Month: May 2023

Treatment for Anxiety

If you have GAD, especially if you have a high level of worry, you may notice memory and attention problems. If so, this is an especially good reason to seek treatment for your GAD. Intervention can be a huge help, particularly if you find your symptoms are interfering with your job, education, or personal life.

Look for a therapist who specializes in anxiety disorders. They can help you manage your anxiety in a way that is healthy and sustainable. From coping skills for calming yourself to memory tricks to help you remember important details, therapy can be a major tool in helping you get back to your daily routine.

In some cases, medication may be needed in order to control your anxiety appropriately. This can be a huge help in handling your symptoms. Learning to control and minimize worrying can make a large difference in your working memory.

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How Anxiety Can Affect Working Memory

There are several different memory systems in the brain. The long-term memory system helps us remember information and events from the distant past, whereas working memory helps us keep information in mind as we actively use it.

Working memory is critical for solving problems effectively and managing chunks of information in the present. When this system is not operating normally, it can lead to mistakes, difficulty completing tasks properly, difficulty concentrating, and problems multitasking. Working memory is strongly influenced by worry and anxiety.1

This can be a major problem in your work and personal life. Worry can hinder your working memory, causing you to forget important tasks or appointments. You may make more mistakes at work or have trouble juggling everything you need to do at home. You might experience lapses such as:

  • Not remembering where you parked your car in a parking lot
  • Frequently losing things, like your keys or your phone
  • Repeating things in conversation because you can’t remember if you already said something
  • Difficulty recalling directions or information someone gives you
  • Trouble remembering items you want to purchase in the store

Research dating back to the 1970s has shown working memory and anxiety to be related. Studies have consistently shown that when people experience anxiety, particularly when worry is at high levels—a trademark of GAD—working memory capacity suffers.2 School/work performance, the ability to use complex problem-solving strategies, and decision-making skills may be compromised.

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How Generalized Anxiety Disorder Affects Memory By Will Meek, PhD Updated on December 01, 2019 Medically reviewed by Amy Morin, LCSW

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If you experience generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), you have chronic and persistent anxiety. Your friends and loved ones may describe you as “nervous” or as “a worrier.” You may feel anxious about daily situations and your worry is likely out of proportion or irrational. Anxiety can alter your everyday routines, and it can also have an impact on your memories.

Memories can be affected when you are under periods of stress or experience some sort of disturbance in mood. Having a significant anxiety disorder like GAD can create some of these problems routinely, leaving you operating below your normal level of memory functioning.

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6. Surround Yourself with Positive People

And lastly, surround yourself with positive people who see the best in you and who bring out the best in you. Honestly, this was a very crucial step in my own healing process. It wasn’t until I emptied my life of pretty much everyone and everything that I was not only able to root out all the bad stuff, but really grow in all the good stuff as well.

Yes, this is very difficult to do, especially if you have friends and family who are toxic. But coming from someone who gave up every single friendship I had prior to this point of healing – it was worth it. Yes, sometimes I miss some of my old friends – they were wonderful people who did nothing wrong – but it was what I had to do to find healing, and I’m so glad I did.

If you’ve been living with pain, shame and regret over choices you’ve made in your past, let me tell you – it does NOT have to be this way. I know because I’ve been there, but I’m not there anymore.

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5. Walk in Truth

Of course, feeling forgiven and making positive changes going forward isn’t always easy. That’s why you must commit to walking in truth.

What sins do you struggle to avoid? What Scriptural truths do you struggle to believe? Find relevant Scripture, write it down, memorize it, and refer to it constantly. Meditate on it day and night until it becomes a part of you and you start living according to it.

Are you struggling with guilt and shame over your past? Memorize Romans 8:1, which says, “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”

Repeat it to yourself every time those feelings try to creep back in again. Say it out loud if you need to. Write it on your hand if you need to. Spray paint it on your walls if you need to. Whatever it takes for you to be able to proclaim it victoriously.

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4. Forgive Yourself

If God, who is perfect, pure and holy can forgive you – so can you. You are not allowed to hold yourself to a higher standard than God does (as though you were a more righteous judge), and you don’t want to say that Jesus’s blood is insufficient for your sins (it’s not). When God declares you forgiven, you are forgiven. Period. The end.

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3. Seek Freedom from Bondage

Of course, not all sins are easy to break, especially in cases of addiction. This is because, when we allow sin to enter our lives, we give Satan a foothold or a “grasping on point,” from which he can influence and control our lives, and he isn’t going to let it go of it easily. Therefore, if you have sins that are keeping you in spiritual bondage, stronger measures may be needed.

Two of the absolute best resources I know of on spiritual strongholds are the books “The Steps to Freedom in Christ” and “The Bondage Breaker,” both by Neil T. Anderson. I went through both books and “The Steps to Freedom in Christ” study guide in high school, and it absolutely began a period of great healing and transformation in my life. I know it can for you too.

If you have sins you struggle to break free from, I would strongly encourage you to check out one or both books. But don’t stop there. Speak to your pastor, a strong Christian mentor or a trusted Godly friend. Speak to a counselor or doctor, if you need to. Do whatever it takes to find true freedom once and for all. I can promise you, it is hard but it is worth it.

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POLICE HORSES TRAMPLE DEMONSTRATORS AT FREEDOM CONVOY PROTEST IN OTTAWA

Turns out the lasting image of the Freedom Convoy protest at Parliament Hill will not be bouncy castles but that of a woman with a walker being trampled by a police horse.

The violence the Prime Minister has expressed concern about during the three-week protest in Ottawa didn’t unfold until Justin Trudeau’s Emergencies Act police army was sent in to disperse the crowd.

The three major incidents Friday, under a form of martial law, were grotesque.

Video of Toronto Police Mounted Unit officers charging into the crowd and at least one horse trampling multiple people — including an elderly woman with a walker — was disturbing.

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