During first grade, I spent nearly every afternoon for months in the school nurse's office, sick with psychosomatic headaches, begging to go home; by third grade, stomachaches had replaced the headaches, but my daily trudge to the infirmary remained the same. Scott Stossel afternoonbegdaily share on social
As recently as 1979, neither panic attacks nor panic disorder officially existed. Scott Stossel attackdisorderexist Change image and share on social
To say that my anxiety is reducible to the ions in my amygdala is as limiting as saying that my personality or my soul is reducible to the molecules that make up my brain cells or to the genes that underwrote them. Scott Stossel amygdalaanxietybrain share on social
There is an element in which anxiety co-represents with aspects of my personality I wouldn't want to give up. It allows you to have foresight. I may not be as empathetic. It's hard to figure out the difference between pathology and personality. Scott Stossel anxietyaspectdifference share on social
People who suffer from anxiety are very good at hiding it. That can often be a contributor to the anxiety because the gap between the internal perception and the external impression can feel so large. Scott Stossel anxietycontributorexternal Change image and share on social
I had no trouble with strangers finding out about my anxiety. It was my friends and colleagues I was concerned about. Scott Stossel anxietycolleagueconcern Change image and share on social
During high school, I would purposely lose tennis and squash matches to escape the agony of anxiety that competitive situations would provoke in me. Scott Stossel agonyanxietycompetitive Change image and share on social
Even though my mom herself was anxious, I think she didn't know how to deal with it in her kid, and my dad just had no conception of what this was about, and sort of didn't even want to acknowledge it. Scott Stossel acknowledgeanxiousconception share on social
All the textbooks talk about avoidance as a classic hallmark of anxiety disorder. So you need a therapist who is sympathetic and understanding but will also push you to do precisely the things that scare you. Scott Stossel anxietyavoidanceclassic share on social
I've always been interested in intellectual history and in psychology, and anxiety is obviously something that's been a big part of my life. Scott Stossel anxietybighave Change image and share on social
