We all experience anxiety at times in our lives. But for a lot of people, it can be overwhelming and debilitating. Anxiety is when a person experiences both uncontrollable worry and physiological symptoms such as dizziness, palpitations, panic attacks, sweating, shaking and nausea. Anxiety can take many different forms, from panic, social anxiety and phobias through to health anxiety and generalised anxiety.

OCD is when a person experiences repeated and intrusive thoughts or images, which create high levels of distress, causing the person to carry out compulsions which are repetitive and ritualistic in an attempt to make the distress and images/thoughts go away
Types of OCD can include checking, hoarding, contamination, symmetry and ordering.

Trauma is defined as an event which causes a psychological or emotional response to a situation or experience that is extremely distressing or disturbing. This can be as a result of bereavement, relationship breakdown, illness / injury or being a victim of crime. Post-traumatic Stress Disorder occurs when the individual relives the trauma and feels like the incident is still a current threat. The reliving can occur through flashbacks or nightmares and may lead to feelings of isolation, fear, irritability, shame and guilt.

Low self-esteem is a recurrent thought of oneself as unlovable or inadequate. This leads to reduced confidence and if it continues over a long period of time it can be detrimental to our mental health and day-to-day function. Low self-esteem often begins in childhood. Our friends, siblings, parents, teachers and social media send us both positive and negative messages about ourselves.

Depression is a when a person feels persistently low in mood for longer than a couple of weeks, negatively affecting how they feel, the way they think and the way they act. A person with Depression may experience a whole range of physical and emotional symptoms, some of which may include: feelings of sadness and worthlessness, loss of pleasure/interest in activities, loss of energy and motivation, changes in appetite and sleep patterns, difficulty with concentration and making decisions and experiencing thoughts of death or suicide.

Myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) is a disabling and complex illness which leaves people with overwhelming fatigue that prevents them from being able to function the way they once had. This fatigue is not improved with rest and may get worse after any activity/task (mental or physical) is carried out. Alongside this they may also experience a whole host of other symptoms, some of which may include: headaches, sore throats, joint or muscle pain, dizziness and problems with thinking, remembering and concentration.

Body dysmorphic disorder (BDD) is when a person can’t stop thinking about one or more perceived defects or flaws with their appearance. A person experiencing BDD will become intensely focused on their appearance and body image causing them to repeatedly check their appearance, spending excessive time grooming and seeking reassurance from others. The perceived flaw they believe they have may create feelings of shame and embarrassment, causing distress and impacting on a person’s ability to function in daily life. They may seek out cosmetic procedures to try to “fix” their perceived flaw. However, their reduction in distress is temporary and the anxiety returns causing them to seek further ways to “fix” their perceived flaw.