How I learned to stop 'stressing' about arguments with my son

Until recently, I worried a lot about coming home and finding my son sitting in front of his computer. This is where I usually find him, and the reason I worried was because we would almost always get into a fight about it. I started to anticipate the arguments, and so I didn't even want to go home!

When I realized this was what I was doing, I started to observe how I felt when it was time to go home. I paid attention to the things I said to myself. I paid attention to the ways I was creating distractions and finding excuses to stay away from my house. I was amazed at how talented I had become at this skill.

Then I started to talk with people close to me about my worry. I did a lot of brainstorming about how to address the problem(s) at different levels. There is the problem of me avoiding dealing with the problem. There is the problem of fighting over the problem. There is the problem of him sitting there!

Talking about each part of the situation calmly with people who offer me some perspective helps me to let go of the worry, anxiety and fear of coming home to a young man wasting his days gaming instead of moving forward with his life. I remind myself that I can only control my actions/reactions and not those of another person. I make sure to do my meditation each day. I do as many things as I can to improve my physical and therefore my mental health. All of these actions have greatly reduced my anxiety levels and let me stop stressing about and start dealing with a difficult situation.

Fear of Shopping

A friend of mine used to suffer from panic attack symptoms on a regular basis. She was so scared of shopping in an enclosed shopping center that she had to buy all her food at outdoor booths. She doesn't like to take medicine if she can avoid it. Even though she suffered from the anxiety of the panic attacks, she wanted to treat them naturally. She wanted to find a way to overcome panic attacks without medication.

She went in search of a cure for panic attacks. What she found was the Think Right Now audio program for Dissolving Panic & Anxiety. She told me the other day that after just 2 nights of listening to the CD, she was able to buy food in a real shop and even stand in a line without problems! I was pretty impressed that the CD could work that quickly and effectively.

What's really cool is you don't have to suffer from panic attacks, senseless worrying or compulsions anymore. There really are products out there, like Think Right Now, that help you move through those old patterns - and you DON'T have to take drugs! I encourage you to learn more about overcoming panic attack and anxiety HERE.

Could It Really Be That Easy?

My son just recently took the GED. For those of you who don’t know what that is, it’s the test you take in the US to get your high school ‘equivalency’ if you don’t finish high school. Basically it’s what lets you move on to the next step in life and it's something that can cause people a lot of anxiety - even lead to a panic attack.

He had studied some for it, but he’s always done pretty well on standardized tests like this, so he wasn’t too worried about if he could pass it or not. But taking the test was a pretty important event because of what it stands for in his life, especially since he struggles with depression.

The morning of the test, he woke up with a killer stomachache. He was miserable. He had no idea what he was going to do because he couldn’t miss the test. He tried a couple of home remedies including eating some chicken noodle soup, but the stomachache wouldn’t go away.

A couple of friends suggested he ‘just try to relax’. Sounds like an easy thing when it’s someone else, but not so much when it’s you who has to do the relaxing!

Well, he got to the test. He looked at the test. He started to review the contents of the test. He told me later, that about 30 seconds after he realized how easy it was going to be, his stomachache was almost completely gone! He had been holding in that tension; that anxiety so strongly that he had caused himself actual, physical pain.

He was really lucky to have a concrete way to get rid of the stress even though he didn’t know it until it happened. It’s not always that easy to let it go, especially if you don’t know what you’re anxious about.

Sometimes you just need some ‘reprogramming’ so you don’t need to know exactly what’s going on – sometimes you have to get relaxed a little just to be able to figure out what’s going on. Luckily, one of the ways you can do that is with the use of Think Right Now programs. I've been using the Think Right Now! for Windows product for years and it's a really cool way to send yourself 'subliminal' messages of encouragement and positive energy - relaxation, whatever you want more of. Click here to learn more about these products and enjoy.

The Importance of Sleep to Brain Function

Panic is a state created by a person's brain, and the more tired your brain is, the fewer resources it has to combat anxiety and panic. Here is an executive summary of the article entitled, "Sleep Deficit: The Performance Killer" A Conversation with Harvard Medical School Professor Charles A. Czeisler ============================================================ Companies today glorify the executive who logs 100-hour workweeks, the road warrior who lives out of a suitcase in multiple time zones, and the negotiator who takes a red-eye to make an 8 AM meeting. But to Dr. Charles A. Czeisler, the Baldino Professor of Sleep Medicine at Harvard Medical School, this kind of corporate behavior is the antithesis of high performance. In fact, he says, it endangers employees and puts their companies at risk. In this interview, Czeisler describes four neurobiological functions that affect sleep duration and quality as well as individual performance. When these functions fall out of alignment because of sleep deprivation, people operate at a far lower level of performance than they would if they were well rested. Czeisler goes on to observe that corporations have all kinds of policies designed to protect employees—rules against smoking, sexual harassment, and so on—but they push people to the brink of self-destruction by expecting them to work too hard, too long, and with too little sleep. The negative effects on cognitive performance, Czeisler says, can be similar to those that occur after drinking too much alcohol: “We now know that 24 hours without sleep or a week of sleeping four or five hours a night induces an impairment equivalent to a blood alcohol level of .1%. We would never say, ‘This person is a great worker! He’s drunk all the time!’ yet we continue to celebrate people who sacrifice sleep for work.” Czeisler recommends that companies institute corporate sleep policies that discourage scheduled work beyond 16 consecutive hours as well as working or driving immediately after late-night or overnight flights. A sidebar to this article summarizes the latest developments in sleep research. Read complete article

technorati tags: panic, disorder, anxiety, attack, mental, health,anxious, heart palpitation, agoraphobia, phobias

More Resources

Web MD's Anxiety/Panic Disorders Health Center is a wealth of information from the medical community about this difficult condition. Anxiety and panic disorders affect an estimated 2.4 million Americans. Panic attacks are twice as common in women as in men. Find in-depth articles here about anxiety, its causes, symptoms, diagnosis, and effective treatments.

technorati tags: panic, disorder, anxiety, attack, mental, health

Stress Tips

By Bill Reddie Anxiety and stress rob us of valuable energy. Many of Bill's tips for relieving anxiety, worry and panic are very helpful. Even if you're not struggling with anxiety, these relaxation methods help to bring more calm and perspective into your life. Developmental Support Associates, LLC ========================= 26 ways to minimize and manage the unhealthy effects of stress, anxiety and burnout. No doubt about it - we live in an increasingly competitive and stressful world. In many subtle and not so subtle ways it affects us all and it's not unusual for people to lace their conversation with phrases like 'Stressed out', 'Anxiety syndrome', 'Panic attack', 'Burned out', and more. That's today's reality. The question is, how do we go about dealing with that kind of world? What can we do to minimize the prolonged, unhealthy effects of a stressful environment? How can we prevent stress, anxiety and burnout from becoming a way of life? Well, first we need to take a good hard look at what exactly is stressing us out and perhaps do a bit of repair work on our perspective of the situation. A good way to do that is by reviewing some very basic and constructive advice that has always been available but is often forgotten in our daily scuffle to get ahead. For the most part, the advice is based upon common sense and can often provide clarity and guidance in stressful situations. That said, study the list below to see if it contains something that will work for you. At first glance, these suggestions may appear deceptively simple but each will, nonetheless, require dedicated effort and discipline. 1. Don't try to please everyone. It's impossible, debilitating and very stressful. 2. Stop living your life according to the beliefs, opinions and prejudgments of others. Its your life, not theirs. 3. Create dependable friendships with people who can be counted on to support your effort to change, learn and grow. 4. Try to make changes gradually. Doing so will help you to maintain a more positive outlook as you progress. Attempting to change too much too soon often leads to disappointment. 5. Establish priorities that are consistent with your own values. 6. Examine your beliefs and goals. Are they unrealistic or unattainable? 7. Accent the positive and learn from the negative. 8. Focus on the present. The past cannot be changed. The future hasn't arrived yet. That leaves you with now. Now is the time to create the future you desire. 9. Are you a workaholic? If so, try to create a more balanced lifestyle. By so doing, you'll minimize a lot of stress too. 10. Choose a goal that you can be proud to work toward and which enhances and maintains your self-respect. 11. Don't forget to take short breaks throughout your workday. 12. Think ahead. Always have a plan B in case plan A does not work. 13. Mistakes happen. If it's your fault, admit it and don't waste time and energy with excuses. 14. Take the time to exercise regularly. Exercise is a good stress-buster. 15. Improve your relationships. Give up those that lead nowhere and drain your energy. 16. Pace yourself. Know your limits. If you feel you can go the extra mile and it's a worthy goal, then go for it...but don't obsess or overdo. Sometimes, less is more. 17. If a situation or workload appears overwhelming don't panic. Instead, analyze the problem and divide it into smaller, more manageable parts to be completed in an orderly manner. 18. Trying to be king of the hill is ok so long as it remains a game. When it becomes a stressful, obsessive and competitive desire to win no matter the cost, you've got a problem. 19. A little humor can often diffuse a tense situation. 20. Don't take yourself too seriously. Lighten up...your friends and co-workers will appreciate it and you'll feel better. 21. Continual worry or guilt solves nothing. Take action by changing what you can, ignoring the rest and concentrating your effort on creating a better future. 22. Choose work that: (a) you enjoy (b) you are capable of (c) produces results that are helpful to and appreciated by others. 23. Get plenty of sleep and rest. Sleep deprivation is a major cause of burnout, stress and anxiety. 24. Listen to soothing, relaxing music that provides the space you need to pause, reflect and regenerate. 25. Unreasonable deadlines can be very stressful. Try to establish a schedule that is realistic and manageable. 26. If a problem or situation is too complex for you to handle, seeking the aid of a qualified professional counselor or doctor may provide the help and guidance that you need.
Copyright © 2003-2005 Channel 1 Records All rights reserved
ef and stress management since 1972. Further information regarding the beneficial effects of music and its potential for relieving stress, anxiety and burnout may be found at: http//www.channel1records.com

Source: www.isnare.com

technorati tags: panic, disorder, anxiety, attack, mental, health,anxious, heart palpitation, agoraphobia, phobias

Raising Superkids? Parents Show Stress

Poll Shows Many Parents Are Anxious About Their Children's Academic Success

By Denise Mann WebMD Medical News

Reviewed By Louise Chang, MD on Thursday, August 10, 2006

Aug. 10, 2006 (New York City) -- Today's parents are stressed out about their children's academic success and believe starting early is the key to achievement, according to a new poll. In fact, 54% of parents of children aged 2 to 5 said they had anxiety about their child's academic performance and 38% felt that their child was in competition with other kids. The new findings come from a telephone poll of about 1,000 parents of children aged 2 to 11 conducted in July 2006 by the National Parent and Teachers Association (PTA) in New York City, and the Public Broadcast Service (PBS) Parents. More than 90% of all parents polled said that they believe that starting early to prepare their children for academic success is key. When the findings were broken down by income status, low-income families had significantly greater concerns about education and were three times more likely to think that they are not as able to help their child prepare for school as their richer counterparts. Read the full article here Panic Anxiety

technorati tags: panic, disorder, anxiety, attack, mental, health