INTRODUCTION



Written on May 25, 2010
Updated on March 1, 2020



You're in the local career center and they have unemployment reviews today. You look around and see that most of the tables and chairs are already occupied. You find an empty chair but estimate there are fifty or more people already waiting. You may already know that crowds bother you, but if so, you think, I can handle this.

After you sit down, you feel hot. I guess the air conditioner can't handle the body heat, you think to yourself.

But a few minutes later, you start feeling jittery. The heat you feel increases. Maybe you're sweating or feeling flushed. Next, your heart is racing and/or you're having a hard time breathing. What is happening to me? you ask yourself. Soon, all you can think of is how to get out of there fast.

You are probably having a panic attack and it's scary! I experienced the above scene and still remember being anxious. I don't have anxiety as often as I used to, but I can tell you from experience that ignoring these impulses will only make matters worse.

In this blog (and future book), I will compare the symptoms of Anxiety, Depression and Attention Deficit Disorder to monsters or traps. Immediately after describing a problem -- and there are a multitude of problems -- I will attempt to give you ideas on how to fight, escape, or tame the situation.

What can you do when you can't run and don't have any weapons? Using the Unemployment Office scenario, you can run, or at least walk quickly out of the office. But, be sure to pause at the front desk and ask someone when the office is less crowded.