It is as if the two parts of their brain are not connected. One part order the body to do a certain thing, lock the door for example. The other part of the brain does not registers this action. The person is not sure if he did it, or if he did it right and he repeats the action again. But before the repetition accrues, the stress level is building up and leading to anxiety.

Have I locked the door when I left the house? Have I turned off the stove or is the pot left boiling and will burns the house down? Thoughts like that in a constant loop can cause a lot of stress and interfere with normal life. People with OCD are aware of the fact that are repeating the same action but they are powerless to stop themselves.
The fears a person with OCD can range from fear of germs, fear of harming others, fear of being embarrassed in public, fear of thinking bad thoughts, among many others. They need order in their life and any deviation causes anxiety. Compulsion that an OCD person can engage in are excessive washing of hands, refusing to touch door knobs or shake hands, eating food in a certain way and in certain order and being “stuck” on a word, number or phrase without being able to move on.
Doctors believe that the cause of OCD is both physical and environmental. The serotonin levels in the brain are usually low. Low level of serotonin uptake in the brain is thought to be passes from parents to children. Recently researchers found that there might be a link between repeated ear infections in childhood (especially Streptococcus) may lead to OCD later in life.
The treatments for OCD are similar to the treatments for anxiety. Anti depressants that elevate the level of serotonin uptake, psychological therapy and acquired skills that teach the sufferer how to avoid repetition are also helpful. The combination of all three is the best way to help a person suffering from OCD lead a normal and productive life.

Aromatherapy – The use of essential oils to elevate mood or to calm down and release stress. For years that has been the home made therapy for anxiety. Those who specialize in aromatherapy believe that the fragrance in the essential oils stimulate the nerve in the nose.

Our sense of smell is connected directly to the memory and emotion parts in the brain. That results in a change of mood. As of yet, there is very little scientific proof that this method really works.

Medication – There are the short term drugs that help overcome an occasional anxiety such as Xanax and Valium, but they are helpful for a measured time only and form dependency. The dosage has to be adjusted with repeated use.

There are other medication that try to address the problem, not the symptom, and change the chemistry of the brain, which doctors think causes the anxiety. They are the anti-depressants and there are many of them on the market. SSRI (selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitors) such as Prozac, Zoloft and Paxil. There are the SNRI (selective serotonin and norepinepherine inhibitors) such as Effexor, Cymbalta and others, and there are the tricyclic antidepressants.

A medical professional is the one to decide which of them will help in a specific case. Sometimes a trial of more than one is needed to get the required affect. They have to be taken under the supervision of a doctor, build up to the recommended dosage and not to be stopped and once but gradually wean the body off them.

Therapy – Cognitive behavior therapy may assist in controlling anxiety and panic attacks. Understanding where it comes from, the behavior that causes it, may help prevent future attacks. Usually takes a long time and is combined with medication to allow the sufferer to exit the panic stage and confront his problems.

There are individual therapies, group therapies or hypnosis therapy to help the person relax and the doctor get to the root of the problem without the patient stopping it when it gets too painful emotionally.

Shock therapy – Used in only to most acute cases when the other, more traditional therapies did not help. The purpose of this electro-shock is to “wake up” the brain and make it function as it was meant to function.

There are times when patients arrive to the emergency room with chest pain and the doctor has to decide whether it is caused by anxiety or an heart attack.

Chest pains, cold sweat, shortness of breath will present themselves in cases of cardiovascular problems. If the pain feels different than what you experienced before or it is much stronger and lasts longer, do not avoid getting immediate help by thinking it is only an anxiety attack.

It is very important to stress that sometimes doctors make mistakes in the diagnosis, especially under emergency situations. Frank and truthful conversation with the doctor will help him avoid mistakes. It is better to have an additional exam just to rule out other physical problems.

Another extreme case that require immediate medical attention is when a person has thoughts of harming himself or others. This is a very important point since anxiety and depression sometimes go hand in hand. Many murder/suicide cases could have been averted had the person talked about it, or someone close to him has notice a change or a formation of a plan.

If the person has the means to commit suicide or harm others such as a gun, knife or pills, it is time for an outside intervention. Having a detailed plan how to do it, including time and place is another indication that the person might take action.

When there’s a deep depression and feelings that only death will make this feeling go away, when there’s talk of death, preoccupation with “the other side”, it’s time for professional help.

The help can come in different forms as in hospitalization, medication, psychological therapy or even shock therapy. All those methods aim at changing the brain chemistry to allow the affected person lead a normal life.

If the cause is a specific fear you can make a plan to try to avoid this fear. If it is economically driven, for example, make a plan or a budget to live by. Try to start saving, which will alleviate your fear somewhat.

If the anxiety is caused by some event in the past and it is playing like a loop in your head over and over again, you can will it to stop with techniques a health professional can teach you.
Accept the past for what it is – the past. You can not change it. Learn to live in the present, and as they say in Alcoholic Anonymous – “change the things you can and accept the things you can not change”.
Since there is such a strong body and mind connection you could do some physical things to help you cope with anxiety. The first and foremost thing is exercise. Exercise releases serotonin in our brain, and serotonin is responsible for our feeling of well being. If you manage to increase the level of serotonin with vigorous exercise, you will feel better.

Learn some relaxation techniques such as meditation, listening to music or engaging your mind by solving crossword puzzles or reading a book. Going to the movies is also a good distraction. Remember what you feel now you might not feel in an hour.
You must have enough rest to help you brain regain it’s balance. Lack of sleep has many diverse affects on the body and increasing the stress level is one of them.

Change the things you can change. Avoid caffeine, alcohol, chocolate and nicotine. All those tend to increase your heart rate.
Join social groups or volunteer for some charity. Being in the company of others sometime relieves the tension. Being alone tends to make things seem harder than they really are.

It is advised to keep a diary of how you feel everyday and what you did to change it. Looking back on your diary might show you some common reasons for your anxiety and might reveal some technics that work for you. You have to make sure your symptoms are not getting worse while you treat yourself.
When all those things don’t seem to help, ask for advice from a medical professional.

Moderate anxiety helps you focus on the problems at hand, gather all your energy and motivation, but when the worry is so big that it is accompanied by feeling of helplessness, sleeplessness and confusion, that are not in proportion to the problems you deal with, then you are suffering from anxiety.

Anxiety can effect you physically as well as emotionally. The symptoms that usually accompany anxiety are divers. From trembling and shaking, through rapid heart rate and breathlessness. From feeling light headed and dizzy to cold sweat. The hands may be clammy, the muscles tense, ache or sore and a you have a feeling of something stuck in your throat.

Anxiety affect the parts in the brain which are responsible for communication and it may cause problems between you and your loved ones. When both the emotional and physical symptoms manifest themselves, we call it anxiety disorder.

Women are affected by anxiety twice as much as the men for reasons yet unknown. The causes of anxiety in itself are also often unknown. People with the disorder admit that they have felt anxious and worried all their lives.

The symptoms can start at any stage of life, and are believed to have some basis in hereditary. Children of parents with anxiety or depression are twice as likely to have those symptoms.
Anxiety disorder has many sub categories; Panic attacks, phobias, obsessive compulsive disorder and even post traumatic stress disorder.

Panic attack is a feeling of intense, unexplained fear or anxiety that last for an hour or so. It is accompanied by a racing heart, trouble breathing, cold sweat and fear to close you eyes because you might stop breathing. They happen to healthy people as well but are shorter and not that acute. When the panic happens regularly, such as every night or so, it interferes with your normal life and has to be treated.

Phobias – manifests themselves as an extreme and irrational fear. The sufferers are aware that their fear is irrational but can’t help themselves. Fear of flying, of high places, of spiders or clowns – all those may interfere with daily normal life and are bothersome. Most people deal with phobias by avoiding doing the thing that causes the fear, such as open or closed spaces, fear of criticism (social phobia) and more.

You could live with anxiety for many years without admitting to it, or you can have it treated and finally go on that plane to the vacation of your dreams.