People that have never suffered the agony of anxiety or panic attacks just simply don't know what form of living hell it can put an individual through. I found this to be the case while I found myself sitting at my physician's clinic listening to him tell me that my anxiety was in fact caused by a chemical type imbalance in my head and that I should begin trying out different prescription drugs to make it subside.
It had been evident he had never experienced anxiety so I was a little thrown back by his recommendation that I just mask my symptoms using a pill. I inquired about natural remedies for anxiety that may do the job, and he gave me the same old story line about relaxation, deep breathing and yoga.
While those things might help, they take practice, and my doctor was not the one to guide me through ways to get over my anxiety, that was obvious.
Therefore, I set out to uncover natural remedies for anxiety on my own and the things I discovered will probably amaze you.
To begin with, I discovered that anxiety and panic is a learned behavioral response to something in your past. It has been confirmed time and again, regardless of what doctors will tell you, that it's not a chemical imbalance in your brain. It is something that your body learns as a defense mechanism towards certain events, then sticks in your mind when comparable events occur down the road.
This, to me, was an amazing discovery because if anything can be learned by our brains, it can be unlearned. Or, better yet, you can learn a new, more empowering behavior to take its place and thus learn how to stop panic attacks.
And you don't need drugs to do that.
The second thing I learned is that cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is the key to helping you learn new habits to replace the existing, anxious behaviors. And CBT is not something which has to be carried out laying on a couch in the therapists office, it can be done yourself.
There are literally thousands of books on CBT and ways to use it on yourself. And they're available for anybody.
Finally, I learned that it does not have to take weeks, months or years of therapies to get rid of your stress and anxiety. Based on CBT principles and methods, it literally can change right away. Now, for many people this might not take place, but with practice, there are several reports of people completely eliminating panic and anxiety from their life in a matter of days.
You see, your brain generates what is known as neural pathways of habits. These pathways become so ingrained in our minds that they generate automatic responses in our bodies. For instance, have you ever driven the same way to your job for a few months on end and one day when you get to work, you simply can't remember even driving there? That is your neural pathways at work - you've done it so frequently that it becomes an automatic habit.
It is the same with our own behaviors, and thus our panic attacks and anxiety. Our neural pathways are so big and hairy that they cause us to automatically become anxious in certain situations. The way to cure it is to break that neural pathway and make a new, more empowering one. CBT can help you do this. And you can accomplish it rather quickly, and can vary from person to person.
So, the next time your doctor or therapist tries to tell you to take a drug, just know that there are natural remedies for anxiety that work. Simply do your research and get the resources available to you and you will conquer anxiety and panic on your own.