What is the role of trauma in the creation of anxiety? This question raises complicated, far-reaching, and deeply compelling issues. Asking one question in this area raises even more questions...
What is social phobia? Social phobia is, in its essence, an extreme fear of social interactions. It can be experienced as being scared of riding the elevator at work, going...
Obsessive-compulsive disorder is characterized by intensive obsessions and/or compulsions which patients experience and which absolutely interfere with workings of their minds and lives. Obsessions are commonly known as worries, fears,...
Generalized anxiety disorder usually comes across in the patient who does not worry about any one topic or fear in particular, but instead always characteristically worries. It is a free-floating...
Commonly known as somatization, the body and brain work together in an integral way to illustrate a complicated interface between the mind and the body. Anxiety often is at the...
Body dysmorphia is a feeling that something with one’s body is not right. This process focuses on a feeling of one’s nose being too large or too short, one being...
Psychosis, generally speaking, is a type of loss of reality testing; properly speaking, it is a disorder of or a problem with thinking. This shift in thinking can be one...
Suicide is a highly complicated psychiatric phenomenon; I often see it as falling into five major categories. The first would be an impulsive act in a person with a highly...
Often, patients come to my office complaining of anxiety, and the more I listen to them, the more I realize they are in the middle of a full-blown depression, with...
There are so many different drugs of use and abuse in our society; it is impossible to discuss more than a few in this text. Several appear commonly: marijuana, cocaine,...
Alcohol is in a category of its own when it comes to anxiety. Not only is alcohol such a common substance of use and abuse in our culture, but it...
Bluelifer is largely devoted to the anxiety phenomenon experienced in adults. However, children experience at least as much, if not more, anxiety than adults. After all, much adult anxiety has...
An example might help to introduce some ways in which anxieties within the individuals of a family sys-tem can ricochet off of one another to create an inherent anxiety pattern...
Learning that one will die soon can be the most devastating news to hear. Depending on the psychology of the listener, many reactions can follow, ranging from total rage and...
Hurricanes hit; cancer strikes; drunk drivers run over loved ones. Real calamity characterizes life. These losses can devastate, leaving a lifelong impact. We might ask how we will be able...
People have anxiety about all kinds of interpersonal commitments. By simple decision theory, saying “yes” to one option means saying “no” to another. Jokes help to alleviate the gravity of...
You are not alone, as feeling helpless is such a common feeling in dealing with overwhelming anxiety. It is important to remember that even though you may feel helpless, you...
If we experience a fear of inadequacy, we fear that our efforts will be viewed as imperfect. These fears speak to our wish to perform ideally. In an extreme form,...
This question provokes waves of anxiety, not just in individuals but in their families and cultures. As humans, we all ask what we are meant to do with our lives,...
Another sexual anxiety is homosexual anxiety. Dis-cussing sexuality in general, or homosexuality and bisexuality in particular, can make people uncomfortable, if not frankly anxious. With a drive as strong as...
Not surprisingly, sexual relations are a common medium through which people experience and express anxiety. Avoidance of sexual activity is one of the most common manifestations of sexual anxiety. Patients...
Regrettably, some doctors deliver bad news badly. This delivery can occur in obstetric infertility clinics as much as in any other specialty. Telling a woman that she is sterile or...
Pregnant women and their partners or couples wishing to conceive can experience several phases of anxiety. The first is that of contemplating pregnancy. Potential parents wonder if they are ready...
At times, patients report concern over their spouse’s fidelity. Actually verifying that the spouse is or is not cheating can prove helpful, as spouses can feel anxious for years only...
Aggression is one of the most common responses to anxiety. Bar fights, stalking behaviors, sexual violence, road rage, or abuse of prisoners all come to mind. Aggression is the fight...