“I can’t sleep. I might have to take a couple of Ambien to go to sleep,” actor Heath Ledger told his sister on the phone the night before he died. She knew he had received prescriptions for co-occurring anxiety, depression and insomnia, and warned him not to mix his medications — she understood the dangers. …
In the Danger Zone: Combining Medications for Insomnia, Anxiety & Depression Read More »
It has often been said that if you want to know more about a particular topic, it’s best to go directly to the source, or the horse’s mouth — as it were. But with social anxiety disorder, things aren’t so easy. Ask me about it and the chances are I won’t be able to tell …
What’s It Like to Have Social Anxiety Disorder? Please Don’t Ask. Read More »
May is National Mental Health Awareness Month, and many celebrities and prominent public figures are using the month as an opportunity to speak out about the mental health issues that affect them. Mental health disorders like anxiety, depression, obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), dyslexia, autism, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and others will be highlighted and humanized …
Celebrities Open Up About Having Anxiety and Other Mental Health Issues Read More »
Art therapy is a holistic, mind- and heart-engaging practice with a proven track record of success in mental health treatment. Counselors with expertise in this form of therapy often recommend it for people struggling with anxiety disorders, and art therapy for anxiety has helped an impressive number of men, women, adolescents and children regain their …
Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) is a relatively common form of diagnosable anxiety that triggers outsized or unwarranted worry about a variety of everyday events or situations. Doctors commonly use medications as part of the treatment for this condition. Some of these medications are specifically approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for GAD treatment. …
FDA-Approved GAD (Generalized Anxiety Disorder) Medications Read More »
If you have a condition called an anxiety disorder, you may receive some sort of anti-anxiety medication (also known as an anxiolytic) as part of your treatment. These medications are often quite effective at easing signs of anxiety such as extreme worry or fear. However, they also carry risks for certain side effects. Doctors typically …
“About four months into sobriety, I knew if I didn’t address my anxiety, I would go back to drinking. It was so severe, and I had no way to relieve it,” says Catherine Henricks, MS. Her situation is not uncommon. An astonishing 40 million people in the U.S. suffer from anxiety, and they are two …
Here’s a simple social anxiety test: When you hear a group of people laugh, do you wonder what they found so funny, or are you sure they’re laughing at you? That feeling of being judged and found lacking, of being doomed to embarrass yourself whenever you are around others, are hallmarks of social anxiety disorder, …
Anxiety is a healthy and normal response to certain situations, especially those involving danger or personal difficulty. The feeling of anxiousness is part of what drives a person to prepare for challenges in life. The key difference between healthy and unhealthy anxiety has to do with frequency and function – how often are the symptoms …
How to Know if Your Anxiety is Healthy or Unhealthy Read More »
Anxiety disorders impact millions of people at some point during their lifetimes. From excessive worry to extreme avoidance of certain types of social situations, anxiety is distressing and can even be debilitating. It negatively impacts relationships, damages or derails careers, and often causes self-confidence to plummet. It can make what should be a happy life …