by Sam Booth, Counseling Intern

There is a spectrum of which we experience anxiety.  It can be an intense moment of panic, to a lingering sense of dread that lasts for days.  In fact, there are two neural pathways to anxiety.  Both pathways start with sensory information reporting to the thalamus (also known as your body's information station).  In one pathway information gets sent to the cortex (higher processes of the brain including memory, thinking, learning, etc.).  After the cortex processes sensory information neurons fire to the amygdala.  The amygdala plays a big part in anxiety because it is here where your brain processes emotions, it is also known for "fight or flight" response.  Once information has been processed by the amygdala your body is then cued for anxiety response.  The second pathway for anxiety skips the cortex altogether and goes from the thalamus straight to the amygdala and ends with an anxiety response.

What do these two pathways look like in reality?  The cortex pathway of anxiety is often out of anticipatory worry.  Examples may include worries about tomorrow's test, a teenager who is late for curfew, a doctor visit, etc.  When we speak of cortex pathway to anxiety, we are generally focused on interpretations, images, and worries that the cortex creates or anticipatory thoughts that create anxiety when no danger is present.  The thalamus to amygdala pathway is more familiar because we are often unaware of the thoughts it produces; the amygdala initiates the physical experience of anxiety.  This pathway is hardwired to interpret fear or danger, an example would be seeing a shadowy figure in a doorway or your kitchen on fire.  Another difference to these two pathways is the time-tables that they operate from.  The cortex pathway takes time to interpret sensory information while the thalamus-amygdala pathway will process faster in the need for protection.

Anxiety can be an occasional worry or fear response or persistent panic, and when it starts to affect daily function it may be a good time to seek out help. Generalized Anxiety involves persistent and excessive worry that interferes with daily activities.  This ongoing worry and tension may be accompanied by physical symptoms such as restlessness, feeling on edge, or easily fatigued, difficulty concentrating, muscle tension or problems sleeping. Anxiety disorders are some of the most commonly diagnosed mental health conditions in the U.S, affecting 42.5 million adults.  

If you noticing anxiety taking a toll on your daily functioning and you want to talk about it with a professional, we have competent and caring therapists in all four of our locations: River Counseling Services in Platte, Sioux Falls Psychological Services, and Stronghold Counseling Services in Sioux Falls and in Yankton -who will meet you where you are, offering hope. That is our mission. You may schedule an appointment at the Platte office at 605-337-3444 or meet with one of our Sioux Falls or Yankton based therapists from your computer, smartphone, or in person at any of our clinics. To schedule an appointment, please call 605-334-2696.
 

Source: Rewire your Anxious Brain by Catherine M Pittman