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Kate Cann

Let’s Talk Video Games and Mental Health

Stereotypes and misconceptions of gamers are pretty widespread, but the positive connections between games and mental health isn’t often discussed. There’s a stigma, and instead of emphasizing how video games can help anxiety and depression, games are often associated with addiction, a lack of motivation and even obesity.

That can paint a terrible picture of gamers, in truth, most people who play games are getting a benefit to their mental fitness, confidence, and social skills. Past research into gaming has tried to dig into potential adverse impacts leading to violence, depression, and addiction. While that kind of investigation has its place, the issue is a lot larger and requires a more balanced look as more recent science shows there’s a lot of value to playing games.

Because of how drastically gaming has changed in the past few years by becoming much more diverse, realistic and socially engaging, it’s especially important to pay attention to the newer, more positive research, such as this paper on The Benefits of Playing Video Games. What does the new data show, though?

Video Games and Depression: What to avoid

The link between depression and video gaming is strong, but Jane McGonigal recently wrote to clear up some of the misconceptions:

“No wonder several major video game studies have shown a correlation between playing more than 20 or 30 hours a week (depending on the study) and depression! Some researchers originally interpreted this as evidence that video games can cause depression. But today, a more common interpretation among the researchers that I compare notes with is that many depressed players are actually attempting to self-medicate with games. They experience a dramatic sense of relief from their symptoms while playing, and therefore, the more depressed they feel, the more they play.”

She suggests avoiding having an escapist mentality towards games (using them to escape the real world) and instead adopting a ‘gameful’ mindset where you meet challenges willingly and seek to make incremental gains consistently. If you simply use games to escape, you’re going to play more when your life is more stressful and use less of your mental resources/effort to tackle the issues affecting you.

When someone playing a lot is told they need to get up and do something with their life instead of ‘doing nothing’ like they do when they’re gaming, that reinforces that games are something with no real value, to be used only as an escape from/alternate life. It’s a vicious cycle that only reinforces harmful stereotypes.

“The game of Chess is not merely an idle amusement. Several very valuable qualities of the mind, useful in the course of human life, are to be acquired or strengthened by it, so as to become habits, ready on all occasions… we learn by Chess the habit of not being discouraged by present bad appearances in the state of our affairs, the habit of hoping for a favourable change, and that of persevering in the search of resources.”

— Benjamin Franklin, ‘The Morals of Chess.’

 

Healthy, positive gaming experiences

Instead, thinking gamefully, you can challenge your troubles and recognize games as a positive enhancement to regular life, as opposed to something that takes over and serves an unhealthy mentality.

You can still play games to change your mood, but it’s suggested that you do so with a goal in mind, like enhancing your problem-solving abilities, building bonds with friends/loved ones or practicing resilience in the face of a problem that just keeps bouncing back). That kind of goal-oriented, purposeful gaming builds both real-world problem-solving skills and self-confidence, as well as having the exact opposite effect of escapism because playing to improve helps you connect to and use different parts of your brain, become less depressed and better able to cope with a range of emotions and real-life problems.

One major way gaming engages your brain is by continually providing new puzzles and levels of difficulty.

As humans, if there’s no avenue left to improve, we tend to stop an activity, but games offer a constantly evolving challenge and motivate incremental improvements that keep us playing until the end in many cases.

If you fail at a task in a video game, you simply reset and try an alternate strategy.

This drive to always improve or ‘level up’ can be adapted to the rigors of everyday life and help you become more resilient as well as causing you to instinctively respond better to challenges. If you mentally associate a reward with overcoming a challenge, as is the case in games, you’re naturally more motivated to persevere and work through to the other side of problems in your life.

 

Video games can get you off the couch!

You don’t have to sit in front of your TV or a computer screen for hours to get a little bit of that gaming experience.

The games on your smartphone or tablet will help foster all of these same rewards, with the caveat that they can’t be quite as complex or realistic as console/computer games.

You still get some of the cognitive benefits scientists talk about, but mobile games are designed for shorter periods of play, so you’ll usually find the challenge/rewards much quicker and thus don’t need to dedicate as much time as you would digging your teeth into a bigger game. Mobile games are usually linked to social media platforms and can help engage you with friends who also want to play (as long as you avoid being that Facebook friend who spam invitations to the game of your choice), and reward players for coming back to them for short periods every day.

 

Gaming to Exercise

There are even games designed to get you off of the couch completely! Thanks to motion tracking technology that comes with the Xbox One, Playstation 4 and Wii U consoles, there’s a whole new style of game that gets you moving physically.

They make workouts fun by incorporating gameful thinking (you unlock rewards, level up, compare your results) and tracking you to make sure you’re doing the exercises correctly. Alternatively, they’re perfect for jumping in front of the TV with a friend and playing a game of digital tennis in the living room, complete with invisible rackets!

We’ve discussed approaching games with a ‘gameful’ mindset where you welcome challenges and meet goals intently, and highlighted the link between depression and gaming in a positive way that provides the basis for a more productive overall mindset when it comes to playing games.

So, next up, it’s time to tackle how gaming can provide diverse environments and help you manage anxiety!

Practicing Mindfulness

Along the same lines, you can approach an anxiety problem by gaming mindfully. Being mindful is to be in a state of active attention in the present. When you’re mindful, you look at your thoughts or feelings from far away, without judgment on whether they’re good or bad. It’s the opposite of avoidance, one of the more negative tendencies of anxiety, and means you’re living in the moment.

Anxiety is apprehension about a future or past event, so practicing mindfulness is a natural counter to it. When you live with constant anxiety, there’s an almost unending sense of dread to everything. Your body’s fight or flight system is always engaged, and there always tends to be a feeling something harmful is about to occur. Every change is significant, met with intense nervousness, and even small challenges seem massive with the added weight of your thoughts.

It’s exhausting, and few environments ever feel truly safe.

Games offer a space to experience a wide array of emotions without the sense of real danger or threat to your well-being. You go into the game with the understanding that it IS ‘just a game’ and can’t harm you, and you reinforce that with consistent rewards from the challenges it presents.

They can even ease (or test) your anxiety!

That’s not to say it’s easy for an anxious person to find a game that helps. Not all games are comfortable for all individuals, and a lot of folks with anxiety find themselves shying away from shooters or games requiring quick reflexes, finding the immersion and stress to be too much.

As an example, I’m personally intolerant of any horror in games – I just don’t consider becoming that tense fun or rewarding, so I don’t play them. Racing games, too – even Mario Kart can bring me to the brink of panic. And yes, I regret missing a few games I’ve heard are great, but I’ve made some personal progress by playing slightly scarier fare like Fallout 4 without much trouble, even if I usually stick to it when my husband’s nearby.

Games are meant to be stimulating, so somebody prone to overstimulation can get there pretty quickly — totally understandable! There’s no shame in sticking to more detached experiences like Mario or the array of adventure/puzzle games out there. There are even games specifically designed for tackling depression and anxiety!

“Thinking gamefully, you can challenge your troubles and recognize games as a positive enhancement to regular life, as opposed to something that takes over and serves an unhealthy mentality.”

A little bit of anxiety can be motivational, though. We eagerly anticipate the feedback from our input in both the short term, whether it’s seeing a shot land or your character jump across a gap, and the long-term, like when you collect all the blue properties in Monopoly.

Positive feelings, as with rewards in games, elevate levels of the neurotransmitter dopamine, whereas a lack of dopamine spurs negative feelings and depression. Dopamine is directly responsible for the little rush of the reward system, and it’s usually riding high when you’re gaming with goals in mind.

Games also introduce competition in the form of high scores and multiplayer, adding another layer of potentially active and productive anxious feelings. If these feelings become overwhelming or negative, you can choose to knuckle under and use it as a type of exposure therapy or simply move on to a different style of game that suits your mood better (like me bowing out of zombie games altogether). A game does you no good if it spawns real-world negative feelings that aren’t constructive, like creating anxiety without following up with a little dopamine bump reward.

When you’re done this read on video games and mental health, you can find a little more information on panic disorders and anxiety in this rundown – Common Symptoms of Anxiety Attacks & Disorders

“When we play a game — and this is in the scientific literature — we tackle tough challenges with more creativity, more determination, more optimism, and we’re more likely to reach out to others for help.”

— Jane McGonigal

Are there social benefits to gaming?

You don’t just generate dopamine while reacting and being rewarded in-game. If you game with friends, new and old, you reap a lot of real-life social benefits.

Probably the best part about modern gaming is the social aspect. Thanks largely to the internet, you no longer have to schedule time side by side to interact in a gaming environment. While gaming in the same room is ultimately the healthiest outlet, online interaction is still incredibly valuable and can teach you a lot about working with others.

A study at East Carolina University showed that just 30 minutes of online gaming a day was enough to foster a significant boost in long-term happiness and mood, thanks in no small part to the social aspect.

Some games are specifically tailored toward interaction with other players, such as Massively Multiplayer Online (MMO) Games, and provide a space where you have to form parties and work together to progress. They encourage active listening and contribution from every player, greatly rewarding cooperative play and fostering a level playing field socially. In MMOs, everybody plays a role in the group’s success, and each person has to openly communicate with the others in some aspect, whether it’s in-game typed chat or voice chat, to complete objectives. That team play leads to a real sense of personal responsibility and a healthy level of pressure to learn to work through.

Don’t discount ‘online friends’

Since people began connecting on the internet, there’s been a pervasive thought that friendships built online are somehow lesser than those kickstarted by physical interaction. Anybody who allows themselves to have significant interaction with people online knows this not to be true, as many of us have made very real, very lasting bonds with people that were first met in an online venue.

For example, some of the guests at my wedding were folks I’ve met through online gaming, and I couldn’t ask for better friends. I’ve spent countless hours with these people, working through in-game challenges while discussing any number of things, from our personal lives to world news, and we’ve gotten to know one another incredibly well in these hours-long conversations.

Even though we don’t play as much as we used to, we remain in touch and make time to play every once in a while. These relationships require just as much attention and care as those created offline and operate on many of the same social cues. There aren’t any special feeding instructions for online friends, and there shouldn’t be a need for competition between online and offline relations – they’re on an even playing field.

But there *is* such a thing as healthy competition!

Competitive games give the same dopamine rush, combined with often open (for better or worse) voice chats that encourage players to speak up during play. Though cooperating creates a greater array of social obstacles to overcome, the competitive gameplay still (hopefully) tickles our drive to be gracious winners or losers and deal with an emotional rollercoaster in real-time. On top of that, competitive shooters like Call of Duty can increase your visual attention and engage some other cognitive enhancements.

Tabletop! Where the social aspect of games and mental health are strongest

Every time I say ‘games,’ you’re probably unconsciously putting ‘video’ in front of the word, and you’re missing out! One more traditional, face-to-face form of gaming comes by way of the tabletop. Tabletop games include card games, roleplaying games, board games and more, which you can find on Wikipedia.

What tabletop games lack in hand-eye coordination, they make up for in their aid to social anxiety by forcing you out of your shell and into real-world interaction with other people. You’re given the bonuses of eye contact and taking physical cues from other players, giving a whole new layer of additional contact to overcome.

Most people with social anxiety have a naturally difficult time engaging in these kinds of activities, but it’s been found incredibly worthwhile in curbing the avoidance and shyness associated with social anxiety disorders. You’re working as a group, overcoming a multitude of small challenges, reaping the rewards – and getting those sweet dopamine hits – as a result. Everybody gets a turn being the center of attention and having the pressure that goes with it, and the element of chance in most games keeps things fair for everybody, regardless of the pre-existing skills they might have to give them an advantage in-game.

Many areas have tabletop gaming groups that get together to play a certain game or type of game every week, and they’re comprised of people looking to cooperate and meet new friends. It can foster a great, positive environment for social growth and general fun!

So go forward with games in mind and make sure to consider the benefits so many have gotten from them. Gaming doesn’t have to be sitting alone on your couch, not speaking to anybody – you can regularly connect with friends, new and old, and take on challenges together, whether working as a team or competing in the positive gaming space. As more studies are done, we’ll come to get a better picture of the encouraging ways gaming affects mental health, and hopefully start to remove the stigma of the lazy, antisocial gamer from the front of people’s minds.

by Kate Cann Filed Under: Lifestyle Blogs Tagged With: anxiety, depression, gaming, mental health, modern issuesLeave a Comment

Adult Coloring Books for Your Mental Health

Colored pencils sitting in a jar

I’d mostly heard about them from my mother, who’s always tearing out newspaper articles on mental health for me and thought I might find coloring relaxing. She suggested I might want to get one of the adult coloring books she’d heard of for Christmas (we love talking Christmas, it’s a whole thing and I know it’s annoying to many), and I didn’t really think much of it past that. Fast forward to a few weeks later, and I stumble upon a display of adult coloring books during a Christmas decoration-hunting trip (see? it’s gonna come up) at Michael’s craft store. A nature-themed book covered in koi fish caught my eye, the colored pencils were displayed beside them and the 50% off coupon in my pocket had already started singing to me. I’m usually a pretty easy sale, and this time was no exception. I ended up leaving empty-handed as far as Christmas decor, but I had hours of potential ahead of me in this somewhat thin book and pack of pencils.

While it’s no replacement for making an effort to create your own original artworks (which generally engages the brain more), it’s an excellent means of winding down and grounding yourself with something. You’re forced to be mindful of each line, where it begins and ends, which colors you’re going to use to fill in the next section etc. And once you’ve been coloring for a little while, you’re likely to enter a mental flow state. In psychology, flow is a state of operating where the person performing an activity is fully immersed in the involvement and enjoyment of the process. Basically, flow is when you’re ‘in the zone’ or in the pocket, really into what you’re doing, and it’s one of the more freeing, relaxing sensations you can experience.

Aside from flow, you feel a sense of ownership over the art you produce, and you can set small goals to finish certain pieces. It’s a great confidence-building activity, because you’re creating a clean, beautiful finished product by yourself, and most books come with frame-sized, convenient tear-out pages so you can display your art if you choose.

While they might not be a part of official therapy, adult coloring books are offering up a great way to focus yourself on the present and really work on mindfulness creatively. If you’re looking for an extra little tool in your mental health utility belt, these are awesome! There’s not one I specifically recommend over another (I’m wary of anything that pushes too hard on the ‘This cures what ails ya!’ tip), but I’ve included a small selection from Amazon that I’ve either picked up myself or slapped on a wishlist for later!

Good Vibes Motivational Adult Coloring Book
Enchanted Forest Coloring Book

 

by Kate Cann Filed Under: Lifestyle Blogs, Uncategorized Leave a Comment

The simplest tips for better sleep


Sleep is my biggest enemy. It’s the arch-nemesis of anyone with anxiety, really, but trouble sleeping is a universal issue. Whether you suffer from full-blown insomnia or not, you probably wouldn’t have gotten to this post unless you could relate, so I’m consciously keeping the first instalment fairly broad.
This doesn’t have to scare you.

A lot of the information in these posts comes from obsessive research, usually motivated after hearing some tidbit in an interview, blog, podcast or whatever medium I’m learning with. Usually, when I can’t sleep and I’m not in a particularly anxious stage, it’s because I’m skipping some of my pre-bed practices, or because I’ve done something silly to put myself in that position. For instance, there are days when I decide to torture myself (with secret delight) by drinking my body weight in soda. All the lists in the world won’t help me in those instances, but when it comes to an average day, these tips have been helpful for a grip of people.

1. Find your personal best temperature for sleeping

Your body’s temperature drops when you sleep, mainly because it doesn’t have to work so hard when it’s stationary. As a result, a cool (not freezing) environment will help signal to your body that it’s time to get ready to rest. Preference varies from person to person but doctors generally agree that the best temperature for sleeping is usually between 63 and 67 degrees Fahrenheit (15.6 and 19.4 Celsius.)

There’s misinformation out there that says you shouldn’t take a warm bath before bed because of this. It can actually help sleep by helping signal it’s time to cool off and get to sleep. You just need to make sure you don’t take the bath immediately prior to when you’re expecting to be asleep. Leave some time to read or do whatever it is you find helps, but 45 minutes to an hour should be given so your body can cool down.

2. Exercise

I know you’re rolling your eyes because everybody else on the planet is telling you to exercise more, but it’s true – we’re living fairly sedentary lives in recent history, and evolution has yet to fully catch up. You’ve still got those old hunter-gatherer muscles, and they need a little love now and again to keep your energy levels balanced. Everybody’s different, but if you’re into exercising later, try to keep it at least three hours away from when you want to be in bed so your body has time to adjust.

3. Stretch it out

This is a form of exercise you can even do in bed, but why bother?

For one, stretching helps promote muscle recovery. If you took the earlier advice, you might just have some physical activity to recover from! Primarily, though, it releases endorphins — those awesome, all-natural little shots to your brain that help make you happy and calmer as tension releases. Short version: You’ll feel and sleep better. There are a million methods out there for this, including deeper practices like Progressive Muscle Relaxation, but basic stretches will serve your purposes just fine.

4. Don’t overdo the liquids

This is especially true about alcohol!. If you want that glass of wine as a night cap, you need to keep it at least four hours away from your planned bedtime. As for other liquids, keep the sugary content to a minimum, and taper down your water consumption in the last hour before bed. This can be difficult for those who need to take medications immediately prior to falling asleep so, as always, consult your doctor for more specific instruction if that’s the case. You want to fall asleep and stay that way as best you can to achieve proper rest, and multiple washroom trips will only lead to wasted potential for truly restful sleep. Do take a small glass of water with you to bed if it suits you, though, as it’s helpful to stay a bit hydrated.

5. Reader? Restrict non-fiction to waking hours

Non-fiction, such as self-help books, biographies and documentaries, actually place your brain in a state of forward-thinking. Just as you want to be planning ahead when you should be restoring your body, you want to avoid thinking into the future. You’re trying to keep your body and mind in the present, so it can start to release its tension and enter a resting state. Just be aware of the kind of story you delve into right before bed. Game of Thrones isn’t exactly light reading, but there’s a lot of incredible fiction out there to help your mind drift to sleep in another world without consequence or nervousness.

6. That goes for arguing, too!

Got a spouse? Room mate? Stubborn cat? There’s science behind going to bed angry. You need to agree that your sleeping hours are meant for just that – sleeping, and no matter how miffed either of you are, you’re likely just wasting time trying to declare a winner when you could be agreeing to forget about it and revisit the issue sometime the next day. The added bonus to this is that you’ve usually ‘cooled off’ and will have a more even reaction to the situation after your sleep cycle.

Along the same lines, you need to push your thought process over a balcony Bruce Willis-style. Throw negative thoughts out the window. (Author Edit: Don’t actually throw things – neighbours complain, and I just told you not to exercise this close to bedtime) and remind yourself that you’re in charge of your sleep.

In Part 1, we discussed restricting pre-sleep activities and lowering your body temperature, among other things. Thankfully, there are dozens of other sleep aids out there that might not already be a part of your routine, so we may as well dive right in.

7. Controlled Napping

Studies have shown that napping for 20-40 minutes helps greatly in restoring alertness on those days when you just haven’t gotten the sleep you need. The same tips for night time sleep apply to naps; Block out as much light as possible and make sure you’ve got a comfortable, quiet area to rest. Make sure to avoid longer naps and napping late in the day to keep from causing more sleepiness and disturbing your sleep at night. If you’re careful, napping can be an incredibly useful way to control unwanted drowsiness throughout your day without throwing your body’s sleep rhythm off.

8. Melatonin

Melatonin is a hormone secreted by a pea-sized gland in your brain called the pineal gland. Because the pineal gland is activated in darkness, melatonin is typically at its highest in your body at night, when it regulates your circadian rhythm (your sleep-wake cycle) by helping ease you to into sleep. You can boost melatonin production at night by eliminating light sources like backlit devices (phones, tablets and eReaders are major offenders) and generally keeping your bedroom in darkness. Research and anecdotal evidence show that taking a melatonin supplement can help correct problems with your body’s sleep cycle and give you a better night’s rest. They’re readily available at pharmacies, and though its effects are mild, I’ve used it myself to help stay asleep. Always follow the dosage directions on the label and let your doctor know you’re supplementing with melatonin, as incorrect use can lead to undesired drowsiness during the day.

9. Proper Eating

Maintaining a healthy diet is a big part of living a happy, healthy life, and plays a huge role in getting healthy sleep. Lack of nutritious foods will create vitamin deficiencies, which can cause an excess of fatigue among other, worse health problems. In addition to a balanced diet, foods like walnuts and turkey contain tryptophan, which helps in melatonin production and acts as a kind of sleep aid of its own. Be careful not to overload your stomach just before bed and stick to lighter snacks, but you’ll sleep soundly with something healthy and helpful in your stomach.

10. Light Exposure

If melatonin helps you sleep and it’s released when it’s dark, wouldn’t the opposite hold true? It does! Light exposure is important to keeping you awake and alert during the day, as it also helps regulate your circadian rhythm by telling your body that it’s time to be active. The sun’s already doing most of the work for you, so be sure to let it shine in your windows and do your best to spend some time outside each day. This is especially true during the winter, when the sun isn’t quite as strong and there are fewer daylight hours, and many people use light therapy boxes to simulate the sun for them.

Flooding yourself with light during waking hours helps make the day-night cycle much less subtle when combined with earlier tips like shutting off the stimulating glow of that TV or smartphone when you’re approaching bedtime, resulting in a balanced sleep cycle and more restful sleep.

These are just a few of many tips out there to help you get to sleep and stay there. They’ve all helped me at one point or another, and they’ll keep adding up as I personally work on my quality of sleep while trying to help out along the way!

by Kate Cann Filed Under: Lifestyle Blogs, Uncategorized 1 Comment

You know it: Dogs can help your health

SMILEY CAR RIDE BOI

Different scene, same ancient bond

I wake up to a sound that just barely registers at the edge of my mind. A flurry of movement under the comforter and a bark accompany it. I fell asleep before my husband came home from work, and a glance at the alarm clock suddenly frays my nerves — there’s no way the dogs are greeting him, not this early. It’s probably nothing. Then again…

Just as the anxiety takes off, there’s a barely-audible mew that alerts me to one of the cats at the bedside, seeking to make up for cuddle time I must have somehow denied her during reasonable waking hours. Of course, my realization doesn’t really translate to my bedmates. They were in the same situation as I was, though woken by some sound beyond human ears or the barest scent of a threat instead of the growling alarm. I reach an arm out across both my 10-pound bodyguards to quiet them, but Annie is an American Eskimo mix with energy to spare (in spite of only having one hip) and does her best to lunge, half-playfully warding off the intruding kitty. Their ancestors have been helping to guard mine for over 30,000 years, so it’s easy to forgive a little overzealousness here and there.

Once the sun comes up and my husband is out the door the following morning, I find bright eyes staring back at me from the other side of the mattress. All we’re doing is getting out of bed, something I wasn’t going to bother to do before Harley – my imposing, six-inch-tall dachshund nurse – woke up and stuck her cold nose against my throat. Before I say anything, her tail sets off wagging, and there’s a palpable energy, an eagerness I could only hope to match on my best day. My dogs will forever be one of the most positive, driving influences in my life, and I know I’m not alone in saying that.

One of the best parts of dog ownership is having a friend you NEVER worry about judging you. I feel I can already count on my closer friends not to (or if they do, not to hold it against me), but there’s always that little pinch of social paranoia with human interaction. Face-to-face, there are a hundred things to over analyze with the people we love, and I can read too much into almost any body language or tone of voice.

There’s no scowl over those button eyes when I need to set my head down on my desk for a minute or hide in bed for a little while mid-afternoon. There’s no misreading, worrying about their quiet judgment – my dogs don’t bother hiding it when they’re sad, stressed, scared or overstimulated. It’s some of the most truly honest interaction you can have. Don’t mistake that attitude for simplicity, either, because every animal has its own personality, and you grow to love them as unconditionally as they do you. That’s mostly because relaxing, playing and being happy (And, for the cats, plotting the next soul they’ll devour) are the primary hobbies for the smaller members of the household. Of course, that lack of scrutiny could be the appeal to nearly any house pet, but with dogs, we get the unconditional loyalty and the emotional connection that comes from thousands of years of history between our species. It’s in their genetics to be family/pack’ members and do their part – which, for most modern dogs, means merely existing. They’re essentially focused on food, fun and you.

Cool story, but how do dogs really affect human health?

For starters, dog owners have lower cholesterol and fewer indicators of heart trouble. Spending time with animals can have a profound effect on everything from your blood pressure to your confidence, among a seemingly endless list of other benefits most pet owners would chime in to add to.

Just ten minutes with your dog will significantly raise levels of oxytocin (a calming hormone) in both your bodies, which elevates your mood in turn. If you’ve got children – or maybe kids are in your future – your little ones get the benefit that time spent bonding with animals provides to their development into more even, balanced young adults. That’s not to mention the contact aiding their immune systems and helping to ward off future allergens.

If you get nervous in social situations – whether you’ve got genuine social anxiety or just don’t fancy yourself much of a ‘people person’ – your pet can be a great icebreaker. I can’t count the number of times I’ve been stopped (or stopped someone) while walking our dogs, even if it’s just for a stranger to reminisce on a long-passed pet they were reminded of. You’re also sharing common interests with an incredible group of people — the majority of animal lovers are incredibly caring, varied individuals from all walks of life. You’re immediately part of a kind and vast community of generally fantastic folks with a common bond: The very same kind of love I’m writing about.

All of this said you, shouldn’t run out to adopt a pet as some miracle cure for stress instead of a medical consultation. Also, bear in mind your personal financial situation — Animal care isn’t cheap, and we’re talking about a living creature that relies on you, not an iPad you can leave on the shelf and come back to when the mood strikes. Being unprepared will only lead to the gut-wrenching reality of having to re-home your best friend for their benefit, and that’s not something either of you should have to endure.

Dogs aren’t for everybody, either – there’s no shame in not being a ‘dog person.’ I’ve also enjoyed keeping fish as a calming hobby, and kept a small aquarium beside my bed to relax me when I stopped taking over-the-counter sleep aids.

Sure, part of my routine has become managing a tiny hurricane of chew toys, poo bags and stray hairs in the nose. The positives outweigh the inconveniences by too much to ignore the mental health benefit of dogs, though, and the next time I stub my toe on the doggie ramp attached to the end of my bed at 3 AM, I’ll do my best to remember my words here.

by Kate Cann Filed Under: Lifestyle Blogs, Uncategorized Tagged With: dogs, lifestyle, mental health, oxytocin, petsLeave a Comment

Common Symptoms of Anxiety Attacks & Disorders

man sitting in white pants from overhead

The body’s natural response to danger is anxiety. It’s that alarm when you think you’re being threatened or you’re facing a tense situation. It’s not necessarily a bad thing, either — A little bit of anxiety can push you to problem-solve, drive you to get excited about something and help you stay focused, aware of what’s going on. That’s all well and good, but a lot of the time anxiety isn’t your friend — it can quickly go from something productive and inspiring to the absolute nightmare people with anxiety disorders suffer through.

Speaking of anxiety disorders, there are plenty to talk about, and they’re all very different things to different people. While one person might know when an anxiety attack is coming on, like me when my hands go numb after talking about money for too long, somebody else’s panic attacks might appear to be random. Where I’m almost constantly worried about something, and my anxiety attacks tend to be a build-up of energy amassed slowly over time, somebody else could be afraid of one or more particular things, like driving or walking near traffic, and only those situations will bring on such a heightened state of anxiety. Regardless of what form the anxiety/panic disorder takes, they share one common characteristic — they’re going to make you more afraid of or worried about something that many other people aren’t threatened by.

Common Physical Symptoms of Anxiety

There’s more to a panic attack than just what’s going on in your head. Fear and anxiety have very pronounced physical responses as well — the core of your worries might not be realistic, but the sensations in your body certainly are. Because of that, these symptoms are often mistaken for other, usually worse physical illnesses, and a lot of people will make a few trips to the hospital or their family doctor before an anxiety disorder is properly diagnosed because of the range of symptoms being so similar to those of other diseases.

The physical signs include, but aren’t limited to:

  • Frequent washroom trips
  • Sweating
  • Being short of breath
  • Stomach upset
  • Dizziness
  • Insomnia
  • Twitchiness/tremors
  • Muscle tension
  • General fatigue

Common Emotional/Behavior-Based Symptoms of Anxiety

Aside from irrational, excessive worrying or fears, here are some other common symptoms of anxiety that are rooted more in how you feel mentally:

  • Difficulty concentrating
  • Racing thoughts
  • Irritability
  • Imagining the worst
  • Being tense
  • Being overly vigilant for signs of danger
  • Mind feeling blank or suddenly empty

Anxiety and panic attacks are episodes of wild fear and usually happen without much warning. There’s sometimes an apparent trigger — like my mounting panic when I have to discuss any kind of finance — but in many cases, they happen seemingly out of the blue.

To say anxiety attacks aren’t fun is an obvious understatement. They’re usually at their worst about ten minutes in, and generally don’t last for more than a half hour, but the fear is so intense that you might think you’re going to die or lose control of yourself within that span of time. It’s miserable and seems inescapable, but it will pass.

From a doctor’s standpoint, an anxiety or panic attack means your heart is racing; you’re sweating, shaking, feeling nauseated, experiencing numbness, shortness of breath, potentially chest pains, fear of dying, a sense of imminent danger—it’s any number of different unpleasant sensations. It can mimic the symptoms of a heart attack, but it’s nothing more than a passing grip of feelings. Does that mean it’s not dangerous? Maybe not physically, but depending on how you handle them, these attacks can be detrimental to your mind’s functioning. If you allow yourself to avoid the things that cause you anxiety, your symptoms will only worsen as your body gets used to the connection between panic and that situation. It quickly becomes a vicious cycle that only leads to more panic attacks and perpetuates the fear you’re feeling.

Symptoms of an actual attack often include:

  • Feeling detached or unreal, depersonalized
  • A sense of unmanageable panic
  • Heart palpitations
  • Chest pains
  • Feeling as though you’re about to pass out
  • Feeling like you’re choking or gagging
  • Trouble breathing
  • Hot flashes
  • Chills
  • Hyperventilating
  • Shaking
  • Nausea
  • Cramps

Types of Anxiety Disorders

There are six main types of anxiety disorders, and each has its own individual profile of symptoms. These disorders include generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), phobia, social anxiety disorder and panic disorder.


GENERALIZED ANXIETY DISORDER (GAD)

People suffering from generalized anxiety disorder have fear and worries to the point that they take away from their daily activities, or find themselves constantly troubled by a sense of impending doom. They feel anxious almost all the time and may not even realize why, and they often experience chronic physical symptoms like upset stomach, insomnia, tiredness, and restlessness.

OBSESSIVE-COMPULSIVE DISORDER (OCD)

Sufferers of obsessive-compulsive disorder experience unwanted behavioral impulses and unwanted thoughts that feel impossible to control. OCD folks are bothered by constant obsessing, reoccurring worries that often spur checking behaviors (I check windows and doors three times each before bed or leaving home), and what feel like uncontrollable compulsions to perform certain tasks, like the ‘classic’ case of somebody who obsessively washes their hands.

PHOBIA

Phobias are exaggerated, often unrealistic fears of specific activities, items or situations that actually present very little real danger. Common phobias include fear of flying, fear of spiders, snakes, mice, dogs and other animals and fear of heights. When a phobia is severe, you’ll find yourself taking extreme measures to avoid whatever it is you fear, but this only makes the phobia stronger. Never feed fear with avoidance — it might feel best, but it’s the worst thing you can do.

PANIC DISORDER

If you have a panic disorder, you’re likely experiencing repeated, uncontrollable, unexpected panic attacks accompanied by the crippling fear of your next panic attack. It’s often accompanied by agoraphobia — the fear of being in a place you can’t easily escape or get help if an attack were to occur — and leads to a lot of avoidance, particularly when it comes to leaving the house, public places or any situations that might elevate anxiety.

POST-TRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER (PTSD)

Post-traumatic stress disorder occurs after a traumatic event and acts like a panic attack that just never stops. The main symptoms are hypervigilance, nightmares or flashbacks, avoidance and withdrawing from other people. It’s unfortunately very common among soldiers and first-responders but certainly isn’t limited to just those classes of individuals. Anybody may experience PTSD after a genuinely traumatic event, and as with all mental health, each case needs to be approached very seriously.

SOCIAL ANXIETY

The most common type of social anxiety is stage fright, but they get worse from there. People experiencing social anxiety disorder have a fear of being humiliated publicly or being seen in a negative light by other people. It’s often seen as ‘just’ shyness, but even extroverts can experience social anxiety. When social anxiety is at its worst, sufferers will avoid social situations altogether and shut off from other people. Again, avoidance is ultimately the worst way to deal with it.


Keep in mind that these are just a few symptoms of each disorder. These are very broad, different issues and self-diagnosing based on a cursory look at some information on the internet isn’t a good plan. At the end of the day, only your doctor can truly diagnose an anxiety disorder, and while there are a lot of self-help options out there that can be incredibly useful, if your anxiety is getting in the way of your daily activities, you’ve likely got a problem that needs to be addressed by a professional. And only a professional can conclude whether your symptoms are based on anxiety or another illness, so it’s important to get checked out medically if you’re experiencing any of this.

Be sure to talk to your doctor about any over the counter supplements, drugs or herbal remedies you might be taking to cope with your symptoms and work with him/her to find a therapist in your area that specializes in the treatment of anxiety-based disorders. Cognitive behavioral and exposure therapies are both incredibly effective, with and without medication, in treating anxiety disorders.

by Kate Cann Filed Under: Lifestyle Blogs, Uncategorized Leave a Comment

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