As I mentioned last time, the symptoms of combat posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) fall into four categories that include: re-experiencing, avoidance, negative changes in beliefs and feelings and hyperarousal. Today I want to talk about the combat PTSD symptoms that fall into the avoidance category.

Everyone feels insecure in certain situations. Learn how to speak up and appear confident, even in the most anxiety producing and insecure situations with these three tips.

My depression is really making me struggle with the daily task of living right now. I can't keep going the way I have in the past few years. I hate my life; I'm completely broke and in debt and I feel like all of my relationships are crumbling. Sometimes I sit back and look at my life and think, "Is this really it for me? Is depression going to define and imprison me for the rest of my life?" I know it's pretty common for someone in the late twenties to question where their life is going, but I feel like I have extra questions than the average person who say, isn't diagnosed with depression.

Sometimes you just do have to step away. Sometimes posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has to cease being the focus of your life, even if only for a few hours or minutes. Healing work can be draining; shoring up your mind and emotions with an experience outside the realm of PTSD can actually help your recovery reach a whole new level.

Anxiety can feel as though an incredibly loud and boisterous parade is charging right through your very being: blasting bands, flashy floats, animals, and announcers ad nauseam. This chaos within can cause headaches, chest pain, difficulty breathing, excessive sweating, aches and pains, and other noxious anxiety symptoms. Further, our thoughts become anxious and race with worry and obsessions. Often, panic sets in. As if this weren't bad enough, we have to live in the midst of this parade. We have to deal with parade garbage (think about it—debris, litter, road apples) while simultaneously dealing with everything else around us. With pandemonium on the inside, how do we deal with all of the stuff on the outside?

Recent studies indicate that social media impacts the adolescent brain and produces anxiety and low self-esteem. Educators have informed us for years on how vital early childhood is for brain development. Professionals stress the importance of educational activities and limiting screen time for ideal brain enhancement. Society has retooled preschool programs, children’s television, and offered early intervention for potential delays. Children, however, go through another rapid period of brain growth during adolescence, similar to the toddler years. Little is being done to maximize these crucial learning years for adolescents and parents need to be aware of what their teenager’s brain is absorbing.

The symptoms of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) can cause significant distress for a child and can be challenging for parents to be able to effectively manage. A child who refuses to comply with the rules or intentionally creates problems may be struggling with symptoms severe enough to warrant admission into a residential treatment program for ADHD children.

Work anxiety is a common issue for many with an anxiety disorder. In fact, it can be so debilitating for some that they're not able to work at all. In this video, I interview a friend who works in the medical field, one of the most stressful work environments there is. What's the main way he copes with anxiety at work? Turns out, it's mostly good self-care.

When I was younger, there was a public service announcement that ran over and over that explained that the majority of car accidents happen within a few miles from home. The purpose of this message was to encourage people to wear their seatbelts, even when travelling short distances. I was a precocious youngster and when I saw these commercials I thought to myself, “No kidding! You travel close to your home most of the time, so it’s just common sense that most of the accidents would happen there.” Anxiety and panic disorder follow a similar pattern. Since I am home more than I am away, the majority of my anxiety and panic issues occur at home. Additionally, I am more likely to have elevated anxiety before I fall asleep and I spend most nights in my own bed.

People judge others. It’s just what we do. It’s basic human psychology. We judge them as beautiful or not. We judge them as happy or not. And fairly frequently, we judge them as being successful or not. And this goes for people with bipolar disorder too. Often people look at the lives of others with bipolar disorder and determine whether they are “well” or “sick” and how successful that person with bipolar disorder really is. There’s just one problem with this: looking at a person with bipolar from the outside only tells half the story (if that).