Anxiety Symptoms: Signs To Identify This Psychological Disorder
Do you think you may suffer from anxiety? Discover the most common anxiety symptoms to identify this disorder. Come in and observe the clearest signs of anxiety.
The anxious symptoms and the disorders that arise from it are very common in these times. So much so, that many primary care medical consultations deal with this type of problem.
One of the anxiety symptoms more frequent is fear. On the one hand, fear is something objective and, therefore, it is related to a threatening stimulus in the environment that is specific and can be easily identified. Thus, it informs us of a real danger in our environment in the face of which we adopt a series of defensive behaviors to avoid or overcome that state of unrest. In contrast, anxiety is not associated with an external threat that can be detected in the environment, but is a more diffuse, inconcrete and subjective fear (anticipatory property), which is why we cannot escape from it as in the case of anxiety. fear where the feared stimulus is known.
In order to know how to detect the anxiety symptoms it is worth mentioning its components or the different response systems that people with this type of symptoms present:
Subjective-cognitive component: It is the nuclear component and refers to the internal experience that the person has. It is related to the perception and subjective evaluation made of the stimuli in the environment and the anxiety states (experience of fear, worry, restlessness, intrusive thoughts, etc.).
Physiological-somatic component: Physiological changes that accompany anxiety state, such as sweating, tremor, muscle tension, cardiac or respiratory acceleration.
Motor-behavioral/behavioral component: The behavior that people show towards anxiety states These can be movements or expressions, although this component focuses more on overt escape or avoidance responses.
It is important to know what exactly it is the anxiety and how it manifests itself in order to recognize its symptoms, which may be interfering with our psychological well-being or that of other people around us and who may be the subject of psychological intervention.
It is extremely common to talk about anxiety, referring to it as if by itself it were enough to explain what really happens to us, what happens is that by doing this we make a mistake, anxiety by itself sometimes does explain what happens to us. It happens, but not always, that is why it is very important to ask ourselves about the anxiety
Most of the time anxiety is the most marked symptom of a series of problems underneath. When a person arrives making an appointment with the demand for techniques to manage anxiety, the reality is that many times the anxiety problems They go hand in hand with other psychological pathologies. For this reason, it is essential to analyze where the fear that ends up leading to anxiety comes from.
Symptoms of anxiety
The symptoms of an anxiety attack or anxiety In general terms they are presented from different aspects. When we have an anxiety disorder these are constant, however there may be small moments in which we may suffer some of these symptoms of anxiety and nerves. The essential thing in these cases is to try to discover what causes this anxiety and how we can manage it.
1. Physical symptoms of anxiety
When we refer to the physical symptoms of anxiety we are targeting what we experience on a bodily level.
Restlessness and nervousness
Difficulty breathing
sweaty palms
Accelerated heart
Chest pain or discomfort
Muscle tension
Nausea and diarrhea
Dizziness
A cold
Numbness or tingling
Sleep disorders and fatigue
Each one of these anxiety symptoms They appear as a natural response that the body creates in a risky situation. When anxiety is chronic and transforms into an anxiety disorder, this response does not distinguish between imagined or anticipated dangers of the future.
People who experience anxiety attacks, these physical symptoms are more than familiar. Each of these signs become dangerous when the recurrence and intensity are more than present in them.
2. Behavioral symptoms of anxiety
When the anxiety It affects a person so much that they change their way of acting, we are dealing with behavioral symptoms. In this way, anxiety victims do these actions to try to avoid the unpleasant aspects of anxiety.
Avoidance behaviors: When anxiety attacks are very recurrent, many people choose to avoid those situations that lead to these anxiety symptoms. In this way, we end up avoiding both the places and the social situations that produce the nervousness or anxiety
Escape from situations: There are some very common situations that induce anxiety. Some of those affected by a anxiety crisis they can escape from certain places for fear of suffering from them.
Unhealthy behaviors: Some people resort to engaging in unhealthy behaviors, such as taking risks or becoming self-destructive, to try to avoid risks. symptoms of anxiety disorders
Limit activities for the day: Many times people who feel the anxiety symptoms They end up resorting to limiting their activities in order not to suffer the consequences of this disease.
Sticking to places or people for safety: When the symptoms of an anxiety attack They are persistent, sometimes they try to deal with it with the help of trusted people or certain places.
All these attitudes affect a person’s life in such a way that they can harm them in every way. In this way, when anxiety limits your daily life so much, it is essential to turn to a mental health specialist.
3. Emotional symptoms of anxiety
The anxiety Not only does it present physically and behaviorally, but it is also always accompanied by emotional symptoms. Despite popular belief, anxiety in its most basic form is an emotion. Therefore, it is characterized by the following feelings:
Distress
Nervousness
Feeling overwhelmed
Panic
Concern
Worry
Fear or terror
Many of the people who experience anxiety disorders or an anxiety attack they end up feeling more fear due to these emotional symptoms.
4. Cognitive symptoms of anxiety
When you are in an anxious state on a recurring basis, it is very common to have recurring bad thoughts. In this way, there are some recurring themes in these thoughts:
“What if _happens?”
“I must be certain.”
“I can’t tolerate not knowing.”
“What do these physical symptoms mean?”
“People will laugh at me.”
“I won’t be able to escape.”
“I’m going crazy.”
“My God, what is happening to me?”
Depending on the nature of the anxiety disorder Whatever one suffers, this rumination can vary.
5. Psychological symptoms of anxiety
Plus everyone else anxiety symptoms that we have presented, there are psychological consequences of suffering from this situation recurrently. In this way, anxiety can produce:
Concentration problems
Memory difficulties
Depressive symptoms (hopelessness, lack of appetite)
Each one of these anxiety symptoms They reflect an attempt by our body to escape from a situation that we mentally consider dangerous. In this way, these consequences are suffered due to the ability to overestimate the amount of threat in a given situation.
Each one of these anxiety symptoms It ends up taking its toll on the lives of those who suffer from this disorder. In this way, there are many problems that go hand in hand with suffering from any type of anxiety.
Social and professional opportunities: With the anxiety In addition, there are many occasions in which opportunities are lost that also end up damaging a person’s self-esteem.
Dysfunctional relationships: People who suffer from many of the anxiety symptoms They end up fearing that others do not value them, thus damaging their relationships with their friends and family.
Increased risk of cardiovascular disease: When you are constantly under tension, the heart is quite damaged in these situations.
Health problems: There are various health problems that are derived from anxiety symptoms Among them we can find irritable bowel syndrome, such as headaches and some disorders related to the jaw.
Drug and alcohol problems: Some sufferers end up turning to alcohol to try to avoid suffering from any of the symptoms of anxiety.
When you suffer anxiety In any case, many areas of our lives are affected by it. So much so, that many people end up developing other psychological disorders when they do not seek help. This is why it is very important to get the necessary assistance, from a professional psychologist, to be able to overcome these situations.
