Holly Duhig - A Book About Anxiety (Healthy Minds)

Published in 2020 by The Rosen Publishing Group, Inc.

Publishing Group, Inc.

29 East 21st Street, New York, NY 10010

Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Duhig, Holly.

Title: A book about depression / Holly Duhig.

Description: New York: PowerKids Press, 2020. | Series: Healthy minds | Includes glossary and index.

Identifiers: ISBN 9781725314641 (pbk.) | ISBN 9781725314665 (library bound) | ISBN 9781725314658 (6 pack)

Subjects: LCSH: Depression, Mental--Juvenile literature.

| Depression in children--Juvenile literature.Classification: LCC RC537.D84 2020 | DDC 616.8527--dc23

Copyright 2019 Booklife Publishing

This edition is published by arrangement with Booklife Publishing

Written by: Holly Duhig

Edited by: Kirsty Holmes

Designed by: Danielle Jones

PHOTOCREDITS

Front Cover Vika Hova. , unless stated otherwise. With thanks to Getty Images, Thinkstock Photo and iStockphoto.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without permission in writing from the publisher, except by a reviewer.

Manufactured in the United States of America

CPSIA Compliance Information: Batch #CW20PK: For Further Information contact Rosen Publishing, New York,

New York at 1-800-237-9932.

CONTENTS

Words that look like THIS are explained in the glossary on page .

WHAT IS ANXIETY?

Anxiety is the word we use to describe the feelings of fear and worry that we all experience from time to time. Many of us feel anxious on the first day of a new school year or when we have to take a test. Our thoughts might race and we might feel like there are knots in our stomach. These feelings are normal and can sometimes even be helpful because they let us know that what we are doing is important to us.

If someone feels highly anxious all the time, it can start to affect their day-to-day life and relationships, both with themselves and other people. This can be a sign of an anxiety disorder. An anxiety disorder is a mental health condition, which means it affects your mind, thoughts, and feelings. There are many types of anxiety disorders, but one of the most common is called generalized anxiety disorder or GAD.

BEING ANXIOUS BEFORE A BIG SPORTS MATCH CAN HELP GIVE YOU THE ENERGY YOU NEED TO PERFORM AT YOUR BEST.

Both children and adults can have mental health conditions like anxiety. Often mental health conditions are diagnosed by a doctor or . For people with a mental health condition like generalized anxiety disorder, high levels of anxiety can stop them from doing the things they enjoy as well as the things they need to do in their daily lives, like school or work.

Anxiety is a powerful emotion that affects our bodies as well as our minds.

Some peoples anxiety causes them to worry about lots of different things, whereas other people might worry about one particular thing. When you have anxiety, it can feel like there are lots of worries and fears taking up space in your mind. This can be very tiring and can make it difficult to concentrate on things like schoolwork or even fun things like spending time with friends, playing games, and reading books.

RESEARCH SUGGESTS THAT 3.1% OF PEOPLE IN THE U.S. HAVE GENERALIZED ANXIETY DISORDER.

SYMPTOMS OF ANXIETY

Anxiety affects people in many ways, both of anxiety that happen in our bodies.

Physical symptoms of anxiety can cause us to worry even more because they make us believe there is something wrong with us, or that we are ill. It is important to remember that, as uncomfortable and scary as these symptoms can be, they cant hurt you and they will go away when you feel calm again. Some of the physical symptoms of anxiety are:

The Worry Cycle

When we are anxious, we tend to pay more attention to our bodies and how they feel. This can spark a cycle of worry and make feelings like , quick breathing, palpitations, and stomachaches seem more powerful than they actually are. Usually these feelings go away once we are calm again.

ANXIETY AND THE BODY

Many scientists think that anxiety is caused by in the brain.

Research has shown that people with anxiety sometimes have less of a chemical called serotonin in their brains. Serotonin is a chemical that helps to send messages between brain cells and helps keep your mood stable. When there isnt enough of this chemical, it can cause people to become more sad or anxious. Some people with anxiety are prescribed medication to help boost the levels of serotonin found between individual brain cells.

Dealing with anxiety can be difficult, but it can be easier when you understand what is happening inside your brain. The emotion of anxiety begins in the amygdala (say: a-MIG-duh-luh), which are two almond-shaped parts of the brain that are responsible for warning you about danger. They are part of the limbic system the system in the brain that deals with our emotions. The amygdala tells the hypothalamus, another part of the brain, to react to worry and .

Fight, Flight, Freeze

Your hypothalamus begins something called the fight, flight, freeze response in your body. This is the full-body response that gives you the energy to either face your fears (fight) or run away from them (flight). The third response, freeze, can happen when we feel so overwhelmed that we feel like we cant move or are stuck to the spot.

The hypothalamus sends a message to two called adrenaline (sometimes called epinephrine).

These hormones tell certain parts of your bodysuch as your heart, lungs, and musclesto work harder so that you can fight, or run away from, the thing that is frightening you.

WHY DO WE NEED FIGHT, FLIGHT, FREEZE?

Scientists think humans have developed the fight, flight, freeze response to fear because our needed to fight and run away from dangerous predators. The freeze response may have even helped them to play dead or stay still long enough that a predator wouldnt notice them.