Beyond Worry: 3 Signs You May Have an Anxiety Disorder

Anxiety is often experienced as tension, fear, or worry when you face perceived or real threats. It is the body’s response mechanism to danger and can be provoked in non-dangerous situations such as public speaking, important events, or social environments. While most people experience anxiety, too much of it can impair your quality of life and be a cause for concern. Here are three signs that you may have an anxiety disorder:

1. Physical Symptoms

The body’s response to a perceived threat often includes physical symptoms such as a rapid or irregular heartbeat, sweating, muscle tension, and dizziness. Severe anxiety may also cause headaches, abdominal pain or discomfort in the stomach, shortness of breath, and fatigue. Feeling anxious long-term also elevates blood sugar, which can worsen other symptoms or cause additional health complications, such as loss of appetite.

2. Mental Symptoms

Anxiety also comes with mental symptoms such as tension or nervousness, tearfulness, an inability to sleep, obsessive thoughts, or intrusive traumatic memories. Other symptoms include worrying about the future or past, difficulty concentrating, and an inability to relax. If you have an anxiety disorder, you may have an urge to overthink things to minimize risk in uncomfortable environments.

Being anxious can also lead to negative self-talk. You may find yourself replaying events in your mind to assess how other people might have perceived you. Negative thoughts may persist even when a logical solution cannot be reached, leading to a loop of unpleasant feelings that evoke more worries. The habitual nature of negative self-talk yields insistent self-criticism and doubt.

Anxious people also avoid feedback from others because it makes them feel threatened or uneasy. It is also common for anxiety to heighten perfectionism, leading to self-frustration and fear of failure. These issues can interfere with your ability to feel happy and pursue new opportunities. Negative inner voices often become louder when you want to try something new, and this harms your self-image. In extreme cases, worry interferes with relationships and work, exacerbates drug and alcohol use, or impels suicidal thoughts.

3. Behavior Changes

Behavioral changes include irritability, avoidance of certain situations, and restlessness. In children, symptoms are often expressed as anger, which can affect sleep and emotional regulation. Feeling anxious may cause you to avoid encounters with friends, colleagues, or partners for fear of embarrassment. You may also avoid taking an exam because of the fear of failure.

More severe cases of anxiety may limit individuals’ ability to care for themselves. It can elicit compulsive behavior that might affect day-to-day routines or hygiene habits. Being anxious also prevents you from enjoying your leisure time, potentially worsening your physical or mental health. Anxiety is also linked to procrastination, a coping mechanism that is used to put off situations or activities that trigger anxious thoughts. Anxious behaviors and habitual procrastination often aggravate each other.

Treatments for Anxiety

Therapists have developed a variety of options to treat anxiety. Individuals may feel like one type is more effective than another. They may need to try a few therapeutic approaches before finding one that works. Some options include:

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)

The goal of cognitive behavioral therapy is to recognize and change thought patterns, reducing negative thoughts and leaving room for positivity. By changing their perception, anxious people can let go of unhealthy thoughts. CBT therapists can help patients identify things that cause anxiety and then focus on breaking out of the cycle of anxious thoughts. This may include learning techniques to relieve anxiety, such as breathing exercises, writing down anxious thoughts, and replacing negative thoughts with positive self-talk.

Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)

Dialectical behavior therapy is based on CBT, but it is used for those who experience their emotions very strongly. It is a type of talk therapy that includes a pre-assessment, weekly sessions with a therapist, skills practice in a group, and telephone crisis coaching. The goal of DBT is to reduce self-harm behaviors, address what is blocking progress in therapy, limit the progress-blocking behaviors, and learn new skills that will replace the unhealthy behaviors. DBT therapists may suggest using a diary to track these goals.

Seek Help for Anxiety

Being anxious transcends stress, which is a normal part of life. It presents as excessive worry about daily situations. Differentiating between feeling stressed and feeling anxious can help you discern when to seek professional help. Professionals may recommend cognitive behavioral therapy to help manage symptoms or prescribe medication to regulate the nervous system.

If you believe you may have an anxiety disorder, seek help from a professional today.

If you or someone you know experiences mental health issues, it is important to seek help from a qualified professional. Our Resource Specialists can help you find expert mental health resources and support in your community. Contact us now for more information on this free service.

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About the Author: August is a freelance writer who enjoys writing about topics concerning mental health, gaming, and LGBTQ rights. They’ve been writing professionally for over five years, but writing has been their calling since they were a child. In their free time, August loves to play video games, read sci-fi novels, and relax with their spouse and pet bunny.

Photo by Ivan Samkov: https://www.pexels.com/photo/man-wearing-white-crew-neck-t-shirt-posing-8498419/

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