Anxiety is one of the most highly occurring mental health disorders and co-occurring disorders with substance abuse. According to the ADAA, the Anxiety and Depression Association of America, 18 percent of the population suffer from some kind of anxiety disorder. Anxiety is a misfiring of the survival system in the mind. When fight or flight takes place the body goes into a natural state of panic or anxiety. Firing adrenaline and cortisol, the brain and body are put on high alert in order to survive. For anxiety disorders, even the thought of anxiety is threatening enough to trigger off a chain of reactions which can become debilitating.
Some believe that anxiety is triggered by fear alone. Fear is a complicated process in our minds which can take many forms. What we experience and how we experience it contributes to what we fear and how we fear it. Not all anxiety disorders are the same. General anxiety is different from social anxiety, for example. Different triggers create different kinds of anxiety, thusly requiring different methods for reducing anxious symptoms and returning to a state of calm.
Caffeine
The anxiety caused by caffeine is normalized enough to make it seem comical. Caffeine can cause feelings of unease, being on edge, jittery, and hyper. Caffeine is a psychoactive ingredient and it is also a stimulant. Caffeine can make someone feel anxious by ramping up their central nervous system too quickly, creating feelings of paranoia.
Intoxication
Ironically, many people who seek out drugs and alcohol to escape from anxiety cause themselves more anxiety. Various substances, when abused in high levels, cause paranoia, dis-ease, and anxiety. Though some of the more pleasurable effects of drugs and alcohol, like euphoria, might ease the symptoms of anxiety, it does not cure or treat it. Once the intoxication wears off, the anxiety is still present.
Panic Attacks
Panic causes anxiety? It does. Panic disorder and anxiety disorder are two different things, as are panic attacks and anxiety attacks. Distinctively, panic attacks cause one to feel as though they might die. In fact, their brain becomes convinced of this. A panic attack only lasts about 25 minutes, but is unpleasant enough to cause an after effect of anxiety. People become anxious about having more panic attacks.
Avalon By The Sea is one of California’s few treatment programs certified to treat mental health disorders like anxiety as a primary condition. Our dual diagnosis treatment program provides comprehensive healing for mental health and substance use disorders. From the stunning tranquility of our seaside estate, we offer luxury care at affordable prices. For a confidential assessment or more information on our programs, call 1 888-958-7511.
