Anxiety

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Should I or Should I not...Ugh! Why do I over-analyse so much!

The voice in my head: Because you are commitment phobic. Bitch!

I swear if only, I could kill this voice! That voice, by the way, is Anxiety. Say "Hello!" to the good reader Anxiety.

Anxiety: Good-err-Happy-Birthday-Whatever!

So now you got an idea what I have to live with. Great! I was thinking about participating in AtoZ blogging Challenge this year but was worried about being bored with it before getting to "z" and dropping it midway. Last night when my sister asked me if I will be participating in the challenge, I was still unsure ...So this morning as I had my first cup of coffee and thought about it. And Immediately I was drawn back into a heated canvass with my good friend Anxiety over; What to write?, Why constrained to specific alphabets?, If I take one thing at a time, what should I write about that starts with an "A"?

The voice in my head: Apple?, Andromeda Galaxy?, Anti-nationals?, I know Antarctica! We love Antarctica! Can't wait to freak you out, while we cross the Drake Passage... blah blah blah!  

Yeah, So the voice aka Anxiety is not helping. I chuckled at the Irony. A for Anxiety! Eureka! Epiphany!  Anxiety Is a normal response to a stressful or dangerous situation. Anxiety Disorder is not the same as a normal response to a fight or flight situation. It is something persistent (minimum of 6 months for clinical diagnosis) and interferes with one's ability to lead a normal life. There are six types of Anxiety Disorders each has different symptoms.

• Generalized Anxiety Disorder
• Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder
• Panic Disorder 
• Phobia 
• Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
• Social Anxiety Disorder.

The Anxiety Disorder is diagnosed by medical professionals via extensive questioners and can be treated by medication and/or therapy. The cause of Anxiety Disorder is not clear yet but it is considered partly genetic by many experts. 

The epitome of someone suffering from Anxiety Disorder from my childhood is Piglet from Winnie the Pooh. Piglet is considered in the category of someone suffering from Generalized Anxiety Disorder. 

Let us do a brief analysis of what happens inside Piglet's brain, (assuming his brain works in a human fashion). The major player in his condition is Amygdalae, Amygdalae are two almond-shaped structure located in the brain. They are the part of the limbic system which is responsible for emotional reactions. When emotional reactions are triggered, the amygdala tells the hypothalamus to initiate the flight or fight response. This results in the release of Epinephrin (hormone), which increases body's heart-rate and blood pressure. The sympathetic nervous system then kicks into overdrive and produces symptoms of a Panic attack. Piglet, with his Generalized Anxiety Disorder, according to some experts has a condition in which the amygdalae are less connected to the parts of the brain that determine the importance of certain stimuli. This makes it harder for Piglet to identify a real threat from something that is just annoying. Hence, our little Piglet is so afraid of everyday activities.

Plugging in a Poem; I wrote about "Anxiety, Writing a Poem" on my Tumblr Blog    

When anxiety sits to write poetry
My soul aches for 
Rhyme and symmetry 
She scribbles and dabble over self-esteem 
Then goes right back to 

Some sexy dreams

When anxiety sits to write poetry
She pores the paper with
Her hopes and worries 

For more information on Anxiety Disorder, I highly recommend this episode of Crash Course Psychology by the wonderful Hank Green.  

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