Anxiety has been given a bad rap. What I mean is we jump to "I have anxiety" all of the time. So when is anxiety good and when is it bad? Anxiety is a good feeling to have when you get that gut feeling something isn't right. You have to make a decision in life and your tummy starts to get nervous. This prevents us from walking into bad situations. This is when anxiety is helpful. We also get anxiety feelings when something is important to you. That is the stressful "butterflies" before a performance or a speech at school or work. This means we care about what we are doing and those butterflies are healthy. So when is anxiety not healthy? When is it the "bad" kind. Here is a list of times when anxiety should be addressed.

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1. Panic attacks: shortness of breath and pounding heart palpitations

2. Phobias: anxiety peaks when you encounter an irrational fear (small spaces, home alone, social situations)

3. Obsessive Compulsive disorder: perform rituals that you must do or the anxiety symptoms occur

4. Post Traumatic Stress disorder: a traumatic event triggers anxiety.

5. Generalized Anxiety: anxious feelings all of the day without triggers, always feeling high strung.

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