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| Natural Treatments for Anxiety |
| \r\n Anxiety disorders are the most common of all mental health disorders. Fortunately, anxiety disorder is highly treatable, and with professional help, it can often be completely overcome. Many times, successful treatment depends only upon individual or group therapy and learned relaxation techniques. In some cases, however, anti-anxiety prescription medication is also recommended. Medications can carry a risk of alarming side effects and can be highly addictive, spurring many people to seek safer, more natural alternatives. \r\n\r\nThere are many natural herbs for anxiety, which have been proven to effectively ease many of the symptoms of with a very low risk of side effects. Just as with prescription medications, everyone reacts differently to natural medications, and it can take time to find the right combination and dosage for your body. Passionflower – an ingredient that is often used in natural medicine, alleviates hyperactivity, anxiety, insomnia, nervous tension — and is even sometimes used to treat Parkinson’s Disease. Passion flower soothes and calms and can lower high blood pressure. \r\nLemon balm – a general restorative for the nervous system, can reduce blood pressure and also calm the digestive system. \r\nLavender – an excellent anxiety treatment and one of the best natural panic attack treatments. Lavender is a general tonic for the nervous system and a natural relaxant. Valerian – a popular natural ingredient that can be used as a sedative and a painkiller. It is often effectively employed as a treatment for anxiety and for insomnia, as well. \r\nYou may find that with psychotherapy, cognitive-behavioral therapy, relaxation exercises or support groups, or some combination of all of them, you do not need any medication. But if you do decide to explore the option of medication, natural treatments for anxiety can provide you with safe, effective results, without the risk of side effects that prescription medications pose. Natural medications are becoming increasingly popular as awareness of them grows, and you might find that they are the right treatment for you as well. |
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| An Introduction to Bipolar Disorder |
| \r\n Bipolar disorder used to be called ‘manic depression’. Someone with bipolar disorder will have severe mood swings. These usually last several weeks or months and are far beyond what most of us experience. They are: \r\n
About 1 in every 100 adults has bipolar disorder at some point in their life. It usually starts during or after the teenage years. It is unusual for it to start after the age of 40. Men and women are affected equally. There are different types of bipolar disorder: \r\nBipolar I \r\nThere has been at least one high, or manic episode, which has lasted for longer than one week. \r\nSome people with Bipolar I will have only manic episodes, although most will also have periods of depression. \r\nUntreated, manic episodes generally last 3 to 6 months. Depressive episodes last rather longer – 6 to 12 months without treatment. \r\nBipolar II \r\nThere has been more than one episode of severe depression, but only mild manic episodes – these are called ‘hypomania’. \r\nRapid cycling \r\nMore than four mood swings happen in a 12 month period. This affects around 1 in 10 people with bipolar disorder, and can happen with both types I and II. \r\nCyclothymia \r\nThe mood swings are not as severe as those in full bipolar disorder, but can be longer. This can develop into full bipolar disorder. |
| The Difference Between Sadness and Depression |
| \r\n Do you know the difference between being depressed or just sad? I really think most people know the difference. \r\nIt is normal to feel sad from time to time. Everyone somewhere, sometime in lives will experience sadness. Sadness is a natural reaction to something painful which has happened. Depression is more extreme. It is a clinical illness which has a lot more symptoms than sadness and can, if not treated lead to suicide. \r\n\r\nThe difference between sadness and depression is a person experiencing feelings which they find upsetting can logically tell you what it is that is causing the unhappiness, whereas a person suffering from depression can not necessarily do so. People suffering from sadness know their feelings will begin to heal over a period of time. A person suffering from depression will usually get worse and do not see an end to the situation. \r\n\r\nDepression can last for weeks, months or years. It is not something that a person can merely ‘snap out of,’ much as they wish they could. It is just not possible. The feelings are intense and overwhelming and believe me; no-one wants to be contemplating taking their own life. \r\nIf a person has a loss of interest in life in their daily activities, job, relationship or socialising for more than about two to three weeks and their mood is out of character, then a visit to the doctor would be in order. \r\n\r\nSome of the main symptoms of depression are: \r\n1. Tiredness/lethargy or inability to sleep (insomnia) \r\n2. Loss of interest in social activities and sexual relations \r\n3. Contemplating death and/or suicide \r\n4. Lack of self worth and inappropriate guilt \r\n5. Significant weight changes \r\n6. Lack of focus \r\n\r\nIf you have any symptoms, you should visit your doctor. There are screening tests are available and there are a range of them available on the internet as well. \r\nSo take care of yourself. You are the most special person there in on this planet. There is no one else even remotely like you that has your talents, skills or abilities. You simply cannot be replaced and you have important things to do with your life. The only person you can control is yourself, so take care of yourself first and foremost. Everyone and everything else is out of your control. Start doing those things today that make you feel good. You know what they are. We’re all counting on it! |
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| Introducing Schizoaffective Disorder | |||
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| Schizophrenia |
| \r\n Schizophrenia is a serious mental illness that affects the brain, meaning that there are disruptions to the way people think and experience things. It often begins in early adulthood and frequently becomes a chronic, long-term problem which affects all aspects of a person’s life. \r\nSchizophrenia belongs to a group of illnesses called ‘psychoses’. This means that at some stage of the illness, psychosis generally occurs. The term psychosis refers to a temporary or permanent state where a person loses touch with reality, due to a malfunction in the brain. This means that a person suffering from schizophrenia may hear voices which no one else can hear, and which often say cruel or critical things, or see things that other people can’t see, or smell things that other people can’t smell. These features of psychosis are collectively known as hallucinations. A person suffering from schizophrenia may also develop delusions. These are fixed, false beliefs with no basis in reality – for example, believing that people on television are talking about them, or that their thoughts are being controlled by other people. This can be very frightening, and may lead to bizarre behaviour, such as avoiding people or saying odd things to friends and family. \r\nSchizophrenia can affect people in different ways – it has even been said that no two cases of schizophrenia are identical.[1] Often people exhibit a combination of symptoms – but in some cases, different types of symptoms might emerge at different points of the illness. \r\nSymptoms of Schizophrenia\r\nThe symptoms of problems of schizophrenia generally fall into two categories: psychotic (or positive) symptoms and negative symptoms. The positive symptoms of schizophrenia are so called because they seem to be experiences that are ‘added on’ to a person – in contrast to negative symptoms, which are considered to be features that are ‘lost’ by a person experiencing schizophrenia. \r\nPositive Symptoms\r\nThe positive symptoms of schizophrenia are mostly seen in the acute, or florid stages of the illness. They reflect distortions of reality – and may come on gradually, or very quickly. These symptoms are more responsive to medication than negative symptoms. \r\nAuditory hallucinations are the most common of all positive symptoms. They are mostly experienced as voices. To a person with schizophrenia, these voices sound just like people speaking to them – people with the illness cannot differentiate between what is real (a friend speaking to them) and what is a hallucination. Voices might be heard in the second person (for example someone saying “You stink”, “You’re ugly”. Sometimes, voices might command a person to do something (by saying, for example, “Jump off the bridge”, “Take an overdose”). People with schizophrenia may also have third person hallucinations, which most commonly takes the form of two or more voices taking among themselves, or commenting on the person’s behaviour. Third person hallucinations are considered to be more typical of schizophrenia than any of the other psychoses. \r\nIn addition to voices, auditory hallucinations can involve noises, such as buzzing, screeching, and ringing. \r\nAdditionally, people with schizophrenia may think that their own thoughts are being broadcast, or can be heard by other people. They also might think that other people’s thoughts are being forced into their own minds, or that their thoughts have been stolen from their heads. \r\nHallucinations of all five senses may be experienced. In addition to auditory hallucinations, people may have tactile hallucinations (feeling as though they are being pushed, touched, or held down), visual hallucinations (seeing things that aren’t there, feeling that colours are brighter than they should be), hallucinations of smell, and hallucinations of taste. \r\nDelusions are also common in schizophrenia. People develop fixed, unshakable beliefs based on their psychotic reality, and it is very difficult to try and reason with someone experiencing delusions, because to the person, the delusions are very real. They might believe that they are being hunted by government agents, or that aliens are communicating with them through the radio or television. Sometimes, delusional ideas can be grandiose, such as someone believing that they are able to control the weather or are a member of a royal family. \r\n\r\n Negative Symptoms\r\nIt is often said that the negative symptoms of schizophrenia are harder to cope with than the positive symptoms. These symptoms are also much harder to treat than the psychotic symptoms. \r\nNegative symptoms can lead to a decline in a person’s ability to hold a conversation, their speech might lack inflection, and they may have a ‘blank’ or unchanging expression. People with negative symptoms might be neglectful of the needs and emotions of others, which can be misinterpreted as the person being uncaring, hurtful or callous. \r\nNegative symptoms generally lead to a lack of energy and motivation, a decreased interest in social and recreational activities, and the person often lets social relationships dwindle away. These types of negative symptoms are often misinterpreted as ‘laziness’. |
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