Managing Your Health

While anxiety symptom vary widely, odds are good that at some point you've experienced occasional physical and emotional distress signals such as panicky breathing, your heart pounding in your chest, trouble sleeping, feelings of dread, or even loops of worry. That's normal. By itself, anxiety isn't a problem. It anchors the protective biological response to danger that boosts heartbeat and breathing, pumping oxygenated blood to your muscles as your body prepares to fight or flee. A dollop of healthy anxiety can persuade you to get work on time, push you to study hard for an exam, or discourage you from wandering dark streets alone. "Experiencing anxiety is normal," says Dr. Gene Beresin, executive director of the Clay Center for Healthy Young Minds at Massachusetts General Hospital. "A certain amount of anxiety can even be helpful. The problem is that sometimes the systems underlying our anxiety response get dysregulated, so that we overreact or react to

If you suffer from back pain, you've probably tried one or two ways to ease it. The range of options - from doing nothing at all to having surgery - is quite large. But the abundance of choices also represents a challenge. How do you know which therapy is right for you? Before you decide on a course of treatment, keep these four things in mind. 1. Identifying the type of back disorder you suffer from is the first - and most important - step in finding how best to treat it. Although options abound, not all are appropriate for your specific back problem. 2. Whether you're experiencing back pain for the first time or you've suffered a relapse, seek the advice of an experienced, certified, and well-recommended health specialist. That might be an internist, family practitioner, orthopedist, rheumatologist, neurologist, neurosurgeon, or psychiatrist. 3. Be an active participant in your care. Learn as much as you can about the risks and benefits of treatments you are consider