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Buddhism and Anxiety

Posted: Wed Apr 21, 2010 9:32 pm
by ReadyFeet
Hello everyone,

I was wondering if anybody could offer any Buddhist insight to the topic of anxiety/panic. Thanks!

Re: Buddhism and Anxiety

Posted: Thu Apr 22, 2010 2:08 am
by retrofuturist
Greetings Readyfeet,

Do you mean a Buddhist explanation of how it happens, or a how one might use Buddhism to tackle anxiety?

Metta,
Retro. :)

Re: Buddhism and Anxiety

Posted: Thu Apr 22, 2010 7:47 am
by ReadyFeet
Both really! Ive done lots of reading on Buddhist perspectives on depression and found it very interesting. I understand that it was exactly the things I craved for (pleasures) regarding them as happiness, that actually brought me so much suffering and stopped me enjoying the inherent good in me and those around me. I have been more a sufferer of anxiety and 'exestential fear' if you will than of depression so thought I was ask for some insight into anxiety. Thank you.

Stefan

Re: Buddhism and Anxiety

Posted: Thu Apr 22, 2010 10:57 pm
by retrofuturist
Greetings ReadyFeet,

Have you head of Professor Guy Claxton?

http://www.guyclaxton.com/tbs.htm" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I read an early book of his and he seems quite adept at relating Buddhist concepts with Western psychological concepts.

It looks like you can even contact him through the website.

Metta,
Retro. :)

Re: Buddhism and Anxiety

Posted: Thu Apr 22, 2010 11:14 pm
by Modus.Ponens
Hi

Others will explain better than me how anxiety is formed. What I can offer is a way to deal with anxiety based on the Goenka technique. I once almost had a panic atack during a plane flight because I'm afraid of flying. After I went to the Goenka retreat I had to fly on a plain and the usual anxiety was completely controled. Today I have less practice in the technique, but it still works for me.

All feelings/sensations are felt in the body. By observing them with mindfullness and equanimity you can learn that the suffering is not the feeling/sensation it self, it is the aversion or atachment to the sensation that causes suffering. Starting this observation directly with anxiety can be overwelming. So you can start by observing a moderate physical pain with equanimity, without leting aversion come to your mind. When you do it like this, you'll still feel the pain, but you will not suffer with it. You can also do this by observing the sensations of cold. When you realise how you can observe these sensations without suffering with them you can observe the sensation of anxiety that arises in the body. Observing it with equanimity you will find that the anxiety is just another physical sensation and is not suffering itself and your mind will remain centered and calm. The more you do this, the better you'll get at stoping anxiety to make you suffer.

After you learn how to deal with anxiety in this way, you can add samatha meditation. It will naturaly leave you with a calm mind, making anxiety less likely to atack and, when atacking, it will be with less intensity. The reason why you have to learn how to deal with anxiety prior to geting in samatha meditation is that you can develop relaxation-induced anxiety and panic during meditation.

I hope this helps

Metta

Re: Buddhism and Anxiety

Posted: Thu Apr 22, 2010 11:41 pm
by BubbaBuddhist
Usually, i think fear is projected in time, that is we're afraid of something that may happen in the future, or we're afraid something that happened in the past may happen again. So the more one learns to focus on the moment, the less anxiety one feels. Perhaps. More in theory than practice. it takes a lot of discipline to not be afraid of immediate physical or psychological harm.

J

Re: Buddhism and Anxiety

Posted: Fri Apr 23, 2010 1:36 am
by Ben
What excellent responses!
metta

Ben

Re: Buddhism and Anxiety

Posted: Fri Apr 23, 2010 3:56 am
by ground
Focusing on anxiety as state of body and mind is one approach another approach is focusing on the object that causes anxiety (i.e. one's distorted perception of it caused by the concomitant conceptual elaborations) . I tend to think that the latter approach is more straightforward in most cases.

Kind regards

Re: Buddhism and Anxiety

Posted: Fri Apr 23, 2010 4:42 am
by tiltbillings
TMingyur wrote:Focusing on anxiety as state of body and mind is one approach another approach is focusing on the object that causes anxiety (i.e. one's distorted perception of it caused by the concomitant conceptual elaborations) . I tend to think that the latter approach is more straightforward in most cases.
The issue with anxiety - what makes anxiety rather than fear is that its causes are not easily, if at all, apparent. What is more straightforward to paying attention, without comment, to what it is that is being felt in the very moment.

Re: Buddhism and Anxiety

Posted: Fri Apr 23, 2010 11:31 am
by ReadyFeet
Thanks everyone. They are very helpful responses, especially the one about the suffering being the aversion or attachment. In my own case I think thats very true. The second method replied (conceptual elaborations) could you possibly expand on that. That would be great. Thanks again.

Re: Buddhism and Anxiety

Posted: Fri Apr 23, 2010 11:47 am
by Ben
ReadyFeet wrote:The second method replied (conceptual elaborations) could you possibly expand on that. That would be great. Thanks again.
Yes, I am most interested in how this actually works.
kind regards

Ben

Re: Buddhism and Anxiety

Posted: Fri Apr 23, 2010 1:08 pm
by ReadyFeet
Also if anybody could offer some Buddhist insight into obsession that would be a great help. The concept of feeling anxious and then catastrophising and obsessing on the thought until it takes on a life and power of its own./ Sorry its just that Im very interested into Buddhist insights into the working of the brain. Perhaps it just comes down to cultivating patience or understanding impermanence. Any thoughts?

Re: Buddhism and Anxiety

Posted: Fri Apr 23, 2010 1:18 pm
by Ben
Yes, you could review some of the responses you have above as they are, largely, applicable to OCD as well.

Another thought...
If you are currently getting treatment for something such as anxiety/depression or OCD, you should discuss your treatment options with your clinician. Buddhist practice should only be done in conjunction with existing medical and cognitive therapies, and not as a replacement.
kind regards

Ben

Re: Buddhism and Anxiety

Posted: Fri Apr 23, 2010 4:20 pm
by ReadyFeet
Thankyou but Im not recieving treatment or suffering from OCD as such. I do suffer from anxiety but am opposed to Western medications for it and 'liquid cosh' types of approach. Im a believer that most afflictions are a result of our often underlying perceptions of things which are often warped or confused. Id still be interested to know if anybody had any thoughts on the matter.

Re: Buddhism and Anxiety

Posted: Fri Apr 23, 2010 7:16 pm
by ground
ReadyFeet wrote:The second method replied (conceptual elaborations) could you possibly expand on that. That would be great. Thanks again.
Actually this is quite similar to what tiltbillings has written:
tiltbillings wrote:
TMingyur wrote:Focusing on anxiety as state of body and mind is one approach another approach is focusing on the object that causes anxiety (i.e. one's distorted perception of it caused by the concomitant conceptual elaborations) . I tend to think that the latter approach is more straightforward in most cases.
The issue with anxiety - what makes anxiety rather than fear is that its causes are not easily, if at all, apparent. What is more straightforward to paying attention, without comment, to what it is that is being felt in the very moment.
However tiltbillings advises to focus on anxiety "without comment" which I interprete to mean "without conceptual elaborations" wheras I have been assuming that there is an object or are several objects that cause anxiety. Now perceiving those objects with or without "(mental) comment" (with or without "conceptual elaboration") is what makes the difference. The "without" of course presupposes a relaxed mindfulness when attending to the "bare" objects as they arise in one's mind.

kind regards