Anxiety is a response which is innate in every healthy human being. We will all step back from the edge of a precipice, or jump when we hear a loud bang. Some of us however are more prone to anxiety than others, and controlling or curing anxiety relies upon understanding what anxious people do differently. Eastern philosophies have long known the importance of how one views one's environment. There is the age old tail of two travellers approaching a mountain range. The first traveller, looking forward to reaching his destination and relishing the new sites and sounds, sees the peeks reaching to the sky and views them as nature's gems, a site to behold. The second traveller, homesick, weary and loathe to reach his destination, views the very same peaks, from the very same angle, but thinks of them as the teeth of the entrance to hell.

The moral of this slightly melodramatic tale is that our environment is what we perceive it to be. We think something is dangerous only because, either consciously or unconsciously, we tell ourselves that it is. The process goes something like this:

Events ----> Our interpretation ----> Negative self talk ----> Negative emotions and reactions

Why we tell our selves that a certain situation is dangerous is another matter, we have learned to do that in the past and the cause is not necessarily important now. The important thing is that we stop this negative self talk.

At this point it becomes necessary to accept that both the cause and solution to your anxiety issues lie inside you. It's easier to blame it on brain chemistry imbalance, genetic weakness, and all sorts of other matters outside your control, but the simple truth is that by accepting responsibility today you can set in motion a very profound healing process.

Negative self talk doesn't just effect people with anxiety and panic attacks, it also effects those people who are constantly worried, too stressed, can't relax, or get depressed.

Negative self talk often starts with