They can make you feel as though things are worse than they actually are. Not everyone who has an anxiety disorder will experience the same symptoms. If you dissociate you might feel like you are not connected to your own body. Or like you are watching things happen around you, without feeling it.
Both getting to sleep and getting up in the morning is difficult for me. I have a constant sense of dread that is tough to ignore. My mind never switches off. Recently I became so tired. I have lost my appetite and motivation to do anything. I feel really low. Things like going to work or even doing the weekly shop have become tricky.
So I decided to speak to my GP. My GP says that I am experiencing depression as well as anxiety. My GP has talked to me about medication. You can see more about breathing techniques further down this page. And you can find details of the Every Mind Matters website in the further reading section at the bottom of this page. GAD is common. The main symptom of GAD is over worrying about different activities and events. This may feel out of your control.
You feel anxious a lot of the time if you have GAD. This can affect your day-to-day life. You might find that it affects your ability to work, travel places or leave the house. You might also get tired easily or have trouble sleeping or concentrating.
You might have physical symptoms, such as muscle tension and sweating. It is common to have other conditions such as depression or other anxiety disorders if you have GAD. GAD can be difficult to diagnose because it does not have some of the unique symptoms of other anxiety disorders. Your doctor is likely to say you have GAD if you have felt anxious for most days over six months and it has had a bad impact on areas of your life. You will have regular panic attacks with no particular trigger if you have panic disorder.
They can happen suddenly and feel intense and frightening. You may also worry about having another panic attack. Certain situations can cause panic attacks. Social anxiety disorder is sometimes known as social phobia. Lots of people may worry about social situations but if you have social anxiety you will have an intense fear or dread of social or performance situations. This will happen before, during or after the event. You might feel aware of the physical signs of your anxiety.
This can include sweating, a fast heartbeat, a shaky voice and blushing. You may worry that others will notice this or judge you. You might find that you try to avoid certain situations. You might realise that your fears are excessive, but you find it difficult to control them. Your GP will ask you questions about your symptoms. And might ask you to fill out a questionnaire.
This will help them find out how anxious you feel in social situations. They may refer you to a mental health specialist for a full assessment. You can ask for a telephone appointment with your GP if it would be too difficult for you to see them in person.
Phobias are stronger than fears. They develop when a person has increased feelings of danger about a situation or object. Someone with a phobia may arrange their daily routine to avoid the thing that's causing them anxiety. Agoraphobia Agoraphobia is a fear of being in situations where escape might be difficult. Or situations where help wouldn't be available if things go wrong.
This could be the following:. You might find that these situations make you feel distressed, panicked and anxious. You may avoid some situations altogether. This can affect day-to-day life.
Agoraphobia can make it difficult to make an appointment with your GP to talk about your symptoms. You might not feel able to leave your house or go to the GP surgery. You can arrange a telephone appointment if you have symptoms of agoraphobia. A GP will decide on the best treatment options for you depending on what you tell them.
You might believe that something bad will happen if you do not do these things. You may realise that your thinking and behaviour is not logical but still find it very difficult to stop. They should discuss treatment options with you. Or you could try to self-refer to an NHS talking treatment service.
Skin picking is medically known as dermatillomania. It is an impulse control disorder. You will regularly pick at your skin. Often you will pick healthy skin. This can cause damage to your skin, including bleeding, bruising and sometimes permanent marks.
You will usually pick the skin on your face but might also pick other areas of the body. You will find it difficult to stop yourself doing it. No one knows the cause for skin-picking. It is thought that it could be a type of addiction. Or it relieves tension and stress.
It is common to have OCD and dermatillomania at the same time. Your GP may arrange for you to see a specialist mental health doctor like a psychiatrist for diagnosis. Hair pulling is medically known as trichotillomania. You feel the urge to pull out your hair if you have this condition. This can be from your scalp or other places such as your arms, eyelashes, legs or pubic area. You will find it difficult to stop yourself doing this. You might experience a build-up of tension which you can relieve by pulling out the strand of hair.
It can be difficult to stop, which can lead to hair loss. This in turn can make you feel guilty, embarrassed and affect how you feel about yourself or how your friends and family see you. You may have health anxiety if you spend a lot of time worrying about if you are ill. Or worrying about getting ill. You may:. Symptoms like headaches or a racing heartbeat can be caused by anxiety.
But if you have health anxiety you may mistake these for signs of illness. You will have upsetting thoughts about the way you look if you have BDD. This is not the same as being vain about your appearance. Or you may believe that people are focused on an area of your body such as scar or birthmark. It can be very distressing and lead to depression. You may have PTSD if your anxiety symptoms developed after a stressful or distressing event.
Or if you have experienced trauma over a long period of time. But it is thought that the following factors can cause anxiety. Some people seem to be born more anxious than others. You may get anxiety through your genes. Life experience. This could be bad experiences such as being abused or losing a loved one. It could also include big changes in life such as moving home, losing your job or pregnancy. Caffeine in coffee and alcohol can make you feel anxious. Use the Anxiety self-help guide. Why do I feel anxious and panicky?
Symptoms of anxiety Anxiety can have both psychological and physical symptoms. Physical symptoms can include: a pounding heartbeat breathing faster palpitations an irregular heartbeat feeling sick chest pains headaches sweating loss of appetite feeling faint needing the toilet more frequently "butterflies" in your tummy Anxiety can also be a symptom of another condition, such as panic disorder when you have panic attacks or post-traumatic stress disorder , which is caused by frightening or distressing events.
Is anxiety bad for you? Help for anxiety and panic There are effective treatments available for anxiety and panic disorders, so do talk to your GP if you think you may benefit from them. However, certain characteristics of high functioning anxiety may have prevented you from seeking help. Some possible reasons you might not have sought help for high functioning anxiety include:. For more mental health resources, see our National Helpline Database. Many people have a specific image or idea of what it means to have an anxiety diagnosis.
For example, you might envision a person who is housebound, cannot work, or who struggles to maintain relationships of any kind. We don't often think of the inner turmoil of anxiety as an internal struggle as being reason enough to seek help. Anxiety can be very much a life of denial. You might even convince yourself that there is nothing wrong—you're just a workaholic, germaphobe , list-maker, etc. It would be more helpful for us to refer to "high functioning anxiety" as simply anxiety.
While it can look and feel different from other types of anxiety, it's still present even though it's well-hidden and can seriously disrupt a person's life. When you feel isolated and alone, it's harder to reach out to others. As more people talk about and identify with having "high functioning" anxiety, it may become easier for people to seek help. Thinking of anxiety in both its positive and negative terms may help to reduce stigma. Rather than view anxiety as being a weakness, reducing stigma has allowed society to highlight when people with anxiety are able to live full and productive lives.
When trying to raise awareness of a social issue like mental illness, it can be helpful to identify well-known or famous people as examples. Stars such as Barbra Streisand and Donny Osmond, and athletes like Zack Greinke and Ricky Williams, have all been forthcoming about their experiences with high functioning anxiety.
Scott Stossel, the national editor of The Atlantic, has written extensively about his experiences with anxiety in the context of his achievements. There is little research on the topic of high functioning anxiety, but we do know that there is an optimal level of anxiety not too low or too high that fuels performance the Yerkes-Dodson Law. Based on this concept, your ability to function at a higher level might be increased if you had a mild to moderate level of anxiety as opposed to severe anxiety.
IQ may also play a role in how well people with anxiety function in work and life. A study found that financial managers with high levels of anxiety made the best money managers—as long as they also had a high IQ. If you've never been diagnosed with a mental illness such as anxiety but you identify with the symptoms or characteristics, talk to your doctor.
A medical professional you trust can provide support and give you a referral to be assessed by a mental health professional. If you are diagnosed with an anxiety disorder such as generalized anxiety disorder GAD or social anxiety disorder , know that there are effective treatment options. Anxiety disorders can be treated with cognitive-behavioral therapy CBT , medications such as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors SSRIs , and even techniques like mindfulness training.
Many people with anxiety find that using a combination of treatments best helps them manage their symptoms. If your anxiety symptoms do not meet the full diagnostic criteria for anxiety disorder, treatment with psychotherapy with or without medication may still be helpful. Whether you've already sought professional help or are still in the process, here are some tips you can try on your own to reduce your anxiety. Ask yourself why you hold on to your anxiety. Are you afraid that if you are no longer driven by anxiety, that you will stop being an overachiever?
These are real concerns that you will need to address as you work on reducing the effect your anxiety has on your life. This will involve refuting the belief that you can't accomplish things without your anxiety. It may take some adjustment, but you will find a new groove that gives you a healthy balance between your mental well-being and getting things done. Click below to listen now. High functioning anxiety can be a double-edged sword.
You might be afraid to let go of something that feels like it's part of your personality, but know that you don't need to be secretly anxious to achieve and succeed. Hold on to your positive traits through the habits that you've developed and try to let go of the tension and internal struggle your anxiety causes. Not only does success not need to be the result of struggle, but opening yourself up to your true feelings and sharing them with others can make your experience of life and the world around you more authentic.
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