Dr LeCrone
03-30-2006, 09:25 AM
Are you a worrier? Do you spend most of your waking hours worrying about something or someone?
Most worriers know they are and will admit to the problem. For many it is as though worry is a constant companion, always with them. The only thing that varies is what they worry about and the degree of anxiety they feel. They have been worriers so long they think there is no other way to live.
This anxiety manifests itself in two parts. The cognitive component, worry, is the mental aspect of the anxiety they feel. The physical symptoms of anxiety are a knotted stomach, racing heart, sweaty palms, an agitated uncomfortable feeling or restlessness, disturbed sleep or vague feelings of fear and uncertainty.
Mental healthy professionals have found several types of treatment that can be effective in helping chronic worry or anxiety. One approach, medication, often is useful when prescribed by a physician familiar with anti-anxiety agents.
Research done by psychologists has produced techniques that also are effective in reducing anxiety. One approach is to help worriers begin to systematically look at the things they worry about, to study the reasonableness and then to categorize them:
• Those that have some basis for concern;
• And those that are extremely remote and unlikely to cause problems.
Then, through counseling, many individuals are able to overcome or replace anxiety with other kinds of cognitive processes.
Another approach, developed by a group so psychologists at Pennsylvania State University, originated with a study of people who had trouble sleeping because they were consumed with worry. In order to decrease their worrying:
• They established a period of about 30 minutes in which the worriers were told to do nothing but worry, to focus completely on worrisome thoughts. They were told to do this at the same time and in the same place every day.
• During the 30-minute period, they were instructed to focus on finding solutions to their problem. But at the end of the period, they were told to stop focusing on worry and move on to something else.
• They were taught to identify some of the cues and signals of anxiety, which include a lack of ability to concentrate, vague feelings of fear and uncomfortableness, signs of stress such as muscle tension, sweaty palms, lightheadedness and dizziness.
• They were taught to replace their worries by shifting their attention to other, more productive things. This works well for many people if practiced for a significant period of time.
A chief problem of chronic worriers is that they feel they have no control over their problem. They admit they would like to stop worrying but seem to be controlled by and a prisoner of their problem.
Helping people who worry excessively regain a feeling of control is one of the most beneficial aspects of the treatment. Many mental healthy professionals believe anxiety disorders, which include worrying excessively, are the most common mental health problem in the country. The ripple effect of these problems is complex and includes other psychological problems I will discuss in future columns.
Harold H. LeCrone, Jr., Ph.D. Copyright 1987
Most worriers know they are and will admit to the problem. For many it is as though worry is a constant companion, always with them. The only thing that varies is what they worry about and the degree of anxiety they feel. They have been worriers so long they think there is no other way to live.
This anxiety manifests itself in two parts. The cognitive component, worry, is the mental aspect of the anxiety they feel. The physical symptoms of anxiety are a knotted stomach, racing heart, sweaty palms, an agitated uncomfortable feeling or restlessness, disturbed sleep or vague feelings of fear and uncertainty.
Mental healthy professionals have found several types of treatment that can be effective in helping chronic worry or anxiety. One approach, medication, often is useful when prescribed by a physician familiar with anti-anxiety agents.
Research done by psychologists has produced techniques that also are effective in reducing anxiety. One approach is to help worriers begin to systematically look at the things they worry about, to study the reasonableness and then to categorize them:
• Those that have some basis for concern;
• And those that are extremely remote and unlikely to cause problems.
Then, through counseling, many individuals are able to overcome or replace anxiety with other kinds of cognitive processes.
Another approach, developed by a group so psychologists at Pennsylvania State University, originated with a study of people who had trouble sleeping because they were consumed with worry. In order to decrease their worrying:
• They established a period of about 30 minutes in which the worriers were told to do nothing but worry, to focus completely on worrisome thoughts. They were told to do this at the same time and in the same place every day.
• During the 30-minute period, they were instructed to focus on finding solutions to their problem. But at the end of the period, they were told to stop focusing on worry and move on to something else.
• They were taught to identify some of the cues and signals of anxiety, which include a lack of ability to concentrate, vague feelings of fear and uncomfortableness, signs of stress such as muscle tension, sweaty palms, lightheadedness and dizziness.
• They were taught to replace their worries by shifting their attention to other, more productive things. This works well for many people if practiced for a significant period of time.
A chief problem of chronic worriers is that they feel they have no control over their problem. They admit they would like to stop worrying but seem to be controlled by and a prisoner of their problem.
Helping people who worry excessively regain a feeling of control is one of the most beneficial aspects of the treatment. Many mental healthy professionals believe anxiety disorders, which include worrying excessively, are the most common mental health problem in the country. The ripple effect of these problems is complex and includes other psychological problems I will discuss in future columns.
Harold H. LeCrone, Jr., Ph.D. Copyright 1987