Lifestyle Changes Are Proven To Ease Anxiety and Panic - Anxiety/Panic

If you drink alcohol, smoke, don’t eat well and don’t exercise, you might be blocking your recovery from anxiety and panic.

By reducing alcohol and caffeine from the diet and adding more exercise, however, you can help reduce your attacks and your reliance on medications and therapy.

One likely reason for this is that our bodies automatically respond to what goes into them, whether it’s stressful and negative thinking or foods that can harm us. When we drink alcohol and caffeine or eat too much sugary and starchy foods, our bodies instantly become defensive as they fight off the “invasion”.

The body and mind is one. What affects one affects the other. When we are happy and fulfilled, we are healthier. When we are sad and wanting, our bodies begin to break down and illness creeps in. The body reacts to invasive products like alcohol and smoke by feeling threatened.

When we eat healthy foods, our brain recognizes this and responds by giving us a sense of wellbeing. It’s that feeling we get after we have Sunday dinner with all the trimmings. Our body feels refreshed and content.

When we feed it unhealthy foods, our minds seek ways to correct the problem that it senses. This can trigger anxiety, much like the anxiety that can affect us when we are hungry or lack food for an extended time. Our minds know something is wrong and it panics.

This new British study seems to back up this theory.

Conducted by Dr. Rod Lambert of the School of Allied Health Professions, the study tested two groups of people. One group underwent traditional doctor-directed treatments such as medications and therapy. The other group also made specific lifestyle changes in their diet and habits.

The changes included removing or reducing alcohol and caffeine from the diet, cutting back on smoking, eating healthy nutritious foods and getting more exercise.

The results showed that those who made these lifestyle changes experienced less panic and anxiety in one month and required less doctor treatments than did those who did not make lifestyle changes.

Panic and anxiety can have a dramatic influence on our lives. They cause some people to fear stepping out of their homes. Others experience terrifying panic attacks while driving down the highway or while in public.

For some, their lives come to an immediate halt because they are so overwhelmed with the paralyzing dread that something horrific is going to happen to them. They live for years like this, struggling to build up the courage to seek therapy and attend regular sessions. Over time, the panic is so ingrained that they feel they will never be cured and believe they face a future filled with fear and dread.

This study shows that this doesn’t have to continue, and that there are other things a person can do besides relying on medications to get relief. By making healthy lifestyle choices – not smoking, not drinking alcohol, easing up on the caffeine and getting more exercise – they can see an improvement that marks the turning point in their lives.

Sylvia Dickens is an award-winning journalist who has struggled and overcome , depression, panic and anxiety. Formerly with the Canadian Mental Health Association, she's written, "A Guide to Teenage Depression & Suicide" and offers several books to cure panic quickly and without medication, along with other popular topics. You can learn more at http://www.book-titles.ca. Her travel magazine offers family vacation getaway ideas for fun and relaxation.

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