Let’s look at the ten percent first. Some psychiatrists and therapists say that, though nearly all of their patients respond to treatment, there are usually about 10% who do not get better. Typically these are the more esoteric cases involving schizo-affective patients. Nearly all of patients with more “normal” diagnosis will get much better with cognitive behavioral therapy. And for the other 10%, hope is not lost.

The key to overcoming anxiety is going the extra mile. In some cases your therapist or psychiatrist will not be of much use. So what do you do then? You do everything in your power to get better. In most cases you will need to hit the internet anxiety forums and begin to ask advice. You will find hundreds of people just like you. People who the therapists said couldn’t be helped. And you will see that nearly all of them have overcome their anxiety! How did they do it? It wasn’t magic. The main thing that they did was read internet websites, forums and blogs and learn from people who had already done the experimenting. These pioneers showed them techniques to reduce anxiety as well as alternative therapies that their therapists hadn’t known about. You see the little dirty secret of the profession is that therapists do not know everything. In fact, they know a very small bit. There is a whole larger world, made up of the actual anxiety sufferers themselves and they share with each other the things that they have found that work.

Even if you are seeing a therapist and not getting better, do not give up hope. You will need to work a little bit on your own, but you absolutely can learn how to overcome anxiety just like the rest of us.

So, back to our original example. If 90% of people can better with treatment (and even the other 10% can get better too) how come there are so many people with anxiety disorders. The simple fact is that many do not know about the help or think that they can’t afford it. The reason that people do not know about it is that there is no education in our public schools about mental illness. If you haven’t been to a therapist there is really no way for you to know what is out treatment wise. The other part, about paying for it, is simply a myth. There are many programs in every state where you can get free counseling from therapists who will work for you. Some of therapists donate their time as a community service, others are compensated by the state. So you can afford the help, you just didn’t know it.

The secret to overcoming anxiety is taking action. You do not get better by sitting on your couch watching TV. You do get better by seeking help and putting into practice the things that you learn during counseling. I know that everyone out there can learn how to overcome their anxiety if they are just willing to put a little work into it. And that’s one of the reasons that I started this blog – to give others the motivation to make a change in their lives.

It was at this point that I was referred by my psychiatrist to an inpatient psychiatric hospital and off I went to Houston. I had never been in a mental hospital before and I had no idea what to expect. Part of me was a little nervous as there were going to be all sorts of new people and it was going to be a new environment, etc. But after about 10-15 minutes, I realized that this was going to be a place that I felt right at home. So, I ended up having a very rewarding experience at that hospital so I wanted to blog about some of the advantages of going into treatment.

So, without further ado, here are my top five advantages of inpatient treatment

1. You can see a psychiatrist every day if you need to.

I know in my real world life that trying different medications can be very exhausting. The simple thing is that you are only going to be able to see your psychiatrist once a week or less. So, if you are trying different medications out it can take months and months to get the mix right. At the mental hospital this was not the case. I could see my shrink every day if I needed to talk about side effects or my feelings or whatever was going on that day. The thing about my psychiatrist was even though she was young, she knew a lot about psychiatry.

2. There are lots of groups

I think group therapy is one of the best forums for getting over anxiety. I know that in my case, having a chance to process with a group really made things easier on me. The only thing that is somewhat bad about the group therapy at a mental hospital is that you have to see the people afterward and live with them, so you can’t just be totally honest like you can in other forms of treatment because if you say something that makes someone upset you have to see them at lunch and then the next group and then dinner. Still, the fact that they have group therapy at mental hospitals makes them so useful.

3. Exercise

The mental hospital will force you to exercise. We learned that many people with mental illness die, on average, 15 years earlier than people without mental illness. The reason for this is not suicide as you might think actually. The reason is diseases caused by obesity. People who have mental illness typically do not exercise as much as people who do not. Learning to incorporate exercise into our daily routines was one of the best lessons learned in treatment.

4. Dialectical Behavioral Therapy

A lot of the groups that we had at the hospital were based on DBT. DBT, which stands for dialectical behavioral therapy, helps people learn how to understand and process their emotions so that they do not control you. I was a little skeptical about DBT at first but I learned so many great techniques such as mindfulness and DearMan.

5. Addiction Classes

So many of the people who were at the hospital had addiction problems in addition to their mental illness. We learned that lots of people with addictions self medicate by using drugs and alcohol. What the hospital did was take us to AA meetings that were held both on site and off. At the meetings we had a chance to talk to regular folks with drug and alcohol problems and also to get out of the hospital for a bit. I learned a lot about how mental illness and addiction were related. I learned things that I never knew before, but that I will never forget.

So, those are five of my advantages of getting inpatient treatment at a psychiatric hospital. I have found that 30 days in treatment is like one year of just going to your therapist and psychiatrist. I think it benefited me quite a bit and I am feeling great since I got out. So, if you are thinking of suicide, realize that there is a better way, and whatever you are suffering through right now, it can and will get better if you take this as an opportunity to treat yourself.

The simple fact of the matter is that different treatments work for different people. Sort of. I also believe that those of us who suffer from anxiety have more in common than we do in differences. Because of this, I believe that what worked for me will probably work for you. And I believe that was a complete waste of my time and money will probably be a complete waste of yours as well. But it is up to you to decide if a treatment option will be something that you want to try. After all, it is your life and you need to begin to live with the consequences of your decisions. Therefore, it is up to you to make those decisions.

So, that said, let’s get my take on the most common anxiety treatments. If you are suffering from anxiety and looking to overcome it you have probably tried some of these techniques. Or will in the future. I think that some are better than others but I will let you make up your own mind.

Therapy

The most common way that people try to cure anxiety is to visit a therapist. First, it is important that you are visiting the right kind of therapist. I have already written about how to find an anxiety therapist and those are good tools to use. The thing about therapy is that it does not work for all people. So, if you are seeing a therapist and your anxiety is not improving, STOP GOING. No therapist is ever going to tell you that they can’t help you for two reasons. The first is that they all think that they can. And the second is that it is people like you who pay their bills. So, it becomes really important that you take ownership over your own treatment and money. If you don’t think it is helping, it probably isn’t helping and you are just wasting your money. So take ownership.

Psychiatry

The other popular anxiety treatment option is to see a psychiatrist who is usually referred to you by your therapist. The psychiatrist will recommend medications to treat your anxiety symptoms. Usually the benzodiazepines are the first prescribed though there may be an antidepressant thrown in for good measure. The great thing about benzos is that they work really well for calming an anxiety attack. If your anxiety comes in fits and starts, then you might have great success with these meds. The problem is that they are not very well suited to people with chronic anxiety. If you have to take a high dose of benzos everyday you are going to run into issues of tolerance and dependence. They might work for a little while but then they will stop working only you will have to take them to avoid a dangerous withdrawal syndrome. And like a therapist, a psychiatrist will require that you keep coming to see them indefinitely. They will talk about how they need to manage your medication but really they need to pay the bills. So, like a therapist, if you are not getting anything out of the experience then stop going. The only other thing I will say about psych meds is that in some cases the side effects are worse than the underlying problem. In that case, you will need to think long and hard about the benefits outweigh the costs.

Alternative Therapies

There are many other so-called alternatives to the traditional treatment approach for an anxiety disorder. Some of these options will work and some will not. These include meditation, yoga, group therapy, herbs and supplements, diet and exercise, hypnotherapy and therapeutic touch. I have had some success with herbs for anxiety but most of my other experiences with alternative therapies have been a disappointment. But some people claim that they work, so it is not for me to dismiss them without mention. You will have to see for yourself.

Internet

The other way that we who suffer from anxiety take action is to use the internet. You may be wondering what I mean. But, today, there are hundreds, even thousands, of websites that discuss treatment options for anxiety. The best thing about these websites is that most offer their information for free. I have always found that I got the best results by learning from an ex-anxiety sufferer, a person who has overcome their anxiety disorder, than I have from a therapist. While a therapist is very well meaning, the chances are high that they never suffered from a severe anxiety disorder. Because of this they can only offer you textbook answers. They can’t tell you what has worked for them because they don’t know. Online this is not the case as there are millions of people who have dealt with their anxiety that will tell you the exact steps that they took to do so. Then you are free to use their techniques or not. It is up to you.

I have found a number of anxiety and mental health websites that have provided me with a great deal of useful information. I have also made friends with other people who have the same challenges in life that I do. So, I find other sites and forums to be a great resource. And I think this probably the first place you should look when trying to find out what method of treatment that you want to use. You will be shocked how many people that there are out there who are just like you and have developed skills to diminish and sometimes cure anxiety. So, I totally recommend that you start spending time everyday on websites and forums learning about the issues and what you can do to take action to make a change in your life.

So, those are some of the common anxiety treatments. I know that some will work better for you than others but you should be aware of every option that it available to you.

First, you should get a recommendation. This can be tough if you are just seeking treatment and don’t know where to begin. But, if you are a university student you can go to the Student Services section and see a school counselor and they are sure to know somebody with a good reputation. Another option is to look online. There are lots of good resources nowadays for finding a therapist. I have heard good things about Network Therapy so check them out if you get stuck.

Next you should find out what area of therapy they specialize in. Obviously you are going to want to have someone who knows how to treat an anxiety disorder and usually they are trained in cognitive behavioral therapy which is a good thing because that means they understand how your thinking can power your anxiety disorder.

Your next step is to make an appointment to go in and see if you get a good vibe. This is really important because if the person seems hard to talk to or if they seem like they are distracted a lot you might not be able to really open up to them. Remember that therapy is based in trust. If you don’t feel like you can be totally honest with your therapist then you are not seeing the right person.

If you go to an appointment and things seem okay then ask yourself a few questions. Does their personality seem like a good match to yours? I know that I went to a therapist (who specialized in anxiety too) that just made me really anxious and uncomfortable. He had a real dry and nerdy kind of personality and I am real spontaneous and full of life. It just wasn’t a good fit. Also does he or she have more to offer than just textbook anti-anxiety therapies? For instance my therapist believes in treating the whole body so she’s very spiritual as well. She talks a lot about eastern philosophies and is always opening my mind up about my energy and how to harness it. She also does a lot of workshops where meditation is used and practiced. She talks about the mind, spirit and body and making them all work to treat your anxiety. She’s not a one trick pony. That’s why I love her so!

Also, remember that your therapist needs to be available. If they are a good therapist for anxiety then they understand that they will probably have to talk to you on the phone a few times a week when you are having struggles. So, if they can reached is pretty important. If you can try to get their cell number so you can call anytime because that is very important.

Well, that’s pretty much it. If you follow this advice about how to pick a good anxiety therapist you will not be disappointed!

I’ve been out of the hospital for several months and I have a new clarity on my life. I decided to start a blog about my experiences with anxiety because I know that anxiety blogs can give a tremendous amount of hope and power to keep going on with this disorder.

I go through various phases where I hate anxiety because of what it has done to me. And, strangely I go through phases where I love it because it makes me me, the complicated person that I know wants to do well to the world. I know that if I can go on after all the traumas that I have been through that anyone can make it. So I am trying to put my life back together and I know it won’t be easy, but I know that I can count on my friends and my therapist and my family.

And for those of you out there who don’t have a good therapist, WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU, GO GET ONE!!! I love my therapist because she is such a good listener and she totally gets me. Also, I like the way she views the world and the people living in it and wants to help people. If you have a therapist who just sits there and listens and doesn’t give you any hope and reassurance, I think you should get a different one. The fact is that my therapist is one of my best friends and I totally love her.

Anyway, since I have been out of treatment, my anxiety has been doing better. For one thing, I am on 4 mg of klonopin daily. I know that that may be risky but it has helped my anxiety so much. But being on klonopin is a personal decision that everyone needs to make for themselves and with their therapist.

I love my friends and family so much for their support through all the hard times. I know that when I first started “drifting” which is what I call it, I needed all the support that I could get. And you guys totally came through for me.
Anyway…

Back to Anxiety Living! I want this blog to inspire people living with anxiety disorders to get help. I know that you may think that nobody can help you, but I assure you you will be surprised. I’m going to be talking about therapists, psychiatrists, anti-anxiety medications, meditation, spirituality, self-care, nutrition, herbal care, inpatient treatment, mental hospitals, dealing with anxiety, dealing with parents, dealing with relationships, sex and anxiety, death and anxiety, and living free from anxiety.

I know that’s a lot but I want this anxiety blog to count for something. So I hope you come back and read some more!