You can't stop cycling through the same negative thoughts, worrying about anything and everything. Your heart is racing. You feel sweaty. Everything seems to be so overwhelming. Does this sound familiar? If any of that strikes home, you are likely experiencing anxiety.
Anxiety, or Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD), is estimated to affect 6.8 million people in the United States. And that number continues to rise every single calendar year. Anxiety is one of the most common mental health issues in the world. It is also one of the most treatable ones.
However, not everybody gets treatment for it due to mental health stigma. And even though it is widespread, not everybody knows exactly what anxiety is. Let's start by taking a closer look at what anxiety is and the symptoms accompanying it.
What Is Anxiety?
Anxiety is a learned emotional response. In ancient times, our ancestor's bodies developed anxiety as a response system to life or death situations. Known as the fight or flight response, they could either flee away from danger or stay and fight through it. Useful in the wild when trying to escape a predator? Now though? We don't regularly face life or death situations to warrant this response.
Unfortunately, our bodies have held on to this response as a learned behavior. So when anxiety begins to take over, your body and mind perceive something as dangerous or threatening. More often than not, there is no evidence of this dangerous situation actually happening. Instead, your mind has intrusive thoughts, causing you to worry and spiral.
"What if something happens when I leave the house?" "I'm going to fail at this presentation at work; I just know it." "I'm going to make a fool of myself." Could any of these things happen? Well, sure. But the difference here is that there is no concrete evidence of any of that occurring.
Symptoms Of Anxiety
This is not an exhaustive list of symptoms, but these are some of the most common ones:
Excessive Worrying
We all worry. It's common to feel nervous or stressed over certain life situations, such as job interviews, tests in school, or a big meeting at work. When you have GAD, the worrying doesn't stop. It remains for much longer than what usually happens. However, a line is drawn between what is a normal amount of worry and too much of it.
Assuming The Worst Will Happen
This is a classic telltale sign that you have anxiety. It's natural to feel uncertain about the future. However, for those with anxiety, the uncertainty of everything manifests itself in a very negative way. Through no fault of their own, someone dealing with anxiety always assumes that the worst will happen. They play scenarios over and over in their hands of the worst possible outcomes, which ends up fueling an already untamable fire.
Other Symptoms Of Anxiety
In addition to those above, there are more signs and symptoms that someone is dealing with anxiety.
Poor concentration
Trouble sleeping or insomnia
Irritability or easily agitated
Digestive issues
Headaches
Muscle tension
Feeling restless
How To Begin Finding Relief From Anxiety
Anxiety is a condition that can be overwhelming and debilitating. It will prevent someone from being able to live everyday life. You can use many resources and techniques to help with anxiety.
Many people will use breathing techniques, mindfulness exercises, or journaling to help quiet their minds. While all of those can help on the surface level, it is important to find the root of anxiety. The best way to fully treat anxiety is through the help of an anxiety therapist.
Anxiety therapy can help you dig deep to find the root of what is causing all of this to begin with. Reach out to me soon so I can help you find some much-needed relief.