We're looking at anxiety now in a general way and including anxiety attacks, sometimes known as panic attacks.
Occasionally there are triggers, a place that you don't wish to visit because of a nasty experience in the past.
When I was a little boy, I remember passing this wooden fence, some of which wasn't in very good repair.
There were gaps in it, not large ones, but I heard this dog barking.
I was with my mother at the time and we stopped to have a look at 'doggie!' Before my mother could pull me back, the large head of a German Shepherd appeared, and took a small chunk of my thigh.
It really wasn't at all serious, but naturally I thought I was being eaten alive.
It was a number of years until I was able to walk past a wooden fence without misgivings.
So there's an obvious trigger.
Because of what happened, I was afraid of walking past wooden fences - and large dogs! The problem arises when people start to worry about things for absolutely no reason.
They can't relax, because they always feel tense, and they feel tense because they're always expecting the worst.
There is no known cause for anxiety.
It just appears out of the blue, unless there's an obvious trigger.
The symptoms are irritability, constant worrying, always tired, sleep problems, you're easily startled and sometimes the worrying can cause you to feel physically sick.
It's among the most common of the mental disorders, and is treated with antidepressants known as Monoamine Oxidase Inhibitors, or SSRIs.
Other medications, too, are benzodiazepines and beta-blockers.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy can play a large part in a patient's treatment.
The first hurdle to overcome is to pinpoint exactly what the patient's afraid of, and then to change the way they perceive it.
If the fears are unnamed, then a lot of digging has to be done to arrive at the root of the fears.
If nothing definite can be found, then a good psychotherapist must change the way the patient looks at everyday life.
If they can't actually name a concern, then there's nothing to be worried or concerned about.
This is gross oversimplification, but it's the gist of the treatment.
Support groups are often excellent too, because you can all discuss your problems and if just one person seems to be doing better, then that gives great encouragement to the others.
Anxiety, or panic, attacks usually strike without warning too.
They may last for half an hour at the most, but are absolutely terrifying while they have you in their grip.
It's as though you can hear the wings of the angel of death himself coming after you, as well as having the awful feeling of sinking into an abyss and losing complete control.
The other problem is that these wretched attacks can be self-perpetuating.
Having had one, part of your thinking may be taken up with having another one.
When will it happen? Where will I be? There are five scenarios you must avoid at all costs.
The first is jumping to conclusions.
I've had one attack.
I'm bound to have another.
No, you're not.
Oh my Lord, the whole of California's in the middle of a brown-out.
We'll be next, on the East coast.
Why in the world would we be? The second is believing that feeling anxious and worried is normal.
It isn't and one way or another you're going to do something about it.
The third is setting impossible goals.
You don't attain them, so you consider yourself a failure.
Ease up on yourself.
Set little goals first.
Give yourself a chance.
Fourth, making up reasons why your past successes were flukes.
This one's a favourite! Fix it firmly in your head that they weren't flukes, that you're just as successful, if not more so, than the next person and that you'll be successful again.
Then the fifth one; "That dinner I prepared was a total failure.
I found a bone in the fish.
" So although everyone else found the dinner to be a roaring success, your tiny little bone proved otherwise.
God's perfect, I know.
I didn't think you sat on His right hand! And one more thing I found very useful.
When the attack's over, the tumult and the shouting dead, sit down and think what's the worst thing that can possibly happen? Frankly, I used to feel a little bit silly, because in truth, I couldn't think of anything.
Occasionally there are triggers, a place that you don't wish to visit because of a nasty experience in the past.
When I was a little boy, I remember passing this wooden fence, some of which wasn't in very good repair.
There were gaps in it, not large ones, but I heard this dog barking.
I was with my mother at the time and we stopped to have a look at 'doggie!' Before my mother could pull me back, the large head of a German Shepherd appeared, and took a small chunk of my thigh.
It really wasn't at all serious, but naturally I thought I was being eaten alive.
It was a number of years until I was able to walk past a wooden fence without misgivings.
So there's an obvious trigger.
Because of what happened, I was afraid of walking past wooden fences - and large dogs! The problem arises when people start to worry about things for absolutely no reason.
They can't relax, because they always feel tense, and they feel tense because they're always expecting the worst.
There is no known cause for anxiety.
It just appears out of the blue, unless there's an obvious trigger.
The symptoms are irritability, constant worrying, always tired, sleep problems, you're easily startled and sometimes the worrying can cause you to feel physically sick.
It's among the most common of the mental disorders, and is treated with antidepressants known as Monoamine Oxidase Inhibitors, or SSRIs.
Other medications, too, are benzodiazepines and beta-blockers.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy can play a large part in a patient's treatment.
The first hurdle to overcome is to pinpoint exactly what the patient's afraid of, and then to change the way they perceive it.
If the fears are unnamed, then a lot of digging has to be done to arrive at the root of the fears.
If nothing definite can be found, then a good psychotherapist must change the way the patient looks at everyday life.
If they can't actually name a concern, then there's nothing to be worried or concerned about.
This is gross oversimplification, but it's the gist of the treatment.
Support groups are often excellent too, because you can all discuss your problems and if just one person seems to be doing better, then that gives great encouragement to the others.
Anxiety, or panic, attacks usually strike without warning too.
They may last for half an hour at the most, but are absolutely terrifying while they have you in their grip.
It's as though you can hear the wings of the angel of death himself coming after you, as well as having the awful feeling of sinking into an abyss and losing complete control.
The other problem is that these wretched attacks can be self-perpetuating.
Having had one, part of your thinking may be taken up with having another one.
When will it happen? Where will I be? There are five scenarios you must avoid at all costs.
The first is jumping to conclusions.
I've had one attack.
I'm bound to have another.
No, you're not.
Oh my Lord, the whole of California's in the middle of a brown-out.
We'll be next, on the East coast.
Why in the world would we be? The second is believing that feeling anxious and worried is normal.
It isn't and one way or another you're going to do something about it.
The third is setting impossible goals.
You don't attain them, so you consider yourself a failure.
Ease up on yourself.
Set little goals first.
Give yourself a chance.
Fourth, making up reasons why your past successes were flukes.
This one's a favourite! Fix it firmly in your head that they weren't flukes, that you're just as successful, if not more so, than the next person and that you'll be successful again.
Then the fifth one; "That dinner I prepared was a total failure.
I found a bone in the fish.
" So although everyone else found the dinner to be a roaring success, your tiny little bone proved otherwise.
God's perfect, I know.
I didn't think you sat on His right hand! And one more thing I found very useful.
When the attack's over, the tumult and the shouting dead, sit down and think what's the worst thing that can possibly happen? Frankly, I used to feel a little bit silly, because in truth, I couldn't think of anything.