What is Anxiety?

Right now, with the economy the way it is, getting anxiety is certainly normal. When large companies go bankrupt or the bank where you keep your money fails or you do not know if you’ll have a job on Monday morning, worrying becomes a daily occurrence. However, there is a point when this worry becomes anxiety.

Normal amounts of anxiety are necessary to help you concentrate on the issue in front of you, increase your energy and incentive, but if your worry comes with sleep issues, confusion, or feelings of helplessness that exceed the issues themselves, you have anxiety.

Symptoms

Anxiety is a physical and an emotional problem. There are many symptoms of anxiety that include uncontrolled shaking, increased pulse, difficulty breathing, dizziness, clammy hands, tight muscles, body aches, and excessive perspiration.

When anxiety occurs, it impacts the communication center in the brain, which can then lead to issues between you and the ones you love. If you experience both the physical and mental components of anxiety, you suffer from an anxiety disorder.

Risks

For unknown reasons, women suffer from anxiety twice as often as men. Kids who have parents who have depression or anxiety suffer from anxiety twice as often as kids whose parents do not have these symptoms.

Categories

There are several kinds of anxiety disorders. These are: phobias, post-traumatic stress disorder, panic attacks and obsessive-compulsive disorder.

Phobias are excessive fear that is entirely irrational. People who have phobias know that the fear is irrational; however, they cannot do anything about it. Some of the more common phobias are the fear of heights, the fear of spiders, the fear of flying, and the fear of clowns. These fears can get in the way of life and are irritating. The majority of people who are trying to cope with phobias simply do not put themselves in situations where they might encounter their fear.

Panic attacks occur when a person is entirely consumed with an intense, irrational fear or anxiousness that does not abate for about an hour. It is usually characterized by an increased heart rate, difficulty with breathing, excessive sweating, and the fear that if his or her eyes close, he or she will cease to breathe. Panic attacks can happen to anyone, even people who are healthy in every physical way. People who are healthier often experience attacks that are shorter in duration and not as intense. If the panic attacks occur on a regular basis, like every day, they are getting in the way of living your life and you should seek treatment as soon as possible.

It is possible to suffer from anxiety for years on end without knowing that you have it. The first step toward getting better is to admit that you have a problem. Then, you can get out there and live the live you have always dreamed about without the fear that you will suffer from an anxiety attack at every turn. Talk to your doctor and seek treatment now.