You’re nervous, sweating, and your heartbeat is racing. Maybe it’s because you’re going on an important job interview. Symptoms like these are typical in many instances, but you may have anxiety if they persist unabated for weeks or months and interfere with daily life. Fortunately, the symptoms can be treated.
What Is Anxiety?
“Occasional anxiety is an expected part of life. You might feel anxious when faced with a problem at work, before taking a test, or before making an important decision. But anxiety disorders involve more than temporary worry or fear. For a person with an anxiety disorder, the anxiety does not go away and can get worse over time.” The symptoms can restrict daily pursuits such as job performance, schoolwork, and relationships, whether long or short-term.
Are Anxiety Disorders Chronic?
According to a study in the National Library of Medicine, clinical and epidemiological information indicate that generalized anxiety disorder is a chronic ailment causing people to feel pain for many years, resulting in substantial distress in how they function each day. If you suffer from an anxiety disorder and have battled symptoms for years, you may experience breathing problems, muscle tension, and other physical side effects. Many symptoms, however, can be managed with ketamine infusion.
Risk Factors
Anxiety risk factors may include:
- Inherent traits of timidity or behavioral inhibition during childhood
- Exposure to worrying and bad life or environmental experiences during childhood or adulthood
- A record of anxiety or other mental conditions amongst biological relatives
- Some physical health ailments, like thyroid problems or heart arrhythmias, or aggravated anxiety symptoms triggered by caffeine, or something else, including medications. A physical health examination is beneficial in the assessment of a potential anxiety disorder.
What Causes Anxiety?
The causes of anxiety disorders aren’t fully understood. Life experiences such as traumatic events appear to trigger anxiety disorders in people already prone to anxiety. Inherited traits also can be a factor. Temporary or chronic stress could be caused by medical problems like heart disease, diabetes, respiratory disorders, side effects from certain medications, or something else. Anxiety can also result from experiencing trauma or having a family history of mental illness.
What Are The Signs You Have Anxiety?
Symptoms of anxiety
Sometimes it’s challenging to identify specific warning signs of anxiety, but here are some things to watch for in yourself or others:
- Feelings of nervousness, restlessness, or tension
- There’s a sensation of imminent danger, fear, or doom
- Having a fast heart rate
- Rapid breathing
- Sweating
- Trembling
- Feelings of weakness or fatigue
- Problems focusing or thinking about something other than a present concern
- Having problems sleeping
- Experiencing gastrointestinal issues
- Having trouble retrieving memories
- Having the desire to avoid something which triggers anxiety
These symptoms can happen individually or in groups and are unique to each person.
Types of anxiety disorders
There are many anxiety disorders, including
- People with generalized anxiety disorder worry about everyday issues like health, money, employment, personal appearance, and family. But their concerns are extreme, happening nearly every day for six months or more.
- Panic disorders feature panic attacks. These are abrupt, repetitive episodes of intense fear with the absence of danger. Attacks happen quickly and can linger several minutes or longer.
- People with phobias experience extreme fear of something that presents minimal or no actual danger. Their fear may be about spiders, flying, going to crowded places, or being in social situations.
Prevalence of anxiety
Between summer 2020 and winter 2021, the percentage of adults with anxiety symptoms increased from 36 to 41 percent; those describing untreated mental health care rose from nine to 11 percent. The biggest Increase? Adults 18 to 29 years old and people with less than high school education.
Diagnosis & Treatment
Diagnosis for anxiety typically includes:
- During a medical exam, a doctor may perform blood tests and other diagnostic procedures to see if there’s an underlying cause for your anxiety symptoms.
- A psychiatric evaluation, where a specialist will focus on your thoughts, emotions, and behaviors and inquire about previous or family history of mental illness. Your doctor may ask to speak with family and friends, and you may be asked to fill out a questionnaire. Symptoms will also be compared to criteria in the DSM-5.
Treatment may include psychotherapy, self-help, esketamine nasal spray, or ketamine infusion therapy.
Final Thoughts
Anxiety symptoms affect millions of people, but the duration, frequency, and symptoms of sleeping problems, relationship issues, and avoidance could be signs of a bigger problem. With diagnosis and proper care, symptoms are manageable. A healthcare provider may recommend different therapies, but it’s essential to choose the one you’re comfortable with.
Contact us today to learn more about how we can help you find relief.
