Feelings of Fear, Dread, and Unease
Feelings of fear, dread, and unease are signs you have anxiety, which is a normal response to a stressful situation such as complex problems at work or before taking a test. You can feel restless, an increased heart rate, nausea, and sweaty palms. However, if these feelings do not go away after the stressful situation is over and continues for six or more months, you may have chronic anxiety. Thankfully, several treatment options such as online therapy can help ease anxiety symptoms and stop anxiety from progressing into an mental health disorder. Getting help from a licensed therapist when experiencing continued anxiety can teach you mental health coping skills and self-care techniques and resolve underlying issues so you can manage stress and anxiety in a healthier manner. Mindfuli offers virtual therapy and counseling in California for treating anxiety and anxiety disorders.
What Exactly Is Anxiety?
Worry, tension, and physical effects like increased heart rate and blood pressure characterize anxiety. It is a normal emotion to stressful situations and perceived threats that should resolve after the event. However, people with anxiety disorders have recurring intrusive thoughts or concerns which they cannot control and interfere with daily life. Other signs of anxiety include physical symptoms such as digestive issues, dizziness, trembling, and sweating. Several anxiety disorders appear differently in each person. When anxiety symptoms harm your well-being and day-to-day functioning, such as decreased school or work performance or avoiding social situations, it may be time to reach out for help from a mental health professional.
How Common Is Anxiety?
About 1 in 5 adults in the U.S. show signs of an anxiety disorder, making it the most common mental health disorder. Anxiety disorders can last anywhere from a few months to years to being a chronic disorder that lasts a lifetime and needs constant management. Treatment involving psychotherapy, self-care techniques, and medications can help manage anxiety symptoms and people can go on to live healthy, productive lives. Unfortunately, only about 1/3 of people with anxiety seek treatment. Early treatment can significantly improve recovery outcomes and provide tools to manage symptoms for a lifetime.
Who Is at Risk of Anxiety?
Anyone can experience anxiety; it is a normal reaction to stressful situations. However, some people are more prone to developing an anxiety disorder than others. A combination of risk factors such as genetics, life experiences, brain chemistry, family background, and social influences can cause anxiety. Life experiences such as trauma can trigger anxiety in those who were already prone to it or have a family history of it. Women are also twice as likely as men to develop an anxiety disorder. People who are at risk of anxiety include those who have experienced trauma, are constantly stressed, have family members with an anxiety disorder, engage in substance use, or have the presence of other mental health disorders such as depression or personality disorders.
11 Signs You Have Anxiety
Only a mental health professional, such as a psychiatrist or licensed psychologist, can diagnose anxiety disorders. Here are some signs you may have anxiety and should seek out professional help before symptoms worsen:
- Excessive worrying: This is one of the most common symptoms of anxiety. You may worry disproportionately about events or everyday situations which occur most days of the week and you’re unable to control the worrying.
- Irrational fears: While fear is a typical response to danger, fear that is out of proportion to the situation may be a sign of anxiety. Certain situations may send you into flight, fight, or freeze response which may not be for most people. Anxiety can also cause doom or worst-case scenario thinking.
- Feeling agitated: Anxiety causes the sympathetic nervous system to go into overdrive causing effects such as racing heart rate, sweating, shakiness, and dry mouth. These symptoms occur because your brain believes you’re in danger and prepares your body to react to the threat.
- Restlessness: Another common anxiety symptom, restlessness may feel like you’re on edge or having an uncomfortable urge to move.
- Trouble falling or staying asleep: Anxiety can cause sleep issues. Worrying thoughts, muscle tension, and restlessness can make falling or staying asleep difficult. Not getting enough sleep can also make anxiety symptoms and irritability worse.
- Easily fatigued: While these symptoms may surprise some since anxiety is associated with hyperactivity, individuals with anxiety are often tired. For some, fatigue can follow an anxiety attack while others may always feel it. It may be due to insomnia, constant muscle tension, or a hormonal effect of chronic anxiety.
- Irritability. You may have anxiety if you are more irritable than usual. It is a common symptom with many anxiety disorders as the body and mind become stressed and depleted of energy due to overwhelming worry, which leads to irritability.
- Difficulty concentrating: Anxiety requires many mental resources, making concentrating difficult. People can also be distracted by their worrying thoughts, impairing their ability to perform tasks quickly and efficiently.
- Tense muscles: Muscles may tense themselves with increased feelings of anxiety, which can lead to pain and stiffness in almost any area of the body.
- Avoiding social situations: You may be showing signs of anxiety if you feel anxious or fearful about social situations, worrying that you may be judged by others, fearful of being embarrassed in front of others, and avoiding specific social interactions because of these fears.
- Panic attacks: Recurring panic attacks may be a sign of an anxiety disorder that produces intense, overwhelming sensations of fear that can be debilitating. They can occur suddenly and last for a few minutes. Individuals may also experience anxiety attacks that are similar but build up gradually.
Can Virtual Therapy Help With Anxiety?
Virtual therapy is an excellent choice for treating anxiety. Talk therapy is the most common treatment for anxiety, which can easily be done over the phone, online chat, or video conferencing. Research has shown that virtual therapy is just as effective as in-person therapy. Trained therapists and counselors can help if you have signs of anxiety through cognitive behavioral techniques and coping strategies.
Virtual therapy can be especially helpful for those with anxiety since it can be more comfortable than talking to someone in person and lowers social anxieties associated with sharing physical spaces with others. It can also help with other co-occurring mental health disorders common with anxiety such as depression and obsessive-compulsive disorder. It is also more accessible, less time-consuming, and more affordable which can improve patient compliance for long-term treatment.
Mindfuli Can Help If There Are Signs You Have Anxiety
Mindfuli is a comprehensive and convenient mental health support platform with licensed therapists and counselors in California. Through our Care PairingTM Technology, we will expertly match you with counselors or therapists who best align with your unique needs and goals. You can choose a monthly plan that best fits your budget and treatment frequency needs.
If you are experiencing signs of anxiety that are interfering with your daily life, the time to get help is now. Virtual therapy and counseling through Mindfuli can help you get anxious thoughts and worries under control before they get worse. Please call us at 888-703-3004 to begin your personalized mental health care today.
