We often refer to anxiety as fear or nervousness. The word 'anxiety' also describes a number of problems including phobias (fear of specific things or situations such as heights, insects, flying, lifts), panic attacks (intense feelings of anxiety in which people often feel like they are going to die or go crazy), post traumatic stress disorder (repeated, memories of terrible traumas with high levels of distress), obsessive compulsive disorder (thinking about or doing things over and over again), and generalized anxiety disorder (a mixture of worries and anxiety symptoms experienced most of the time). We also use the word anxiety to describe brief periods of nervousness or fear we experience when faced with difficult experiences in our life.
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Anxiety profile
Physical reactions: sweaty palms, muscle tension, racing heart, flushed cheeks, light headedness.
Thoughts: Overestimation of danger, underestimation of your ability to cope, underestimation of help available, worries or catastrophic thoughts.
Behaviours: Avoiding situations where anxiety might occur, leaving situations when anxiety begins to occur, trying to do things perfectly or trying to control events to prevent danger.
Moods: Nervous, irritable, anxious, panicky
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Important events in our lives (environment) can contribute to anxiety, such examples include: trauma (an accident, abuse, etc), illnesses or deaths, things we are taught (yes it is our parents fault again!) things we observe and the experiences that seem too much to handle (public speaking, job gain or loss, new baby).
All the physical, behavioural, and thinking changes we experience when we are anxious are part of the anxiety responses call 'fight, flight, or freeze.'. The three responses can be adaptive when we face danger.
To get a better picture of your own anxiety, write down the types of events or situations in which you tend to feel anxious:
I feel anxious when..............
I also feel anxious when.......... and so on
The cognitive aspects of anxiety
The thoughts which accompany anxiety are different from thoughts that characterise depression. Anxiety is accompanied by the perception that we are DANGER or that we THREATENED or VULNERABLE in some way.
A threat or danger can be physical, mental, or social. A physical threat occurs when you believe you will be physically hurt. A social threat occurs when you believe you will be rejected, humiliated, embarrassed, or put down. A mental threat occurs when something makes you worry that you are going crazy or losing your mind.
The perception of the treat varies from person to person. Some people, because of life experiences, may feel threatened very easily and will often feel anxious. Other people may feel a greater of safety and security. Growing up in adverse surroundings may lead a person to conclude that the world and other people are continually and constantly dangerous. The perception of danger and a sense of your own vulnerability may have helped you survive as a child.
Keep a look out for my next post: Anxiety Inventory