Peer Discussion: Anxiety, Fear, and Stress (Other (Not Listed) Sample)

R​‌‍‍‌‍‌‍‍‌‌‌‌‍‌‌‌‍‍‌‍​espond to two peers while being respectful of and sensitive to their viewpoints. Consider advancing the discussion in the following ways: Engage in conversation with your peers related to the sympathetic nervous system and anxiety, fear, and stress. Consider asking a question or sharing your personal experience. Each peer receives a separate response. Thank you Peer 1 Hi Class. After reading the article this week, "4 Tips for Slowing Down to Reduce Stress", I can relate to everything the author is saying. It is important to balance the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems. It is detrimental both physically and mentally to be on constant "high-alert". According to the author, it is important for our sympathetic nervous system to be active because this is what enables us to react if there is a threat, but in order to balance our systems, we need to have our parasympathetic nervous system activated to lessen the fight or flight response or else we will always be on edge. In generalized anxiety disorder the one experiencing that has a constant state of anxiety for what might happen in many different situations. There isn't usually one fear that is focused upon. This anxiety or fear could be for something simple and not just a major event. Fear such as, "what happens if my parents get sick?" or "what might happen if I fail this test?". This anxiety might just arise even if nothing like that has happened before. In general anxiety disorder it is a constant state of anxiety. The difference between this and reaction to phobic object is that a phobia is of a certain object or situation. It is a specific worry rather than a general worry. A phobic person may anticipate that they will come across the object in which they fear, and it can be an excessive fear. A person with GAD will live in a constant state of worry about multiple things or situations. A therapist can advise their patients in different ways on how to help them by balancing their sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems. One way would be to teach them to be aware of both and how they are at play with one another. By showing them breathing treatments or meditations to help them slow down would help. By simply making the patient aware of what is happening, that in itself can help. Anxiety disorder applies to self-care. By being aware of an anxiety disorder, the individual can then take the steps to treat the issue and care for themselves both physically and mentally. Anxiety disorders relate to emotional intelligence. By being aware of anxiety disorder, one can then be sympathetic to others who might suffer with it. Being aware is the first step to understanding others and being able to help them. Peer 2 Hello Class! It's important to balance our sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous system. According to Bernhard the sympathetic nervous system help​‌‍‍‌‍‌‍‍‌‌‌‌‍‌‌‌‍‍‌‍​s prepare us for danger. This can also be referred to as a “fight or flight” response. However, its counterpart is the parasympathetic nervous system that helps relax us. When one is higher than the other way is lower. This means that if for example we are more relaxed (Parasympathetic nervous system) then our sympathetic nervous system is less active (2011). If we are to only have one of them active, let's say our sympathetic nervous system, that means we tend to have more anxiety and stress. That is not the best option for our health and can cause panic attacks if there is no danger (Hooley, et el, 2019). The anticipation that people with generalized anxiety and a specific phobia can differentiate. People with a specific phobia such as spiders will have a fear or panic reaction when they see or think about that specific thing. On the other hand, people with generalized anxiety tend to have a wide range of general anxiety. They can also experience panic attacks. This can be encountered throughout a day but has no real focus (Hooley, et el, 2019). People with a specific phobia also tend to show a strong and persistent fear that when triggered tends to cause a significant amount of distress/impairment. They will go to great lengths to avoid such encounters that can include not watching a show that has that trigger (Hooley, et el, 2019). Generalized anxiety disorder is a bit different. They tend to have to worry about many different things for more days than not. It must be difficult to control as well as have 3 symptoms while also impairing/distressing the Indvidual. (Hooley, et el. 2019) A way that a therapist might help a patient activate their parasympathetic system is by taking deeper breaths. I remember when I was in therapy that was the first thing that my therapist taught me. It was controlling my breathing. I would inhale through my nose for 5 seconds, hold for 5, then exhale through my mouth for the last 5. Generally, this was also engaging the diaphragm. I would have to say an anxiety disorder relates to self-care. As mentioned in our textbook, a common psychological causal factor is classical conditioning as well as our own perceptions of a lack of control (Hooley, et el, 2019). Self-care overall can help us understand our head and mind. This also can be related to taking care of our mind through speaking to a therapist or psychiatrist to help explain symptoms and possibly find the underlying cause. They can also help give us ways to help symptoms and relax our bodies more. References: Bernhard, T. (2011, September 13). 4 tips for slowing down to reduce stress. Psychology Today. https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/turning-straw-gold/201109/4-tips-slowing-down-reduce-stress Hooley, J. M., Nock, M. K., & Butcher, J. N. (2019). Abnormal Psychology (18th ed.). Pearson Education (US). https://mbsdirect.vitalsource.com/books/97801351​‌‍‍‌‍‌‍‍‌‌‌‌‍‌‌‌‍‍‌‍​91033 source..