Anxiety symptoms

Before we look at anxiety symptoms, first of all we’ll cover what anxiety is and what function it serves. Anxiety is a natural phenomenon. Its purpose is to give your body the necessary wherewithal to remove you from a dangerous situation, either by fighting the danger or by running away from it.

If we try to imagine one of our hunter-gatherer ancestors, wandering around in the great outdoors looking for something tasty for lunch. All of a sudden he/she comes face to face with some big cat or other also looking for lunch, and our ancestor smells mouth-wateringly good.

So, what options does our great, great, great etc. grandparent have? Well, he/she can fight the cat or run away from it. In order to enable him/her to do this, the following physiological adjustments will “automatically” be made:

1. Their body hair will stand on end to make him/her appear bigger, and therefore, more of a threat to the predator.
2. Their hands and feet will start to sweat to promote extra grip for running and climbing.
3. Adrenalin will be released into the bloodstream to increase energy.
4. The body’s resources will be directed away from normal functions such as food digestion and cell repair and directed toward the muscles to give more strength.
5. The body will dump any excess weight by the process of excretion.
6. Their breathing will become shallow and their heart rate will increase.
7. Their hearing and vision will become more sensitive.
8. Emotionally, they will begin to feel uncomfortable until they start to act, either by running or fighting. And, if they choose to remain inactive, this discomfort will increase until some form of action is embarked upon.

From the above, we can see that these physiological changes were necessary for survival when mankind, as a race, were being hunted on a day-to-day basis. But what purpose do these reactions serve in our modern-day society? Well, in certain situations, anxiety is still a very useful ally, such as when you’re rushing to finish a project etc. Obviously, the low level of anxiety triggered by this type of stimulus will dilute the symptoms listed above, however, the increased adrenalin will give you more energy and the heightened visual and audible senses will allow you to focus on the job in hand.

However, there are times when it can be more than a small hindrance, like when you’re running late and stuck in traffic. In situations such as these the symptoms of anxiety, serve no useful purpose whatsoever. In fact they are “telling” you to fight or run from a situation where neither option is appropriate.

Indeed, situations similar to these can, in certain people, give rise to an anxiety disorder whereby the sufferer “over-reacts” to stressful situations. This, if left unchecked, can then lead to the onset of panic attacks.

This is exactly what happened to me and, eventually, I became agoraphobic and scared to leave my home. I suffered this for over twenty years and I can tell you it’s no joke. During that time I tried many ways to cure my anxiety and nothing came close to doing so. That was until I discovered The Linden Method. Once I started to apply the techniques discovered by Charles Linden to myself, I felt the anxiety slowly but surely slipping away from me. And, as the anxiety went away, my love of life returned.

If you or your loved one suffers from anxiety, you have my complete sympathy. After all, I know just how it feels. But I also know that you can kiss goodbye to it just as I did.