All About Anxiety

All About Anxiety — page 3 — A Few Types of Anxiety These are some of the most common types of anxiety that have been identified by experts You might know people who have some of these You might have even felt some of them yourself Generalized anxiety This is when you feel that things are going to go wrong or that bad things will happen almost all the time whether or not there is a good reason to be anxious Sometimes it comes with other problems like sleeping poorly or restlessness or with physical problems like an upset stomach or headaches Some people with generalized anxiety find it hard to concentrate and are easily distracted Social anxiety Often this type of anxiety makes you appear shy or self-conscious to other people If you have ever felt awkward about answering a question in front of everyone in your class or about having to stand and talk in front of the school you might know what this feels like Someone who has social anxiety might feel worried about meeting new people but they might even feel worried in everyday social situations like talking to friends and people they know well They might often feel that they will say the wrong thing Phobias A phobia is an extreme fear of a specific thing such as spiders arachnophobia or mice musophobia or situations such as heights acrophobia or small spaces claustrophobia Many people are a little afraid of these things but a serious phobia is one that gets in the way of everyday life and affects the decisions you make If you can’t use an elevator then your claustrophobia is an obstacle Panic Attacks This is when someone feels frightened suddenly or for no obvious reason They can have a racing heart dizziness or trouble breathing It might be that the person has been generally anxious or worried about something else before this happens 4

All About Anxiety — page 4 — Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder Or OCD for short When people talk about someone being OCD they often think of someone who has lots of obsessive habits like handwashing or tidying But this isn’t the only way that Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder shows itself Some people with OCD believe that something terrible will happen if they don’t follow a particular routine or pattern of behavior An example might be that if the sufferer doesn’t put their clothes on in a particular order every day they think they will be in an accident Sometimes they might also worry about forgetting things and start to overplan or feel panicked about small details that seem wrong to them Separation anxiety Some people find being apart from their loved ones frightening They can’t help themselves from imagining that something bad will happen to the person they love while they are apart This can be a problem for parents and children especially when parents start a new job or children start a new school It is possible to have more than one type of anxiety What is important is that you decide how much anxiety you feel or whether it is getting in the way of your life If you feel that it is the advice throughout this book will show you what you can do Of course talking to an adult is always a good place to start One thing is for sure you can do things to reduce unhelpful anxiety Later on we will talk about the techniques methods exercises and therapies you can try with or without other people Don’t brush your feelings aside Just like everyone else you have a right to experience well-being and to enjoy your own life ENJOY LIFE 5

All About Anxiety — page 5 — Is this anxiety normal You might think that some types of anxiety are more justified than others For example being anxious before an exam is more justified than being anxious because you saw a mouse in the loft Right Not quite Every type of anxiety is normal because that’s the way that our brain tells us that there’s a problem Sometimes though a bad experience in the past or an underlying phobia or anxiety can make a problem seem bigger than it really is Because of that our anxieties can seem strange to other people Here is a story about two sisters who are anxious about different things 6

All About Anxiety — page 6 — Jane and her sister Zara both suffer from anxiety about particular things Jane is afraid of taking tests but Zara is afraid of spiders Jane teases Zara about her phobia of spiders Who ever heard of a spider doing you any harm Unless it’s a spider wearing boots and carrying an axe and I’ve never seen one of those Zara answers But what about you and your fear of taking tests You always study hard and do well in the end Then Jane replies You can’t possibly compare my fear of tests with a fear of spiders There’s no similarity I could really fail sometimes But there are no poisonous spiders around here These spiders never hurt anyone Except flies Who is right Well you might say that both of them are equally right and wrong To Jane and Zara these fears are very real Most spiders do not pose a danger to people And doing badly on a test isn’t something to worry about as long as you study and do your best However to Jane and Zara the fear of these things has become much bigger than the real threat Something in both Jane’s and Zara’s memories or experiences has made them feel that tests and spiders are more threatening than they really are The important thing is not whether a fear or anxiety is right or wrong It’s all about whether the anxiety is starting to affect your life negatively 7

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