You have probably heard about anxiety many times, but how does it exactly feel? Anxiety is a common mental health problem that refers to being in a persistent state of worry or displaying an excessive amount of fear. Everyone worries about things now and again, but to suffer from anxiety means that worrying has caused a debilitating impact on your daily life.
Anxiety disorder is considered the most common mental health disorder, with the WHO (World Health Organization) suggesting that 1 in 13 people suffer from an anxiety disorder on a global level. So, if you’re dealing with this disorder, you are not alone. Anxiety is more prevalent in women and youngsters, which could be for different reasons.
Symptoms of Anxiety
Anxiety symptoms will vary depending on the disorder, but most anxiety conditions will involve the symptoms detailed below. These symptoms will be most accurate in people suffering from Generalised Anxiety Disorder (GAD).
Physical Symptoms
- Feeling light-headed or dizzy
- Gastrointestinal problems
- Nausea or painful stomach
- Rapid breathing or hyperventilation
- Sweating or feeling hot
- Increased heart rate
- Panic attacks
- Aches and pains in your body
- Feeling weak and tired
- Insomnia
- Changes in sex drive
Mental Symptoms
- Feeling nervous, irritable, or tense
- Low mood and depression
- Experiencing a sense of awaiting danger
- Feeling like everyone is watching you
- Constantly worrying about things
- Needing reassurance from other people
- Derealisation: a form of disassociation where you feel like that you’re not connected to the world
- Depersonalization: a form of disassociation where you don’t feel connected to yourself as if you’re watching yourself from an outside perspective
What are the types of anxiety disorders?
There are different types of anxiety disorder, but here we will discuss only four main types of disorder.
Generalized anxiety disorder
This is the most common type of anxiety disorder, often called GAD. People with GAD feel anxious and worried all the time, not necessarily as a result of being in a stressful situation. This anxiety is enough to cause a negative impact on their daily life routine, as it causes uncontrollable worry that can make them unable to focus on any task they are doing.
Social Anxiety
Social anxiety aka social phobia is a disorder that causes an intense fear of being in social situations and performing in front of others. Even in normal conditions, people with this disorder might fear being laughed at, humiliated, judged, or attacked by someone. They might feel very uncomfortable in being a large group of people or with people they don’t know very well.
Panic Disorder
Panic disorder is a mental health problem where you experience repeating and unexpected panic attacks. This can be incredibly troublesome to everyday life, and each panic attack can be a truly scary experience.
A panic attack often comes out of the blue and causes symptoms like dizziness, body shaking, heart palpitations, and hyperventilation. The sufferer feels like they’re going to pass out or die. Although, no one can die of a panic attack. It’s just a high level of anxiety that makes you feel like you’re in some danger.
Phobias
People might often make jokes about having a phobia of something, but actually, it is a common type of anxiety disorder that needs to be taken seriously. When you have a phobia of something, you’re completely frightened of it and will unreasonably exaggerate any danger in your mind.
Some of the most common phobias include claustrophobia, which is a fear of enclosed spaces; pteromerhanophobia, which is a fear of flying; and entomophobia, a fear of insects.
How to cope with anxiety?
There are several treatments available for anxiety including therapy, medications, and the adoption of a healthy lifestyle. There are chances that medications like Benzodiazepines and Beta-blockers don’t work for everyone, and can even make the situation worse in some instances. It is advised to take medication only when other treatments do not work too in the supervision of an experienced doctor or psychiatrist only they can suggest whether you should go on medication or not.
Hopefully, this article has helped you to learn about anxiety disorder and its types a little better. If you want to take medications for the anxiety disorder at the suggestion of your health expert, you can explore our online pharmacy to get the quality medication at the best prices.
