05-05-2011, 11:50 AM
I don't believe that anxiety itself could be something hereditary, although personal temperament could make one more susceptible to it.
From what I’ve gathered is that anxiety is only meant as a survival instinct that links / pattern matches certain environments, people or circumstances with the amygdale (fight or flight response) to prevent possible death. The cortisol that is been triggered in the brain is simply shutting down certain functions in the body so that it can make quick decisions (higher brain functions shut down) and put more energy towards parts in the body that would involve excessive running (from wild animals) or fighting.
When you’re experiencing anxiety from a certain situation it doesn’t have to involve immediate danger, but your body still thinks it is because there is a certain pattern match stored that involved a past traumatic event (real danger, feeling of rejection, hurt and/or loss etc.) or where you were advised by a authoritarian person to be more cautious, where normally you would not.
Say for example you were hit by a red Peugeot and lived to tell about it, the next time you would see the same model and color car (or even the emblem) after your recovery you would have a bout of anxiety because your body is simply reminding/warning you that you could possibly die from any interaction with that object. The same thing is going on with person sporting a fetish, they’ve simply linked sexual energy with an object or a certain body part for sexual stimulation.
In my position social anxiety is triggered mainly situations concerning eye contact, where my appearance is put in the spotlight (simply walking on the street, or buying something in a store) and people being able to judge it, or finding fault with it, along with encountering groups on the street, having conversations with women, speaking up for myself, speaking in public etc. If I was the last person on earth, there wouldn't be a problem
When I look at my anxiety I can trace it back to certain traumatic events in the past where I was shamed and/or rejected, and as a consequence of that my body is now simply warning me so that it can avoid such situations because I couldn’t handle them when I was a child. Luckily these subliminals, plenty of motivation and getting myself out there to get over the avoiding part are enough, I see that avoiding such things isn’t particularly adult-like, and the problem will still persist, and avoiding it won’t solve a thing.
I can notice that I’m more prone on dealing with such situations and being more in control over myself, and it’s getting easier with each experience I gather from putting myself more in the open, and noticing that I have no reason to be scared, although my body is still working on old information. What I've also discovered is that before I started the subliminals I always had an underlying sense of anxiety, even when I was at home. I was always stressing about something, and it's great to have some contrast going on instead of just having a dial of anxiety going from low to high.. I do notice that I'm a lot less anxious around women, but still feeling a bit more anxious when guys are in the vicinity...
While you’re feeling anxious, the trick really is to keep breathing (long breaths out) and acknowledge what is happening to your body (what the amygdala and cortisol is doing) and being able to calm yourself, or simply get out of the situation to regain composure and go over it again (yeah, too bad this can't be applied to all things) and be kind to yourself in case you do screw up or say the wrong thing.
Oh, and screw ssri's! xD
From what I’ve gathered is that anxiety is only meant as a survival instinct that links / pattern matches certain environments, people or circumstances with the amygdale (fight or flight response) to prevent possible death. The cortisol that is been triggered in the brain is simply shutting down certain functions in the body so that it can make quick decisions (higher brain functions shut down) and put more energy towards parts in the body that would involve excessive running (from wild animals) or fighting.
When you’re experiencing anxiety from a certain situation it doesn’t have to involve immediate danger, but your body still thinks it is because there is a certain pattern match stored that involved a past traumatic event (real danger, feeling of rejection, hurt and/or loss etc.) or where you were advised by a authoritarian person to be more cautious, where normally you would not.
Say for example you were hit by a red Peugeot and lived to tell about it, the next time you would see the same model and color car (or even the emblem) after your recovery you would have a bout of anxiety because your body is simply reminding/warning you that you could possibly die from any interaction with that object. The same thing is going on with person sporting a fetish, they’ve simply linked sexual energy with an object or a certain body part for sexual stimulation.
In my position social anxiety is triggered mainly situations concerning eye contact, where my appearance is put in the spotlight (simply walking on the street, or buying something in a store) and people being able to judge it, or finding fault with it, along with encountering groups on the street, having conversations with women, speaking up for myself, speaking in public etc. If I was the last person on earth, there wouldn't be a problem
When I look at my anxiety I can trace it back to certain traumatic events in the past where I was shamed and/or rejected, and as a consequence of that my body is now simply warning me so that it can avoid such situations because I couldn’t handle them when I was a child. Luckily these subliminals, plenty of motivation and getting myself out there to get over the avoiding part are enough, I see that avoiding such things isn’t particularly adult-like, and the problem will still persist, and avoiding it won’t solve a thing.
I can notice that I’m more prone on dealing with such situations and being more in control over myself, and it’s getting easier with each experience I gather from putting myself more in the open, and noticing that I have no reason to be scared, although my body is still working on old information. What I've also discovered is that before I started the subliminals I always had an underlying sense of anxiety, even when I was at home. I was always stressing about something, and it's great to have some contrast going on instead of just having a dial of anxiety going from low to high.. I do notice that I'm a lot less anxious around women, but still feeling a bit more anxious when guys are in the vicinity...
While you’re feeling anxious, the trick really is to keep breathing (long breaths out) and acknowledge what is happening to your body (what the amygdala and cortisol is doing) and being able to calm yourself, or simply get out of the situation to regain composure and go over it again (yeah, too bad this can't be applied to all things) and be kind to yourself in case you do screw up or say the wrong thing.
Oh, and screw ssri's! xD
