The Anxiety Epidemic: The Syndrome of Uncertainty

World renowned life coach Tony Robbins believes that the need for certainty is our number one human need.  “Certainty is our need to feel in control and to know what’s coming next.”  I found it very interesting that certainty is the antonym of anxiety, along with words like assurance, security, trust, and peace.

On the other hand, synonymous with anxiety is uncertainty, distress, nervousness, and restlessness.  Although he also lists uncertainty as a human need in its own right, I thought it noteworthy to correlate our need for certainty with an ever-growing epidemic of anxiety in a world of ever-increasing uncertainty.

With this said, over 18% of the population is in fact suffering from an anxiety disorder at any given time, with twice as many women affected as men, it is the most common mental illness.  And, although it is highly treatable, the vast majority of sufferers never seek professional help.

My desire in writing this article is to help you identify if you or someone you know may be suffering from an anxiety disorder that may be presenting in one or more of the following ways:

Most commonly, we associate anxiety disorders with excessive worry or fear.  In many cases these issues present at face value in the form of panic attacks or even flash backs of fearful events. These types of issues are definitely the most common and easy to identify, but even worry and fear can present in ways that one may not readily view as anxiety.

For instance, many of my clients present with irrational fears.  They may not even see themselves as anxious individuals but may suffer terribly from irrational thoughts that over which they seemingly have no control.

Often, we find these irrational fears are in fact a flair, of sorts, of an underlying anxiety that has formed itself around an available object or idea.  Compulsive behaviors are closely related, as they can irrationally center around an object or idea that is merely a projection of the underlying anxiety. Another example of anxiety’s expression is self-doubt.

When I have clients, who are constantly distracted by what others are thinking about them or their abilities, they may not automatically attribute this to anxiety but it is in fact the fear of what other people think or perceive that has nestled in as the over-arching ache of social anxiety.  In addition, clients may feel restless, edgy, or irritable.

These are not common descriptors for what one may call anxious, but at times can serve as the number one indicator of anxiety in some individuals.  Still others may even present with difficulty concentrating or simply blanking out and wrongly believe they are having issues with attention or cognition, when in reality their mind is so overwhelmed they are losing the ability to concentrate in leu of the noise.

Other manifestations that can be evidence of anxiety disorders are largely physical.  Sleep disorders, excessive muscle tension, chronic indigestion and stomach issues, along with physical pain and fatigue may all signal anxiety is at work.  Many individuals are merely treating the physical symptoms all while missing the underlying cause.

The great news is that there is hope for healing. At Abundant Living we have consistently helped individuals escape the epidemic and find a more joyful and contented life.  If you or someone you know is suffering, don’t become a statistic.  Reach out and let us take you by the hand.

The wonderful news is, however, that there is help!

Depression

By Anna R. Raab, M.A., BCN
Owner and Director of Abundant Living Neurofeedback and Counseling

Depression can be very misunderstood and even difficult to diagnose.  We’ve all seen the commercials of someone sitting on the side of their bed, crying, unable to start their day and in pain… but that represents a more extreme form of clinical depression.  Many people, however, function with depression every day- almost 7 percent of adults in America at any given time.

They aren’t all sitting on the side of their bed crying.  Many are sitting in the cubicle next you, sitting across the room at the coffee shop, sitting with their kids at the park, oftentimes looking and acting perfectly normal. It’s what’s going on in the inside that you can’t see, and sometimes they don’t even realize it themselves.

When I describe depression to my clients I commonly compare it to having a negative filter.  It’s like there is a funnel and all your thoughts pass through that funnel and come out with less color, less excitement, less optimism, and in more severe cases they come out covered in darkness and hopelessness.  It’s like there is a dial in your brain and the volume to pleasure is simply turned down.

So, what can this look like? Let me help you by guiding you through some food for thought on the subject.  And don’t worry, if you find yourself or someone you love in these descriptions there is help.

If you think you or someone you love may be suffering from depression, here’s a check list of sorts:

1. You might notice that the things you used to get excited about just don’t seem interesting anymore.  You don’t really feel like going out with friends or interacting with people the way you used to.  If you do, you may feel like you have to work really hard in order to fake your way through much of the interactions in order to hide your actual lack of interest.

2. Depression may look like exhaustion.  You may get plenty of sleep, even too much, but you don’t ever feel rested or energized (other physical issues might explain this also so be sure to get checked out by your doctor as well).  You may also be exhausted and not be able to sleep much at all.

3. You may be overrun by pervasive thoughts of negativity.  Often, these thoughts are turned on yourself.  You may be feeling really self-critical and down on yourself most of the time, like nothing you do is ever good enough.  You may also be turning this negativity onto the people close to you.  You may assume negative intentions or motivations in others where there may actually be none at all.  As a result, you may find yourself getting angry and frustrated quite easily and increasingly hard to please.

4.  Depression can look like brain fog.  You may be asking yourself if you’ve suddenly developed ADD.  Unlike your usual self, you may be unable to finish projects, make a simple grocery list, or focus at work.  The world may seem like it’s swirling around you in what appears to be a fog you can’t seem to quite cut through.

5.  Finally, depression can look like exactly like the depictions in that commercial.  You may not be able to get out of bed easily or at all, you may be sad and crying over things that shouldn’t be so heavy, or worst of all you may feel totally hopeless.

You may even be considering ending your pain through suicide or fantasizing about what a relief it would be to simply not exist any longer. If this is the case, you need to reach out for help immediately and consider checking yourself into a trusted institution until you know you are safe from thoughts of self-harm.

If you’ve found yourself in this article, please call me for a free consultation.  Not only can I help validate your condition, I can help heal it.  Please reach out.  My personal number is 918-853-7793.

ADHD

By Anna Raab, M.A. Counseling, BCN

New Year’s Resolution: FOCUS. GET ORGANIZED. FINISH PROJECTS. MASTER TO-DO LISTS. LISTEN BETTER…

“BUT I JUST CAN’T!!!  EVERY YEAR I FAIL… I FEEL LIKE SUCH A FAILURE.  I KNOW I’M SMART; I HAVE THE IDEAS AND THE KNOW-HOW… I JUST CAN’T FULFILL MY POTENTIAL!!”

IF THIS IS YOU, OR SOMEONE YOU LOVE, KEEP READING!!!!

There is a REASON you struggle.  It’s not because you are lazy, unintelligent, or not capable.  I have treated so many extremely intelligent people who have carried the burden of ATTENTION ISSUES for years.  Most often, the burden of carrying the extra struggle, no matter how accomplished they are, has also led to a certain amount of depression or anxiety, which is usually what brings them to my office.  After doing an electrical reading of their brain we find the foundational issue is actually a traffic jam of brain wave activity.  The frontal lobe is full of excessive slow wave activity and often not enough of the fast processing waves.

The frontal lobe is responsible for our higher executive function, and when there is a traffic problem with brain wave activity not flowing as it should, untold frustrations can arise.  Attention, decision making, problem solving, memory, social awareness, motivation, planning, judgement, emotions, empathy, time management, and more can all be a huge struggle.  And it can have NOTHING to do with your desire to be better… it is a REAL issue.

I have seen so many people of all ages who have struggled with this invisible giant their whole lives, and then slowly but surely, they begin to feel their lives have become unmanageable.  Relationships have suffered, attempts at higher education have suffered or failed all together, they have stress disorders, they have emotional control issues… life is just so much harder than it needs to be, but it’s all they’ve ever known.

And, it’s not just adults.  Very often anxiety and depression are the presenting issues for children also.  Because these struggles can be masked by high intelligence and good coping skills it is not unusual for them to fly under the radar undetected.

Even if these issues have been identified and medications are employed, patients are often riddled with side effects and the aid of medication may only be enough to make the limp a little less apparent.  There’s nothing wrong with turning to medications for help, but often patients are left wanting and still feeling very incomplete.

Anyone can miss it.  I missed it myself in one of my own children.  It wasn’t until they had a traumatic accident that I began to do extensive work in their frontal lobe to help with the trauma and anxiety that ensued.  In doing so, I treated their attention disorder that I had not even detected.  They were always in the middle ground (but not loving) school, adored by teachers, happy at home… just a normal, delightful, energetic child.  However, the semester I treated them they went from average to outstanding in school.  I’m so thankful to say that as a result I had them tested last year and they are now in the gifted and talented class with all A’s, loving school.  Potential unveiled!

This may describe you or your loved one.  Does life seem harder than it should be?  Maybe it is.

If you live in the Tulsa, OK, area and are interested in learning how neurofeedback can help a loved one with ADD or ADHD, click here.