I once heard an exasperated man lament, "My depression treatment makes my anxiety worse!" He's not alone in this frustration, and neither are you if you've found that treating depression worsens your anxiety. 

Many people living with panic disorder wonder, "Why am I panicking?" Panic attacks can be frightening and frustrating and emotionally and physically painful; it makes sense to want relief from and help with panic attacks. After all, the symptoms of panic disorder are awful to live with. Even worse, sometimes it can seem like there's no reason for them, no explanation at all. When they continue to strike, seemingly out of the blue, it's normal to bemoan, "Why am I panicking?" Believe it or not, there can be multiple hidden trauma triggers and other reasons for panic attacks. 

The start of a new school year brings many things, including school anxiety and stress. Statistics on school and mental health compiled by Youth.gov indicate that almost half of all American children meet the criteria for a mental health disorder, and among those kids, anxiety is the most common. School anxiety and stress are causing problems for many of our kids and adolescents.

Are you facing change that's increasing feelings of stress and anxiety? Anxiety can be related to adjustment disorder. We humans often dislike change; sometimes we even fear change. When change creates such stress that it interferes in the ability to fully function in life (work, school, interpersonal relationships, etc.),  a diagnosis of adjustment disorder by a primary care physician, therapist, or other health care provider is sometimes in order. If you're facing change and experiencing difficulties, know that you're not alone. Anxiety can be related to adjustment disorder, and treating both anxiety and adjustment disorder is possible. 

The causes or the effects of anxiety: which came first: the chicken or the egg? Anxiety has both causes and effects. It seems straightforward, but to those of us who have experienced it, it’s not always so clear which comes first, the causes or the effects of anxiety. It can be a frustrating chicken-and-egg conundrum.

Existential anxiety is an all-encompassing form of anxiety and stress that is present in a nagging way when we try to make meaning in life simply because, as humans, we exist. That’s a fun concept, isn’t it? We experience anxiety, stress, strife, worry, and even panic simply because we are alive. Being alive is certainly a wonderful thing, but existential anxiety can put a damper on it (this might be an understatement). Why does mere existence cause us dissonance and different kinds of stress, and can it go away? Can we make meaning in our lives despite this existential anxiety and stress?

Anxiety triggers are pesky things and they can be difficult to avoid. As a person living with an anxiety disorder, I don’t intentionally put myself in a position to trigger an anxiety or panic attack. Some triggers are easy to avoid. If snakes trigger anxiety, a pet boa constrictor isn’t for you. But what about happy memories? Is it possible for a happy memory to trigger anxiety?

Sometimes, we experience anxiety because of an anxiety trigger.  People can be diagnosed with different types of anxiety disorders, each with specific symptoms and causes. Additionally, people can experience situational anxiety where something in particular causes anxiety symptoms to flare. A student might experience test anxiety severe enough to negatively impact performance or a parent's anxiety might become heightened and nearly debilitating when he/she thinks about the various harm that could come to the child. The anxiety that is triggered by something can be painful, limiting, and downright awful, especially when one can't avoid anxiety triggers.  Equally painful, limiting, and downright awful is when anxiety strikes without a cause whatsoever. 

  You've just had yet another stressful day and you're anxious. Your mind is reeling as it ruminates over the myriad of blunders, problems, and challenging interactions. Anxiety rages, and "what-ifs" and worries are spinning out of control. Your stomach churns; your head pounds. You throw your things onto a table or couch and head right for the kitchen. Do you rummage for healthy food or do you do what a vast majority of us do--seek out the junk food? Is your food making your anxious?

Anxiety can grip us like a vice. Once the worry sets in, the body reacts with a host of anxiety symptoms that vary from person to person. Headaches, pain, stomach trouble, sweating, trembling, and breathing difficulties are some common ways anxiety makes itself known from head to toe, inside and out. Intertwined with the worry and the physical sensations, and an integral component of anxiety is, often, fear. What, exactly, is the meaning fear? And if we deconstruct it, can we reduce our anxiety?