All people experience anxiety at some point. The feeling of anxiety is unavoidable because its role is to warn us of dangerous situations and motivate us to solve everyday problems. Anxiety can vary greatly in duration and intensity.
OCCASIONAL ANXIETY IS A PART OF LIFE
Mild, occasional anxiety is a part of everyone’s life. When anxiety about something increases (e.g., exam anxiety), so does the pressure to resolve it (studying for an exam). We could say that the feeling of anxiety motivates us to do something about it.
Anxiety differs from fear in that the object of fear is usually a concrete thing or situation. When we are anxious, it is more difficult to name the cause of the feeling. The cause is more internal: it is a reaction to a vague, distant, and even unidentifiable danger.
FROM MILD PERFORMANCE ANXIETY TO UNCONTROLLABLE ANXIETY
Anxiety can vary widely in duration and intensity: from minutes to years and from mild nervousness to panic attacks. For example, performance-related nervousness can stimulate us to give a good performance and is relieved when the performance is over.
However, intense and uncontrollable anxiety does not enhance our performance or motivate change, but the opposite. For example, an exam becomes so distressing that you cannot start studying for it.
Anxiety manifests itself in many different ways and affects us holistically:
- as worry
- as a restless internal feeling
- as nervousness
- as a vague feeling of fear
- even as feelings of terror and panic.
SIGNS OF ANXIETY
EMOTIONS
- unrealistic and unreasonable fear
- irritability, anger
- tension and nervousness
- impatience
- confusion
THOUGHTS
- worries about the past and the future
- dwelling on things
- difficulty concentrating
- memory problems
- difficulty in making decisions
- hyperactive or interrupted thinking
- memorable dreams
- feelings of detachment and alienation
- restlessness
BODY
- heart palpitations and a rapid pulse
- chest tightness or heaviness
- obstructed, rapid, or shallow breathing
- a feeling of suffocation
- abdominal symptoms, nausea
- flushing
- tremor
- difficulty sleeping
- various types of pain
ACTION
- avoiding situations and people
- feeling nervous about social situations
- an increased use of intoxicants
- obsessive-compulsive symptoms
WHEN DOES ANXIETY BECOME AN ANXIETY DISORDER?
There is a fine line between anxiety, which is part of normal life, and an anxiety disorder, which interferes with everyday life. In an anxiety disorder, the anxiety is disproportionate to the situation and out of control. The characteristics of an anxiety disorder include:
- long-term anxiety
- intense, debilitating anxiety
- anxiety that affects work, studies, other aspects of life, and relationships
The most common anxiety disorders are fear of social situations, panic disorder, fear of public places, generalised anxiety disorder, and obsessive-compulsive disorder. Anxiety disorders are fairly common mental disorders, affecting an estimated 4 to 5% of the population. You can seek help for an anxiety disorder from places such as a student health centre.