Margaret Wehrenberg - The 10 Best-Ever Anxiety Management Techniques: Understanding How Your Brain Makes You Anxious and What You Can Do to Change It (Second)

If I could, I would acknowledge every client I have had who taught me through our therapy interactions how to understand anxiety and to resolve the symptoms. Although naming any of them, much less all of them, is not possible, I remember those who shared so much with me and appreciate the trust they showed. The techniques in this volume have all been used in the consulting room and reflect the experiences that I have had with those whose identities are not revealed but whose stories made this book possible.

Note to Readers: Standards of clinical practice and protocol change over time, and no technique or recommendation is guaranteed to be safe or effective in all circumstances. This volume is intended as a general information resource for professionals practicing in the field of psychotherapy and mental health; it is not a substitute for appropriate training, peer review, and/or clinical supervision. Neither the publisher nor the author(s) can guarantee the complete accuracy, efficacy, or appropriateness of any particular recommendation in every respect.

Copyright 2018, 2008 by Margaret Wehrenberg

All rights reserved
Second Edition

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The Library of Congress has cataloged the printed edition as follows:

Names: Wehrenberg, Margaret, author.

Title: The 10 best-ever anxiety management techniques : understanding how your
brain makes you anxious and what you can do to change it / Margaret Wehrenberg.

Other titles: Ten best-ever anxiety management techniques

Description: Second edition. | New York : W.W. Norton & Company, [2018] |
Series: A Norton professional book | Includes bibliographical references and index.

Identifiers: LCCN 2017050780 | ISBN 9780393712148 (pbk.)

Subjects: LCSH: Anxiety. | Brain.

Classification: LCC BF575.A6 W44 2018 | DDC 152.4/6dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2017050780

ISBN 978-0-393-71215-5 (e-book)

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For Ellie and Hal

The 10 Best-Ever Anxiety
Management Techniques

Page numbers listed correspond to the print edition of this book. You can use your devices search function to locate particular terms in the text.

A

AASM. see American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM)

ABCD method

use A and B parts of, 22325

use C and D parts of, 22629

ACC. see anterior cingulate cortex (ACC)

acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), 76

acetylcholine

in causing anxiety, 1112

achieve balance

in controlling TMA, 2017, 204f, 205f

ACT. see acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT)

activity(ies)

in ACC, 1920

in insula, 20

of neurotransmitters, 1114

in OFC, 2021

in PFC, 21

ADHD. see attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)

adolescent(s)

attachment to cell phones, 56

set pattern of sufficient sleep in, 11314

TMA in, 213

affirmation(s)

in challenging negative self-talk, 22930

self-, 22930

age(s)

TMA at different, 21215

alcohol

limit intake of, 5152

alcohol use

panic associated with, 3031, 32t

all/never language

stop using, 199

Alpha-Stim, 116

Amen, D., 61, 114

American Academy of Pediatrics, 61

on sleep, 108

American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM)

on sleep, 61, 1089

amygdala

role of, 1718

two hemispheres of, 27

in unlearning fear, 236

worry and, 141

anger

decatastrophizing, 13738

learn to know (and choose to show), 13738

anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), 100, 14648, 158, 159, 168, 170, 185, 189, 191, 195, 211

activity in, 1920

low SE levels effects on, 37

overactivity of, 141

anxiety

ADHD vs., 2930, 30t

antithesis of, 77

beliefs common to people with, 231

breathing creating, 70

causes of, 23536

CBT for, 119

DA and, 8, 2526, 26t

defined, 77

in elderly, 21314

embarrassment-related, 86

forgetting to breathe during, 6970

free-floating, 177

GABA and, 2627, 26t

generalized. see generalized anxiety

get educated about, 218

giving control over to, 232

health, 17477

illness and pain intensifying, 87

left brain, right brain in, 2728

levels of, 56, 58f

list-making in calming, 15354

mindfulness in warding off, 86

natural remedies for, 43

NE and, 25, 25t

neurotransmitters in causing, 1114, 2427, 25t, 26t. see alsospecific types

other conditions overlapping with, 2931, 30t33t, 44

psychiatric problems with, 44

revving up of, 21314

SE and, 2425, 25t

sleep effects of, 110

social. see social anxiety

stress and, 23

supplements for, 43

symptoms of, 2429

take the edge off, 43

Anxiety Busters, 240

anxiety disorder(s). see alsospecific types

medications for, 3643. see alsospecific types

worry as, 158

anxiety level

demands impact on, 56, 58f

anxiety management techniques, 49252. see alsospecific types, e.g., change your intake

breathe, 6375

change your intake, 4962

contain your worry, 15885

control TMA, 189215

implement plan and practice three Cs, 23552

left brain in, 28

managing anxious behavior, 187252

managing anxious body, 49117

managing anxious mind, 11985

mindfulness, 7686

rest and relax, 87117

stop anxious thoughts, 14057

stop catastrophizing, 12339

talk yourself into changing behavior, 21634

anxiety-producing thought processes

stopping, 12339. see also stop catastrophizing

anxiety sensitivity, 12

Anxiety Sensitivity Index, 12

anxious

expectations of being, 23536

how brain makes you, 533

anxious behavior

managing, 187252

anxious body

management of, 45117. see alsospecific methods, e.g., change your intake

anxious brain, 533

prepare for sleep, 115

anxious mind

described, 12021

managing, 11985

symptoms of, 12021

why do I have so much trouble stopping my, 14042

anxious thoughts

best way to stop, 14445

competing with, 144

distracting yourself from, 144

stopping, 14057. see also stop anxious thoughts

aromatherapy

benefits of, 107

arousal

BG in, 18

breathing for minimal, 7374

ASD. see autism spectrum disorders (ASD)

ask yourself, so what?

in self-talk, 222

aspartame, 54

assess what makes you anxious and what skills you need

in implementing plan and practicing three Cs, 23941

attention

demand for, 55

focusing your, 8182

attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)

anxiety vs., 2930, 30t

GAD vs., 2930, 30t

in SAD, 30, 31t