Anxiety

MICHELLE WAMBACH, M.A.
Licensed Marriage Family Therapist
San Jose, California


	Individual & Couples Therapy How I Practice Specialities • Anxiety > • Trauma • Depression Biography Contact Resources Home	ANXIETY Anxiety is a normal response to change or stress. It helps you to deal with a tense situation, adapt to changing situations, make decisions, and keep focused. Fear is a normal response to a life threatening situation that requires an immediate action. When anxiety feels like fear, is irrational, ongoing, excessive, or interferes with everyday situations--then it can become disabling. Panic Attacks These are intense bursts of anxiety usually lasting at least 10 minutes. Typically, a person having a panic attack suffers shortness of breath, a feeling of not being in reality, fears dying, feels numb, and has heart palpitations. People often report feeling as if they are going to have a heart attack. The feelings of fear, numbness, and shakiness that stay after a panic attack, can last hours to days. Specific triggers can bring on some attacks, while others have attacks with no trigger. Most people fear having another panic attack, and can start to restrict their activities to prevent further attacks. Unfortunately, not dealing with panic attacks often makes them worse. Psychotherapy treatment is effective and often necessary for panic attacks. Symptoms of ANXIETY Sleep disturbance: difficulty calming the mind to go to sleep or waking up in the middle of the night worried Worries about things that seem silly or did not give worry before Constant thinking about fears Restlessness or feeling keyed up Being easily fatigued and tired Difficulty concentrating Irritability with others, situations, on the road (road rage), or at work Muscle tension Michelle Wambach, LMFT (408) 535-0435
Copyright © 2003-2007 Michelle Wambach Licensed Marriage Family Therapist MFC #41571 All rights reserved.