Anxiety plays a very important, although many times disruptive, role in our lives. Anxiety is the alarm that lets us know something is wrong and that we must take action. However, sometimes the alarm just keeps sounding… and sounding… and sounding. Or, perhaps it stops, but when it goes off again, it’s loud, startling, and completely unexpected.

When the alarm keeps sounding, or when it sounds off at the wrong time, it begins to affect how we react to these situations. Understandably, if we have to keep responding to the alarm of anxiety, we become overwhelmed and fatigued. It starts to affect us physically. Our heart beats faster, our palms feel sweaty, it becomes harder to breathe, and we suddenly can’t concentrate on anything. We start to become afraid of even the thought of hearing the alarm sound, so we do whatever we can to avoid it.

Avoiding these things that trigger the alarm can help temporarily, but hitting the “snooze” button is not an effective solution in the long-run.

What things commonly make us anxious?

As humans, many things can make us anxious. Talking to a crowd of people, interviewing for a new job, hearing bad news about a sick loved one, getting on an airplane… these things understandably make us feel uneasy. Anxiety can be helpful in that it prepares us for things. It gives us the energy we need to overcome a situation that requires us to be aware and alert. Anxiety becomes a mental health condition when the anxiety we feel is out of proportion to the situation and begins to impact how we function at home, school, work, or in our relationships with others.

How can Paths Psychiatric Services help me?

At Paths Psychiatric Services, LLC, we are experienced in providing both medication management and individual therapy for improving symptoms of anxiety. Whether you’re experiencing generalized anxiety, social anxiety, panic disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, specific phobias, or obsessive compulsive disorder, we can provide you with the tools to overcome your daily struggles and live a fuller, happier life.