Posted by dana on June 29, 2001, at 20:51:10
In reply to Food and Anxiety, posted by Greg A. on June 29, 2001, at 16:37:35
Hi Greg,
I am so glad someone brought this up. I had found the same thing was going on for me. What I have learnt through two years of therapy and medication is that when you eat .. or when you do ANYTHING..like walking up stairs...your body has to RESPOND.......increased heart rate.... as it absorbes the food....... normal bodily functions....adrenaline etc etc........things that we would probably have never even focused on had we not become ill with depression or suffered from Panic/anxiety.
Because depression/anxiety/panic......makes us HYPER VIGILANT with regards to our bodies, you may be associating EATING with illiciting a response...... one that is SIMILAR to the feelings associated with panic/anxiety etc. So now you have allowed it to form a CYCLE of thoughts.....and the OBSESSING starts.....
Say to yourself....... THIS IS NORMAL
WHAT IS HAPPENING IS NORMAL
MY BODY NEEDS TO PRODUCE A RESPONSE
MY BODY IS EFFICIENT
IT IS NORMAL
IT WILL PASS
NOTHING DANGEROUS IS GOING ON HEREsomething along these lines........ This is why so many sufferers just lock themselves away unable to get out of bed.....fearful of ANY hint of feelings that are similar to how we felt during an anxiety or panic attack.
Please train yourself to breathe properly......it is the KEY to retraining and recovery......
BREATHE DEEPLY AND HOLD YOUR BREATH FOR ABOUT 7 SECONDS.........breathe out slowly.......saying the WORD R E L A X..........
then for the next five to ten minutes.......BREATHE IN FOR THE COUNT OF THREE SECONDS.........HOLD FOR THE COUNT OF THREE SECONDS...........RELEASE FOR THE COUNT OF THREE SECONDS..............
breathing from the DIAPHRAGM.......... most important................
This technique regulates your breathing.....and OVERBREATHING is a big cause of anxiety...... lightheadedness....... etc..........
Hope this helps........
Dana
poster:dana
thread:68375
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20010625/msgs/68401.html