheadedness

•         Nausea

•         Flushes or chills

•         Difficulty breathing

•         Tingling or numbness

•         Feelings of unreality

•         Fear of losing control or doing something embarrassing

Panic Disorder occurs when an individual experiences multiple panic attacks.  It is estimated that 1.7% of the population will develop a panic disorder at some point in their lives. Panic Disorder affects women twice as often as men and most often begins in early adulthood. Treatment for Panic Disorder, counseling and possibly medication, is very effective and typically provides relief within 6-8 weeks.

How to get relief during a panic attack

How to help someone else

Feel free at any point to contact a counselor at the Student Development and Counseling Center if you have concerns about a student or you want to talk about how to approach a student who’s having difficulties. You can call us at 508-831-5540 or email us at sdcc@wpi.edu.

What can you do to feel better?

Anxiety and Panic Attack resource site

For More information on Anxiety search the following links:

 

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Last modified: June 26, 2008 15:29:21