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Anxiety: The Nagging Emotion
by Dr. Clyde M. Narramore
I t was Thursday morning and time for the weekly staff meeting. The 20 or so employees filed into the conference room, some laughing and talking. But Michelle was quiet as she sat alongside other coworkers. If it had been possible to accurately assess just how each person in the room was feeling, it would have revealed that Michelle was more anxious than the others.
Was she especially frightened or threatened that morning? No, not really. That was how she felt much of the time. Her life was marked by a persistent feeling of nervousness and worry. She often felt ill at ease, tense, and restless.
All people experience some anxiety at times. But millions feel anxious and fearful nearly all of the time. They are rarely free of this nagging emotion.
Once, during the course of a seminar I was conducting, a woman raised this question: "My grandson, who is in his thirties, is having some serious problems. The doctor says he has an 'anxiety disorder.' Would you kindly discuss this and the causes?"
Naturally, I would need to see this young man and spend some time working with him before I could accurately know about his particular problem.
Psychologists identify at least 12 different anxiety disorders ranging from specific phobias and panic attacks to generalized anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorders. Each of these has a different set of symptoms, but they all have anxiety at the root of the problem.
Perhaps the most obvious symptom of persistent anxiety is an intense concern or fear in the absence of actual or impending danger. This is often accompanied by restlessness, difficulty concentrating, sleep problems, or muscle tension. The person may be fearful in situations in which there are few indications of probable difficulties. He may worry, for example, that things will go wrong, that something unpleasant is going to happen to him, that he or a member of his family is going to get sick, that an accident will occur in his family, or even about routine daily activities.
 The fundamental underlying
cause of anxiety is the belief that
in some way, danger is lurking.
Generalized anxiety is different from panic attacks which are limited to specific periods of time when the person feels incredibly fearful, often with physical symptoms like choking sensations, dizziness, heaviness in the chest, excessive sweating, heart palpitations, difficult breathing, and nausea. People suffering panic attacks may fear they are going crazy, dying, or losing complete control over their lives.
Conditions in today's society, such as terrorism, crime, and secularism, give all of us reason to be concerned, and they put some people under extra pressures. Wars, both small and large, are raging in many parts of the earth. Severe weather catastrophes are plaguing many countries. Floods, tornadoes, hurricanes, extreme heat or cold, volcanic eruptions, and other devastations are impacting all of us as we view these tragedies on television. Diseases for which there is no cure are rampant. All of these can make any of us somewhat anxious. Indeed, the Bible tells us that one of the signs of the last days before Christ returns to earth is "perilous times" (II Timothy 3:1). But people suffering from anxiety disorders are not necessarily focused on these events. They are restless, tense, fatigued, or have difficulty sleeping and concentrating without knowing why. The roots of their excessive anxiety usually run deep.
Causes
The fundamental underlying cause of anxiety is the belief that in some way, danger is lurking. Typically those perceived dangers have to do with the concern that we are vulnerable and not in control of either our circumstances or inner thoughts, feelings and wishes. Anxiety usually relates to one's performance expectations (fear of making mistakes or not being good enough), distrust of one's environment (for example, the fear of being rejected or punished), or to one's own unwanted thoughts or feelings (like repressed anger, rebellious desires, or the wish to hurt others).
Problematic anxiety usually has at least some of its roots in our childhood experiences. Here are examples of childhood experiences which programmed certain people to be especially anxious as adults.
Billy was sensitive and a bit awkward, making his share of mistakes. His mother wasn't a happy person and pounced on Billy at every turn. "You always spill your milk." "Do you have to trip over everything all the time?" In public she would embarrass him by calling attention to the things he did that irritated her.
 Continued on Page Two
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