Self-monitoring of symptoms of the anxiety disorder is one of the most important steps in cognitive-behavioural therapy of anxiety disorders. With a diary of symptoms (and situations, thoughts and responses to the panic syndrome) you get a closer insight about your problem and can talk with your therapist in detail about your very personal problem. Very often the monitoring helps to reduce catastrophic thoughts and imagination about a continuous worsening of the severity of the symptoms or major health related consequences (e.g. getting an heart attack, stroke or severe breathing dysfunction). With this kind of self-monitoring most patients learn to identify specific thoughts or situations that trigger the anxiety.
