Stress & Anxiety

Stress: Stress is your body's reaction to challenges or demands. It can be triggered by a variety of situations, including work pressures, personal problems, or external events. It's your body's way of getting ready to handle these situations by activating your body's ‘fight or flight’ response releasing stress hormones like cortisol and adrenaline. This response can be beneficial in the short term, like motivating you to do things like study for a test or alert you to dangerous situations. While some stress is normal and helpful, chronic stress can be harmful, leading to physical and emotional health issues.
Effective stress management involves techniques like time management, relaxation, and seeking support.

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Anxiety: Anxiety is a more specific form of stress characterized by excessive worry or fear about what might happen in the future. Sometimes, these worries don't have a clear trigger. While some level of anxiety is normal, an anxiety disorder involves excessive and irrational anxiety over a long period that interferes with daily life.

Anxiety disorders come in various forms, such as:

Generalized Anxiety: Excessive and ongoing worry about everyday things.
Panic Disorder: Sudden, intense fear episodes (panic attacks) with physical symptoms.
Social Anxiety: Extreme fear of social situations and public speaking.
Specific Phobias: Intense, irrational fears of specific things (e.g., spiders, flying).
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD): Repeated, distressing thoughts (obsessions) and rituals (compulsions).
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD): Anxiety following a traumatic event, with flashbacks and nightmares.
Separation Anxiety (Mainly in Children): Fear and distress when separated from loved ones.
Agoraphobia: Fear of places where escape may be difficult, often related to panic attacks.
Illness Anxiety: Excessive worry about having a serious medical condition.

Unhelpful stress and anxiety often share similar symptoms, such as sleep problems, intense worrying, racing thoughts, irritability, anger, fatigue, concentration difficulties, and elevated blood pressure. Treatment typically involves therapy, medication, or a combination of both. If this sounds like you or a loved one, feel free to reach out, as both stress and anxiety can be managed with appropriate strategies and support.

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