Being the most common feature in our times qualified our times to be probably called an era of anxietyowing  to  its  contradictions  and  challenges,  the  lack  of  opportunities  for  self-fulfillment,  over  stress  and  poor social  relationships  and  values,  which  leads  to  a  sense  of  tension  and  anxiety  associated  with  our  inability  to predict what will happen in the future.

Future anxiety is one of the anxieties that simultaneously emerged with Toffler’s launching of the term Future  Shock  (1970);  Zaleski  (1996)  indicated  this concept  which  refers  to  a  state  of  apprehension,  fear, uncertainty  and  anxiety  of  undesired  changes  expected  to  occur  in  the  future.  This  fear  of  the  future could include a variety of anticipated threats including physical threats, such as illness or accident, or emotional threats, for example the loss of one of the family members. These threats vary in terms of severity, and future anxiety may include the individual’s fear of failure in achieving his/her goals and aspirations.

Full story at Institute of Education Sciences

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As you are probably already aware, scientific studies have shown that CBT is extremely effective in treating all forms of anxiety disorders because it combines cognitive and behavioral theories to treat both the underlying thought process and subconscious behavioral response to anxiety triggers that cause a particular disorder.

Cognitive Restructuring

One of the most common issues that people with anxiety disorders experience is a string of negative thoughts that cause them to become worked up. CBT addresses this issue by challenging those negative thoughts and eventually replacing them with more realistic positive thoughts. This process is formally called “cognitive restructuring”, and it takes three simple steps to perform.

Step #1: Spot the negative thoughts that trigger anxiety.

Before you can start working towards changing your client’s train of thought during stressful situations, you have to first understand what their current train of thought is. What are they thinking that’s causing their distress?

Does the agoraphobe think spiders are going to rush him the second he steps out of the house? Does the socially awkward high school student think he’ll be laughed at the second he steps in front of class to deliver his oral report? As you know, you have to fully understand the problem before you can start working towards a solution.

Step #2: Challenge the client’s negative thought process.

As you have found, you don’t want to be overly directive, but you need to find a way to show your client that their thoughts are irrational and get them to start questioning the legitimacy of their anxiety-provoking logic. Their fears may even be justifiable, in which case, as you know, you need to show your client why their disabling anxiety-inducing reaction is still irrational even should the worst case scenario come to pass.

Step #3: Introduce your client to a more positive and realistic outlook.

Once you have the client questioning their own thought process it’s time to introduce them to a better one. Walk your client down a more realistic and positive path so that he or she can start acting in a more positive manner when faced with an anxiety-inducing situation.

Clearly this is just one way CBT can help your clients get control of their anxiety-inducing triggers and turn around their lives in ways they never thought they could before.

By onlineceucredit.com

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Pace Yourself
Although you’re probably eager to get rid of your anxious feelings, don’t try to do too much at once. Taking on too big of a challenge when it comes to dealing with anxiety can lead to major setbacks. Instead, set reasonable goals for yourself. Tackle each stressful situation individually as you go about your day. Choose a few coping techniques to try during these situations. Don’t let yourself dwell on a situation once the anxiety passes.

Learn to Breathe
Relaxation is an effective way to handle anxiety. You can practice breathing to help calm you down. There are several techniques to choose from, but the most basic one involves being consciously aware of each breath you take as you inhale and exhale. This helps draw your focus toward calming yourself instead of allowing your anxious feelings to take control. You can also try other forms of relaxation such as meditation or yoga.

Practice Having a Positive Outlook
Staying focused on positive thoughts can have a big impact on your anxiety levels. Since anxious feelings thrive on negative thoughts, practice turning these thoughts into more optimistic ones. This takes a lot of effort and patience if you’re used to having a gloomy and pessimistic outlook on life. You’ll need to try it on a regular basis in order for you to successfully adopt a better view of yourself and the world around you. When you start having a negative thought, stop it in its tracks and replace it with a more cheerful one.

Focus on Solutions
Dwelling on problems instead of actively trying to solve them can make anxiety worse. It can make you feel trapped and frustrated. If you can change a situation to make it less likely to trigger anxiety, work toward doing that. For example, if your financial situation makes you feel stressed, take a closer look at it and come up with solutions. You might decide to take on a part-time job or sell some of your possessions in order to have enough money to cover your bills. You should also keep in mind that there might be problems that you can’t do anything about. If you’re worried about whether or not you impressed a new client at work or passed a test in school, you’ll have to wait and see. Worrying about it in the meantime won’t solve anything, and it will make you feel more anxious.

Put Things in Perspective
Taking a step back to look at a certain situation or life in general helps you put things in perspective. Ask yourself if your present situation will matter a month from now or five years from now. This helps you look at events that happen in a more realistic and objective way, which can help curb anxiety. What you’ll often find is that most of the things that make you anxious don’t really matter in the long run, so they’re not worth worrying about.

related course:
http://www.onlineceucredit.com/ceus-online/ax-anxiety/continuing-education.html

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A phobia is an overwhelming irrational fear of an object or a situation. Most people have at least one phobia that they simply choose to live with. Phobias don’t become a problem unless they interfere with your everyday life.

If you live in a small town where the biggest building is two stories tall, for instance, having an elevator phobia probably won’t cause you any unpleasant complications. Suppose, however, that you live in New York City and work on the 46th floor of a skyscraper? That makes a fear of elevators a more immediate problem, one that needs to be dealt with.

Fortunately, most phobias can be easily resolved using relaxation techniques to decrease anxiety and graded exposure to slowly get you used to being around the thing that you fear.

The first step in overcoming a phobia is learning to relax your body. Sit or lie in a comfortable position and, starting with your toes, tense and release each muscle group until all of your muscles are completely relaxed. If you have trouble achieving this state on your own, it may help to play soft music or sounds of nature in the background. There are also several CDs available that can guide you through the relaxation process.

Now that you know how to relax and let go of your anxiety, the next step is addressing the elevator phobia. Make a list of five situations involving elevators and number the list from the least threatening thought to the most threatening thought. For instance, being in a lobby with a bank of elevators might be least threatening. Actually riding an elevator up a floor or two might arouse more anxiety, and staying in the elevator all the way to the top of the building might be the most frightening thought.

Once you have your list, start with the first item, in this case walking into a lobby with a bank of elevators. You may feel your muscles tense; take time to consciously relax them. Do this for a few days until you are able to remain relaxed while looking at the elevators. Then move on to the next step on your list and so forth.

If you take your time and make sure you are able to remain completely calm through one task before going onto the next, you’ll soon find yourself able to enter an elevator without fear and ride it up to the floor where your office is located.

Related course:
http://www.onlineceucredit.com/ceus-online/pho-phobias/continuing-education.html

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