Everyone feels stressed out from time to time. The leading causes of Americans? stress include finances, work, family responsibilities, and health issues. Constant stress can lead to worry or anxiety. In people with anxiety disorders, the worry is constant, and detrimental.
Anxiety symptoms include trouble relaxing, sleep issues, and difficulty concentrating. People with anxiety often report physical symptoms too, such as headaches, fatigue, muscle aches, sweating, and nausea.
A psychologist or psychiatrist can diagnose the condition by asking about anxiety symptoms. Taking an online anxiety test can also help you identify whether you have a problem. Anxiety tests include questions about symptoms such as excessive worry and inability to control that worry, fatigue, trouble concentrating, difficulty sleeping or eating, and problems with alcohol or drug use.
Social anxiety is a particular type of anxiety in which people fear social interactions because they worry others will judge them. About 15 million Americans have social anxiety disorder. The condition can interfere with normal relationships, work, and education. Social anxiety symptoms include sweating, blushing, shortness of breath, dizziness, fast heartbeat, nausea or vomiting, and trembling in social situations.
Another physical manifestation of stress and anxiety is a panic attack. A panic attack produces paralyzing fear that causes real, physical symptoms. Panic attack symptoms can include a pounding heartbeat (palpitations), sweating, shortness of breath, shaking, chest pain, nausea, dizziness, and chills. Sometimes these symptoms resemble those of a heart attack.
Worry and anxiety can become so severe that a person is no longer able to go to work or function in his or her day-to-day life. This phenomenon is sometimes called a nervous breakdown. It?s not a real medical term, but rather a description of symptoms. The inability to function is serious, and it requires help from a mental health provider.
I love music; I listen to it while driving, working, doing chores, relaxing, and even when I am exercising. And while not everyone likes the same kind, most people would agree that listening to music is a pleasant and oftentimes mood-boosting experience. In fact, music can have such a profound … Read More
If you’ve been feeling down in the dumps for an extended period of time, you may be suffering from depression. You’re not alone, as millions of other Americans experience this common disorder. The bright side is that there are a number of effective lifestyle strategies you can take to fight … Read More
In today’s "hurry-hurry/we-need-more" society, stress runs rampant. As stress builds, our bodies react—we gain weight and belly fat, our blood sugar and blood pressure both rise, and we feel tired all the time, often battling depression. And all of that just stresses us more! We need to decrease stress and … Read More
We all get antsy from time to time and feel the need to get up and move around. But for people who suffer from restless leg syndrome, these feelings aren’t just an occasional bother. The urge to move and the uncomfortable, even painful, sensations in the legs and other parts … Read More
We don't hear the term “aerobic exercise” bandied about as often as we once did, but make no mistake: This type of activity remains the key to a healthy heart. Let's look at the benefits of aerobic exercise. First, what exactly is aerobic exercise? Aerobic exercise is continuous physical activity … Read More
Getting together with friends and family is a wonderful time to catch up, share stories, and hopefully get some good laughs in. But is the good story or joke that gets the whole gang roaring with laughter just adding fun to the dinner table—or is laughing good for you as … Read More
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Some 15 million Americans have social phobia, according to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America. Also referred to as social anxiety disorder, social phobia symptoms range from just-about-manageable anxiety and stress in social situations (which means you may feel like you're being judged by other people) to physical illness … Read More
Stress happens—whether we like it or not. While some strain is essential to our survival (it promotes the release of hormones needed to fight or run from our stressors), too much can cause a slew of nasty illnesses. Being under chronic stress boosts our risk of physical and psychological conditions, … Read More
It might not surprise some, but there’s actually considerable evidence that men are physically less vulnerable to stress and anxiety than women. Research suggests, for instance, that the body’s stress response is less readily activated in men than women and less long-lasting. In addition, fluctuations in female hormones such as … Read More
