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.

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.