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Is Marijuana Good or Bad for Anxiety?

Is Marijuana Good or Bad for Anxiety? Thrive Counseling is in Denver, so marijuana is everywhere. I think it will be legal is most states very soon, and it’s widely used in varying levels. I personally think it should be legal, and it’s not incredibly harmful. But if you struggle with anxiety, you probably want to know if using marijuana is helpful or harmful when it comes to anxiety. So what does the evidence say about Marijuana and Anxiety? In 2009 researchers from several universities teamed up to review all the evidence about Marijuana and anxiety. They published their results in the Journal Human Psychopharmacology. Here’s what they found: There is a link between using Marijuana and Anxiety There is an undeniable link between having symptoms of clinical anxiety (like panic attacks and high general anxiety) and using marijuana. It’s generally agreed upon that Marijuana actually causes anxiety in people, but people are also trying to help their anxiety by using Marijuana. Furthermore, as people reported more Marijuana use, they also reported having higher anxiety. Some people have a strong Anxiety reaction to high doses of Marijuana Some people report having strong and almost immediate anxious reactions to using marijuana (including panic attacks). This is more common wihen people take a high dose of marijuana, or don’t use it very often. It also happens more often in stressful situations or novel situations (lie being in a new place rather than your own home). Unsurprisingly, people who have this reaction don’t ned to go on and become regular users. If you’re taking an anti-anxiety medication, Marijuana can interfere with its effectiveness There are studies that show using marijuana actually counter-acts the useful properties of anti-anxiety medications. Researchers don’t know exactly why yet, but hypothesize that the way marijuana works in the brain blocks the calming effects of these medications. Marijuana use can increase worrying and anxious thoughts There is some evidence that regular marijuana use can increase certain types of thought processes which lead ot worrying and anxious thoughts. This is called ‘Catastrphic Thinking’ and it’s the kind of thought processes which takes some negative event and then exacerbates it into an emergency ro catastrophe. For example, if you get one bad grade on a test, you might think “I’m going to fail this class and then flunk out of school and be in lots of trouble.” That’s a big leap to make. This kind of thinking is found in people who struggle with a lot of anxiety. Balancing THC and CBD can help with the anxiety-producing effects of Marijuana There are some studies that were done on rats and mice that suggests having a high dose of both TCH and CBD ameliorates the anxiety that THC along can produce. THC is the psycho-active ingredient in Marijuana. CBD is another ingredient in Marijuana, and it doesn’t make users feel ‘high’, but may have other medicinal uses. In states with Marijuana is legal, you can ask at a dispensary for ‘high CBD’ types of Marijuana to achieve this balance of ingredients. The Anxiety-Response of Marijuana appears to be worse for women than men For reasons researchers don’t understand yet, this link between anxiety and Marijuana is worse for women than for men. So if you’re a woman, be cautious about this. So, is Marijuana good or bad for anxiety? It’s pretty clear from the evidence that is you have underlying anxiety, marijuana will likely make it somewhat worse. It may initially relieve anxiety, but over time it may worsen your anxiety. When working with clients with anxiety, I usually recommend not starting to use marijuana, and if they already use it regularly, to take a short break of a month or two and see if their anxiety improves. Every person is different and there is a lot we don’t yet know about it, so it’s important to find what works for you.

How to Cope with Shame and Develop Shame Resilience

*Today’s post is a Guest Post from the wonderful folks at Lincoln Park Therapy Group in Chicago. Check them out here. “Ugh, I can’t believe I did that! I’m so dumb!” Have you ever said that to yourself? If so, you were probably feeling something called shame. Whether we like to admit it or not, shame is a universal human emotions – it’s something we all experience. Sometimes we feel it for only a moment and it leaves us like an unpleasant thought. Other times it stays for much longer, inching into our minds until it completely twists how we see the world and how we believe the world sees us. But what is shame? Basically shame is the icky feeling we get when we perceive that our actions are deficient in light of certain standards, and consequently we extend this perception to ourselves. It can be a physical sensation, like a rock in your stomach, and an emotion you feel in your soul at the same time. In both cases, it is important to acknowledge feelings of shame and develop strategies for managing it. How to Cope With Shame Let me start by saying something important: Shame is a normal and common human emotion. Nobody likes feeling shame, but nobody should ever think that something is wrong with them for feeling it either. The problem that arises with shame is that it can overwhelm and cause us to act in ways we normally wouldn’t… especially when we’re trying to ignore it. There are some typical reactions to shame that we all tend to do, including: withdrawal, aggression, and approval seeking behavior. Research has even shown that “shame can be experienced as such a negative, intense emotion of self-loathing that it can lead one to disown it, and, in the case of one who acts like a bully, give it away by evoking that emotion in others.” In cases such as this, the person feeling shame uses that emotion as a weapon – he or she actually makes others feel shame as well to make themselves feel better. It’s important to understand that these reactions are actually defense mechanisms, or skills that we’ve developed to help us cope with shame. In the center of these defenses lies a fight-or-flight instinct to separate us from others or ourselves and ultimately the cause of our shame. This can often lead to emotional isolation, which can bring about deeper feelings of shame. But, what if there was a better way to deal with these feelings? Try Shame Reslience! We can’t inoculate ourselves from feeling shame – but, there are ways of managing it. Shame researcher Brené Brown found during her research that acknowledging our shame and developing empathy for ourselves actually helps to lower the negative effects that shame can bring. By using empathy, we can learn to connect with ourselves to overcome shame, instead of continuing with isolating defense tactics. Brené Brown calls this strategy Shame Resilience and helps us use empathetic practices to overcome shame. At its core, it means learning how to be vulnerable enough to share with someone you trust what you’re feeling instead of keeping it a secret. More importantly, it involves changing how you to talk to yourself. Negative self-talk and secrecy feed the belly of the “shame” shark. Speaking kindly about yourself and telling your story to people whom you trust removes the veil of secrecy and leaves shame has no place to lurk. If you’re interested in learning more about shame resiliency, this article gives an excellent overview of Shame Resilience Therapy and how it developed. You can also check out this video for some quick tips from Brené Brown on how to work through shame.

Denver Therapist and Counselor for Panic Attacks

What Happens in Your Brain During a Panic Attack?

I’m someone who feels almost immediately calmed when I understand what’s going on within me. Even if the feeling does not go away right away, simply being able to know what’s happening is helpful. No where is this more helpful than in the area of anxiety and panic attacks. Panic attacks are frightening and confusing. Here’s what happens in your brain during a panic attack. The Amygdala decides there’s a danger The pathophysiology of a panic attack is not well understood yet. But we’re beginning to understand which parts of the brain are involved. The part of your brain that acts as the “anxiety waystation” is the amygdala located in the temporal lobe. This is where sensory information from the environment and your past memories of similar situations is integrated. The amygdala, then, is what will “decide if you need to panic”. Generally, there is a trigger involved though the person experiencing the attack is not always conscious of the trigger (this is where therapy can be very useful). After the decision is made, your body “turns on the fight-or-flight” response and you’re well aware of what happens next. It should also be noted that every panic attack you have strengthens this neural circuit which only predisposes you to future attacks. Are certain people predisposed to panic attacks? Now why do people develop panic disorder / attacks? The main culprit seems to be disruptions in GABA neurotransmitter system which is involved in A LOT of human emotions and reactions. GABA is a name for a specific transmitter in your brain, that carries message from one neuron cell to another, telling the brain to do certain things. The things that might contribute to these changes in the GABA system include your temperament (we think this is a genetic thing), the adversity you’ve faced in your childhood, life stress and then genetics in the general sense. I’ve had people tell me it’s a glitch in the fight-or-flight response, that my brain is unable to process the stress being placed on it, my body is dumping it’s supply of adrenaline That’s how most panic attacks work. Andrenaline increases your heart and breathing rate in preperation for extreme physical exertion. Since you typically don’t exert yourself, you wind up with secondary symptoms, like shaking, lightheadedness, and low blood sugar. This discomfort can induce stress in and of itself, prolonging the attack.

How Can I stop Thinking About the Past?

Whether you’re finding yourself thinking too much about the past, or obsessing over upsetting memories, it’s difficult to “get over” the past and live in the present. Part of the reason that it’s so difficult to stop ruminating about the past is due to how our brains are wired. Specific memories, feelings and thought patterns often arrange themselves together if they coalesce around a past event. There’s a saying in brain science that goes: What fires together, gets wired together. This basically means that we create well-worn “paths” in the neural structures of our brains that we can get caught in. Once we start thinking about one thing, it leads to the next and so on and on. Here are some concrete tools to stop thinking about the past: Notice when you are thinking too much about the past. Pay attention to where your mind is. If you’re obsessing about the past, say to yourself “I’m obsessing again, and I’m working on letting this stuff go.” 2. Use an Interruption Technique. This is where you jolt your mind out of the obsessive pattern by thinking about something else, moving your body around, giving your brain a new task (such as solving a simple math problem), or even singing to interrupt the ruminating on the past. 3. Re-write the story of the past event. Take a more balanced view of the past event and re-frame it as something both good and bad, not simply something bad that happened that you can beat yourself up over. For example, you could re-frame a job firing as: “I didn’t do well in that job, but I did learn new skills and I know what to work on in my next job.”

How Long Does a Panic Attack Last?

There are really two answers to the question of how long panic attacks really last: First, how long it feels they last, and second, how long they actually last. To the first question the answer is simple: They like like they last forever. The intense feeling of fear and anxiety, the racing thoughts, the rapid heartbeat, all of it. It feels like it will never, ever end. But it does, and quicker than you might think. The second question has been studied and we also did an informal survey of clients here at our Denver therapy office which confirmed it: Panic Attacks usually build for 5-8 minutes, peak at about 10 minutes, and are over in 20-30 minutes. This doesn’t mean that you feel better after 20-30 minutes, however. For the next 20 minutes or so, you will likely feel the after-effects of a panic attack which is the feeling of all that adrenaline leaving your body. You might feel weak, shaky, tired, and a bit numb. This is really normal. The important this to remember is that panic attacks are temporary, and you won’t panic forever. It’s relatively normal to have one or two panic attacks in your lifetime. If you have them more regularly, you may actually have an anxiety disorder and could benefit from counseling and possibly medication to treat it. For more on therapy for anxiety, go to our Anxiety Therapy page.

3 Things to Know About National Anxiety and Depression Awareness Week

There’s a reason that mental illnesses have the nickname “silent killers.” There is still a stigma associated with mental illness, so many people suffer alone, and never seek the help they need. Some of the most common forms of unspoken mental illness in the country are anxiety and depression. No one is immune to these mental health issues, yet many suffer silently. To cut through misunderstanding and to give the voiceless a voice, we observe National Anxiety and Awareness Week, which is observed May 7th through 13th in 2017. Let’s learn more about the National Anxiety and Depression Awareness Week and what it’s all about. What to Know About National Anxiety & Depression Awareness Week Anxiety and Depression Affect More People than You Think Studies and surveys show that anxiety is the most diagnosed mental illness in the country at around 40 million Americans or 18 percent of the general population. Out of that number, half of those are dual-diagnosed with depression. Even though those numbers are high, most people stay quiet about their anxiety and depression. National Anxiety and Depression Week is a Great Time to Find Help National Anxiety and Depression Week is not only about awareness, but finding sufferers the help they need. If you or someone you know is suffering from anxiety or depression, take advantage of the week. Many mental health websites that offer free literature and more during National Anxiety and Depression Awareness Week. The Major Goal of National Anxiety and Depression Week is to Destroy Stigma As stated earlier, many people suffer from anxiety and depression due to the social stigma, despite the fact these illnesses affect a sizable part of the population. One of the major goals of National Anxiety and Depression Awareness Week is to create more awareness to help eliminate stigma. When the stigma surrounding these illnesses is gone, you’ll find much more people getting the help they need. Even though thousands of Americans suffer from anxiety and depression, many do not seek the help they need. National Anxiety and Depression Awareness Week educates people to let them know they’re not alone, to help stamp out the social stigma surrounding anxiety and depression, and to finally get people the help they need.

How Depression & Anxiety Go Hand in Hand

While depression and anxiety are two very separate mental health issues, they often go hand in hand with one another. Anxiety can lead to depression; depression can lead to anxiety. Depending on the severity of one thing or another, they can be crippling to those suffering from these forms of mental illness. Let’s look at how depression and anxiety play on one another and how to get treatment for them. Why Depression and Anxiety Go Hand in Hand More than half of people who suffer from bouts of depression also suffer from anxiety. Sometimes it’s two different disorders, sometimes it’s triggered by one or the other. When you’re feeling down from depression, it’s easier to let the world around you make you nervous. Talking to other people, going to work, heading to classes, and just visiting family can feel you with crippling anxiety. Over time, without treatment, you can develop an anxiety disorder triggered by the way depression makes you feel. Here are some signs you may be suffering from depression and anxiety: Irrational fear and worry about the world around you Physical symptoms, such as headaches, fatigue, difficulty breathing and rapid heartbeat Insomnia and other troubles sleeping Loss of interest in activities you once enjoyed or those activities cause panic attacks Difficulty remembering things and making decisions Inability to relax, even under normal circumstances Panic attacks Everyone experiences mental illness symptoms differently. If you see some of the above, or others, it may be time to get help. Whether you notice the symptoms yourself or someone who cares about you does, heed the warning signs. Anxiety and depression are treatable forms of mental illness. With medication, therapy, and other forms of intervention, you can overcome both. Whether you suffer from depression and have anxiety or vice versa, a qualified therapist can help you identify the symptoms and situations that make it worse. From there, it’s a matter of learning how to cope and what works best to get you over the hump. Once you have the tools at your disposal to handle depression and anxiety, you can begin living a more normal life and get back to enjoying the life you lead again.

What is Anxiety?

We look at what anxiety is, what the common symptoms are, and what type of treatment options are available to help you.