Home Remedies for Anxiety
Anxious behavior. befalls us all at one time or another, yet it doesn't have to be an ongoing issue. Many stress-relievers exist to bring our nerves back into alignment again, so let's take a look at how our nervous system handles anxiety, and how we can use a few home remedies for anxiety to calm down a bit.
Quashing the Quivers
Everyone experiences anxiety at some point in their lives. Perhaps you're sitting in your doctor's waiting room, anticipating the horse-sized needle and your doctor is waiting for you on the other side of the door. Or maybe you've spent all day cooking, but the look on your mother-in-law's face says your best efforts were wasted. Or maybe you really hate your job.
Anxiety can be short-or long-lived, depending on its source. The more long-lasting the anxiety is, the more additional symptoms you will experience.
If your anxiety is a reaction to a single, isolated event the shot the doctor is about to give you, for example--your anxiety level will decrease and your symptoms will disappear after the event. If your anxiety is caused by friction between you and your mother-in-law, you're likely to experience anxiety for a period of time before and after you see her. In this case, the symptom list may have grown to include diarrhea (腹泻) or constipation (便秘) and irritability.
Then there's that job, a source of anxiety that never leaves you. You dread getting up in the morning because you have to go to work, dread going to bed at night because when you wake up you have to go to work, dread the weekend because when it's over you'll have to go to work. When the source of your anxiety is always present, you may also experience the following symptoms: chest pain, over- or under-eating, insomnia, loss of sex drive.
All three situations described above are types of everyday anxiety. But even though such anxiety may be common, it's taking its toll on you, physically, mentally, and emotionally.
What Causes Anxiety？
Essentially, anxiety is part of the "fight or flight" mechanism, a carry-over from our ancient ancestors. They were hunters, but they also were the hunted--their instincts readied them to attack or run from an attack. Anxiety kept them alive, as it caused adrenaline (肾上腺素) to be released into the bloodstream. When that big bear was breathing down our ancestor's neck. his adrenaline surged as a warning, causing his liver to release energy-stimulating sugars into his system to ready him for the fight.
That warning system is still necessary for today's emergencies. Trouble is that we experience the manifestations of the "fight or flight" mechanism even when it's not really appropriate to our modern stressors. You could run from your job or your doctor, and you could physically fight your mother-in-law, but the results would not be as helpful for you as they were when that ancestor outran a lion or knocked out a bear!
Certainly, your mother-in-law's visit may not be pleasant, but it's not life-threatening either. You may feel your muscles knot up at the very mention of her name, but that. in itself, isn't a problem--the problem is the body's response to such stress. When anxiety is severe or prolonged, the powerful "fight or flight" chemicals can damage your body's organs. Eventually, anxiety can cause a full-fledged illness, such as headaches and high blood pressure.
While stress is most often at the root of anxiety symptoms, they can be caused by physical problems as well. If your anxiety symptoms are persistent, get checked out by your doctor so that you can rule out the following:
&8226;Hyperthyroidism, which may produce symptoms that resemble those of anxiety
&8226;Heart disorders, which can cause rapid heartbeat, often associated with anxiety
&8226;Caffeine, which can produce nervous symptoms even in moderate amounts
&8226;Pr
A．anxiety will last for a long time in human's body
B．anxiety will always happen to most people
C．few of us will catch anxiety in our life
D．anxiety can happen suddenly and disappear quickly
Much of the American anxiety about old age is a flight from the reality of death. One of the striking qualities of the American character is the unwillingness to face either the fact or meaning of death. In the more somber tradition of American literature—from Hawthorne and Melville and Poe to Faulkner and Hemingway—one finds a tragic depth that disguises the surface thinness of the ordinary American death attitudes. By an effort of the imagination, the great writers faced problems that the culture in action is reluctant to face—the fact of death, its mystery, and its place in the back-and-forth shuttling of the eternal recurrence. The unblinking confrontation of death in Greek time, the elaborate theological patterns woven around it in the Middle Ages, the ritual celebration of it in the rich, peasant cultures of Latin and Slavic Europe and in primitive cultures; these are difficult to find in American life.
Whether through fear of the emotional depths, or because of a drying up of the floodgates of religious intensity, the American avoids dwelling on death or even coming to terms with it; he finds it morbid and moves back from it, surrounding it with word avoidance (Americans never die; they "pass away") and various taboos of speech and practice. A "funeral parlor" is decorated to look like a bank; everything in a funeral ceremony is done in hushed tones, as if it were something secret, to be concealed from the world; there is so much emphasis on being dignified that the ceremony often loses its quality: of dignity. In some of the primitive cultures, there is difficulty in under-standing the causes of death; it seems puzzling and even unintelligible. Living in a scientific culture, Americans have a ready enough explanation of how it comes, yet they show little capacity to come to terms with the fact of death itself and with the grief that accompanies it.
"We jubilate over birth and dance at weddings," writes Margaret Mead, "but more and more deal with the death off the scene without ceremony, without an opportunity for young and old to realize that death is as much a fact of life as is birth." And one may add, even in its hurry and brevity, the last stage of an American's life m the last occasion of this relation to his society—is as standardized as the rest.
Unwillingness to face death is
A．a characteristic of American society.
B．a quality found in all civilizations.
C．a quality inherited from our Latin ancestors.
D．a quality of the American character.
Passage Two：Questions 16 to 20 are based on the following passage.Sport is not only physically challenging, but it can also be mentally challenging. Criticism from coaches, parents, and other teammates, as well as pressure to win can create an excessive amount of anxiety or stress for young athletes (运动员). Stress can be physical, emotional, or psychological, and research has indicated that it can lead to burnout. Burnout has been described as dropping or quitting of an activity that was at one time enjoyable.
The early years of development are critical years for learning abut oneself. The sport setting is one where valuable experiences can take place. Young athletes can, for example, learn how to cooperate with others, make friends, and gain other social skills that will be used throughout their lives. Coaches and parents should be aware, at all times, that their feedback to youngsters can greatly affect their children. Youngsters may take their parents’ and coaches’ criticisms to heart and find a flaw (缺陷) in themselves.
Coaches and parents should also be cautious that youth sport participation does not become work for children. The outcome of the game should not be more important than the process of learning the sport and other life lessons. In today’s youth sport setting, young athletes may be worrying more about who will win instead of enjoying themselves and the sport. Following a game, many parents and coaches focus on the outcome and find fault with youngsters’ performances. Positive reinforcement should be provided regardless of the outcome. Research indicates that positive reinforcement motivates and has a greater effect on learning than criticism. Again, criticism can create high levels of stress, which can lead to burnout.
第16题：An effective way to prevent the burnout of young athletes is ________.
A) to make sports less competitive
B) to make sports more challenging
C) to reduce their mental stress
D) to increase their sense of success
