Anxiety, Depression & Stress - A To Z
 

A to Z of stress, anxiety and depression - (A-M)

A is for Anxiety –  Anxiety is a strong feeling of unease, a state of being troubled. It can be an intense feeling of apprehension or fear about events or situations that a sufferer is facing, for example job loss, relationship breakdown, meeting new people, or life changes. Such feelings make it difficult to cope with life and are accompanied by physical symptoms too such as butterflies in your tummy, trembling hands, heavy sweating, racing pulse and palpitations. Tiredness is also a problem because sufferers find it very difficult to sleep. Anxiety certainly isn’t incurable and there are steps you can take to combat anxiety without taking powerful drugs. Understanding your anxiety – especially what causes anxiety – is important and there are also many skills you can acquire that will help you to cope with all of life’s trials and tribulations so anxiety isn’t triggered.
 

B is for Bipolar Disorder – Bipolar disorder is more commonly referred to as “Manic Depression”. Bipolar disorder is the fluctuation between extreme moods. So, a sufferer will feel periods of overwhelming joy and elation, where confidence is very high, energy levels are high and they’re constantly “on the go”, moving from one thing to another. Because of the intensity of the high, judgement is impaired and decisions can be made that have serious consequences, such as a change of job, a house move or relationship choices. The second phase of bipolar is the depressive phase where sufferers have little self confidence, low energy levels and experience little pleasure in anything life has to offer. Feelings of helplessness and despair also occur and exhaustion will also be present as these strong emotions make it difficult to sleep. As with anxiety, there are many natural steps you can take that help enormously with bipolar disorder so sufferers can cope better without taking antidepressants.
 

C is for Chronic – Many people who suffer from stress, depression and anxiety often describe their condition as “chronic”. However, the majority of sufferers use the word “chronic” incorrectly. If you suffer from chronic stress, chronic depression or chronic anxiety, it does not mean that you are experiencing severe stress, severe depression or severe anxiety, it means that stress, depression or anxiety are ongoing for a prolonged period of time. Being under major stress at work for a month isn’t chronic stress, most people will experience such stress and as soon as the situation is resolved, the stress goes away. But being under major stress month in month out is chronic stress. As you can see, the word “chronic” doesn’t describe the intensity of stress, depression or anxiety, it’s more about the length of time a sufferer experiences these problems.
 

D is for Depression – A growing problem with one in 20 people suffering a depressive episode at one or more stages of their lives. Depression is more than just the blues. It is a number of emotions and feelings that take a sufferer to a sad, lonely and desperate place. Levels of confidence and self esteem plummet, giving rise to feelings of helplessness, loneliness, extreme exhaustion and fear of the future. Sufferers can find even the smallest of daily tasks too difficult and in this state, finding an answer to even the smallest of problems is very hard. Concentration levels are affected badly and gradually, a sufferer will retreat to their own world, isolating themselves from loved ones and society, further exacerbating the depression. Even if depression is severe, there are lots of things you can do for depression, particularly cognitive therapy, natural remedies and effective life skills to help a sufferer cope effectively with the circumstances they face in life. Gaining control is a key skill, and will help a sufferer enormously.
 

E is for Exercise - Exercise brings enormous benefits to our physical health. Exercise builds and maintains strong muscles, burns off excess calories, tones the whole body and gives us a buzz due to the release of fell good endorphins into the system. It can also help to maintain mental health, but exercise is not a cure for stress, anxiety and depression. Exercise doesn’t treat the root cause and if a sufferer does exercise, it will only provide temporary relief. Click here to discover more about exercise as a treatment for stress, anxiety and depression
 
 

F is for Food – Surf the internet looking for the root cause of stress, depression and anxiety and you will find many sites claiming that a nutritionally deficient diet is the main reason for mental health problems. In particular, they will claim that too much junk food in the diet is the real culprit. This is a fallacy, plain and simple. The food you eat – whether you eat a very healthy diet low in fat and high in fresh fruit and vegetables or a junk food diet full of pizzas, burgers, fries and ice cream – will not cause stress, depression or anxiety nor will food cure stress, depression or anxiety. This is simply demonstrated by asking: Does everybody who eats a poor diet suffer from stress, depression or anxiety? We can also ask: Does everybody who eats a very healthy diet enjoy immunity from stress, depression and anxiety? The answer is the same for both: NO!  A healthy diet is important for good health, but it doesn’t help much with stress, depression and anxiety.

G is for Guilt – Without doubt, guilt is one of the most self-destructive of human emotions. Guilt simply has no other purpose other than to make the individual seriously unhappy. Guilt is a big, big part of stress, anxiety and depression and learning how to deal with it is important. Guilt arises out of a feeling of remorse or regret for something you either did or didn’t do. It is a no-win deal if you indulge it because you’re always damned if you do or damned if you don’t. No matter what you do, guilt will always beat you up about it. I speak from personal experience here because guilt made my life an absolute misery for 5 years until I learned how to kick it out of my life. When you eliminate guilt from your life, you’ll feel like a millstone has been lifted from your neck.
 

H is for Happiness – Happiness is something EVERYBODY on the planet has a right to experience. It is arguably what we all strive to attain in life. The feeling that we have a good life, are making a contribution, have people to love and have people who love us is a very important feeling for a human being to have. Unfortunately, happiness has many enemies – stress, anxiety and depression especially. These problems bring doubt, insecurity, fear, guilt, negativity, helplessness and uncertainty into our lives and these feelings make it very hard for you to enjoy happiness. What’s very important to know is that all of these enemies of happiness can be dealt with and when you do, your levels of happiness will increase dramatically.
 

I is for Imagination – Your imagination is one of the most powerful things you possess as a human being. Imagination can spur you on to achieve great things, and indeed, imagination has been behind all of the great achievements of humanity. The great cities, the great discoveries and inventions, the advances in medical care, and the conquest of space all came from the visions of imaginative human beings. But imagination can also make your life a living hell by conjuring up all kinds of nasty and unpleasant scenarios that only reside in one place: YOUR MIND. So powerful can your imagination be that these highly emotive, frightening and catastrophic outcomes can be enough to cause decent into mental breakdown, even though these imaginings have not and will not occur in reality. That is precisely what happens to millions of people who let their imagination run wild and unchecked. Another important skill in dealing with stress, depression and anxiety is to make your imagination work for you and not against you.
 

J is for Journaling – One of the most helpful things you can do to find relief from stress, anxiety and depression is to keep a journal. In it, you can write your thoughts, ideas, dreams, ambitions, diet, possible triggers – anything you want to get off your chest! But a wise word of caution: don’t write down things and events from your past continually. Dwelling on the past can be a real problem, especially for depression sufferers, so make your journal a record of more positive aspects. Keep it solely for your eyes, your journal is about YOU for YOU so keep it in a place where prying eyes won’t find it. One way I like to use a journal is to go away for some solitary peace and quiet and to record my thoughts, ideas and possible solutions to my problems whilst I’m there. I love to get away for a day or a weekend, just to be near the ocean or a lake as I find water so relaxing. More often than not I will generate many ideas and I record them all in my journal. This is a very helpful way to relieve stress, anxiety and depression and I urge you to try it. Use the Internet to find out more information about journaling.
 

K is for Knowledge – Perhaps the most important step you can take towards relieving stress, anxiety and depression permanently is to acquire as much knowledge as you can about all of these harrowing problems. It has been demonstrated over and over again that people who understand what causes stress, depression and anxiety come out of their torment quickly and permanently. Of course, acquiring the knowledge is one thing, applying it is another. Knowledge isn’t power, applied knowledge is and once you know exactly what’s happening to you, you can then acquire the skills that will bring relief from stress, depression and anxiety once and for all.
 

L is for Laughter – Laughter is a fantastic stress buster and is also beneficial to our overall well-being as it releases feel good hormones into our system. Try not to take life too seriously and maintain a sense of humor no matter how trying life becomes. A great stress relief tip is to have a comedy night once or twice or month. Get in your favourite nibbles, crack open a beer or a good bottle of wine and watch DVDs of your favourite comedians or comedies. Just forget the world for a night and enjoy a good laugh! Click here to find more stress relief tips