Anxiety is a normal response to stress. This means that if you have any stressors in your life, you’re likely to experience some degree of anxiety from time to time. You may feel mild anxiety due to an impending work deadline, upcoming social event, or a wide variety of other situations. Anxiety causes anxious feelings that may lead to trouble concentrating, an increased heart rate, restlessness, and rapid breathing.
When anxiety symptoms become more severe and persist longer than six months, you’re most likely dealing with an anxiety disorder. This is a complicated mental health disorder that can affect different people in different ways. There are treatments available for anxiety disorders and there are natural remedies you can try as well to relieve your symptoms.
There are several types of anxiety disorders out there, and it’s possible for a single person to have multiple types at once. Here is an overview of three of the most common anxiety disorders.
You constantly worry about everything. You worry that your dog will run out in the road and get hit by a car. You stress about the possibility of missing an upcoming work deadline. You worry that people will think you’re awkward if you talk to them. Do any of these scenarios sound familiar to you? If you find yourself worrying excessively about things like this, you may have generalized anxiety disorder.
Generalized anxiety disorder is more common than you may think, especially among other women. It is typified by intense and often irrational worries about a wide variety of things, events, or possibilities. Unlike stress, generalized anxiety disorder doesn’t go away once a stressor is removed. People with GAD experience intense feelings of worry and anxiousness most days for prolonged periods of time.
Other anxiety symptoms include:
- Increased muscle tension
- Trouble falling asleep
- Irritability and mood swings
- Trouble concentrating
- Restlessness
- Persistent feelings of stress
- Fatigue
People with anxiety disorders often worry about their health and anticipate disaster. It can be a totally exhausting way to live, which is why it’s worth it to take intentional steps to improve your mental health with help from natural anxiety remedies.
Panic disorder is a type of anxiety disorder that involves unexpected and sudden panic attacks. These panic attacks can cause intense fear in those who experience them. They can also cause very real physical symptoms such as shortness of breath, sweating, heart palpitations, increased blood pressure, numbness, and feelings of foreboding and dread.
Panic disorder is a very challenging mental health condition because it’s not triggered by specific things. The panic attacks that occur are random and can’t be anticipated.
Are you the type of person who says “yes” to various social opportunities but almost always cancels at the last minute? If so, you may have social anxiety disorder. This disorder usually begins in the early teen years, but it can also start in younger children or adults. According to the Mayo Clinic, common anxiety symptoms associated with social phobia include:
- Fear of talking with strangers
- Avoidance of situations in which you might become the center of attention
- Excessive worry and stress about humiliating yourself
- Harsh analysis of your personality or interactions with others
- Fear that other people will notice your nervousness
- Fear of being judged negatively by others
People with social anxiety disorder often want to be around others, but their fears tend to hold them back.