Even in today's progressive culture and society, a stigma remains about mental illness.
Most people recognize the symptoms of anxiety within themselves, yet suffer for many years before they get help (if indeed they ever seek professional help).
Rather than suffer the potential shame, embarrassment, or other negative emotion that some may feel in seeking professional assistance, many turn to home remedies, old wives tales, and such to cope with potentially debilitating symptoms.
If you remember nothing from this article, remember this: THERE IS QUALITY HELP AVAILABLE AND THERE IS NO NEED TO HIDE YOUR SUFFERING ANYMORE.
Anxiety is a normal emotion that all human beings feel at some periods in our lives.
Yes some people have a predisposition to be clinically anxious (thanks mom and dad), and some also have contributing environmental factors, yet to be human is to have some worries and fears.
Clinical Research has demonstrated that 1) psychotherapy can be extremely effective in treating anxiety, 2) that certain medications are effective for treating anxiety, and 3) sometimes a combination of meds and therapy may be indicated for optimal results.
There are many licensed professionals who conduct quality therapy including: psychologists (doctors in the field of counseling), LPC's, clinical social workers, and others.
If you would like to explore medicinal treatment, you would want to consult your family doctor and possibly a psychiatrist about your situation.
Regardless of your type of anxiety (panic attacks, generalized worries/fears, Post traumatic stress, OCD, etc.
), you should not feel that it is necessary to deal with it alone anymore.
It takes strength to admit that you would like to change part of your life; and it takes courage to take the first step.
Perhaps you can replace some of your suffering with peace and increased connectedness to your personal core values in life.