Informationn on anxiety

Research the symptoms and why this person is having anxiety. It could be part of a larger problem, such as hypoglycemia.

The best way to help a family member is to see what their symptoms are and how severe they are. I have been suffering from severe anxiety for the past ten years. I have tried to control it with different methods... Medications, natural remedies, and therapy.

After ten years of having anxiety control my life and rushing to the ER a couple of times, I have finally realized that the best thing for me is Therapy. The natural remedies didn't work alone. They work now because I am going to an amazing therapist.

The medications I used to take were Lexapro and Xanax. The Lexapro didn't work for me because it gave me horrible side effects like hot flashes, mood swings, depression, etc.

Now Xanax, I loved. I took it for one year and got completely addicted. My life changed in that one year. I started to not care about anything and lost my job, my boyfriend and my home. I got to the point that I couldn't sleep unless I took Xanax.

I finally started seeing a therapist and decided to ween myself off of Xanax. If you go cold turkey you can suffer a seizure.

My therapist told me that coming off of Xanax can have the same symptoms as when you come off of Heroin. It was AWFUL. It was a week of torture (cold sweats, thoughts of suicide, insomnia, night mares, screaming in the night when I finally did sleep, night terrors, severe panic attacks, etc)

So I don't recommend any meds. Although they are good for some people, overall it is just a band-aid.

Seeking a qualified therapist is the best route.

Aside from medication. Mild exercise, Yoga or Meditation can help or just walking. Low sugar & carbs diet along with correct amounts of protein, vegetables and natural sugars from fruits. Relaxtion tapes and deep breathing. Herb tea.

Doctors are really only good for one thing….that is medications. You are smart to want to not go on the medication path right away. Drugs do not always work and many have horrible side effects. As one who has suffered anxiety for many years, I know there are different types of anxiety. What works for one person and anxiety type might not work for another. I found that therapy alone was the best for my agoraphobia. Within the past couple months I have suffered anxiety of a different flavor. I have no idea the rhyme or reason to it. Therapy was only working to an extent. I still needed help. So the doctor I went to gave me Vistaril which he swears is safe. You only take it when it you have an attack. It works beautifully for me.

So I’d really recommend therapy as the first resort. A therapist will be able to find the cause and type of the anxiety. He or she will give advice on how to cope with it without drugs. In my case it included deep breathing, meditation, visualization and things of that nature.

If the family member is not one to want to go to a therapist, there are many books on the topic I’ve found that might help her reach her goal of living anxiety-free. Good Luck to you and your family!