10 Common Symptoms of Anxiety

Anxiety disorders are different, though. They are a group of mental illnesses, and the distress they cause can keep you from carrying on with your life normally.

The symptoms of anxiety can be hard to detect. Find out the anxiety disorder symptoms experts say you should pay attention to, and how to know if you're having an anxiety attack.

Restlessness

Restlessness is another common symptom of anxiety. When someone is experiencing restlessness, they often describe it as feeling “on edge” or having an “uncomfortable urge to move.” If you experience restlessness on the majority of days for more than six months, it may be a sign of an anxiety disorder.

Fatigue

This symptom can be surprising to some, as anxiety is commonly associated with hyperactivity or arousal. For some, fatigue can follow an anxiety attack, while for others, the fatigue can be chronic. Fatigue can also be a sign of depression or other medical conditions, so fatigue alone is not enough to diagnose an anxiety disorder.

Tense Muscles

It is possible that muscle tenseness itself increases feelings of anxiety, but it is also possible that anxiety leads to increased muscle tenseness, or that a third factor causes both. While tense muscles may be common, it’s not fully understood why they’re associated with anxiety. Near-constant muscle tension, whether it consists of clenching your jaw, balling your fists, or flexing muscles throughout your body, often accompanies anxiety disorders. This symptom can be so persistent and pervasive that people who have lived with it for a long time may stop noticing it after a while.

Difficulty Concentrating

Anxiety can interrupt working memory, a type of memory responsible for holding short-term information. This may help explain the dramatic decrease in performance people often experience during periods of high anxiety. However, difficulty concentrating can also be a symptom of other medical conditions, such as an attention deficit disorder or depression, so it is not enough evidence to diagnose an anxiety disorder.

Avoiding Social Situations

People with social anxiety may appear extremely shy and quiet in groups or when meeting new people. While they may not appear distressed on the outside, inside they feel extreme fear and anxiety.

Feeling anxious or fearful about upcoming social situations. Worried that you may be judged or scrutinized by others. Fearful of being embarrassed or humiliated in front of others. Avoiding certain social events because of these fears. This aloofness can sometimes make people with social anxiety appear snobby or standoffish, but the disorder is associated with low self-esteem, high self-criticism and depression.

Irrational Fears

A phobia is defined as extreme anxiety or fear about a specific object or situation. The feeling is severe enough that it interferes with your ability to function normally. Extreme fears about specific things, such as spiders, enclosed spaces or heights, could be a sign of a phobia. Some signs are Using public transportation. Being in open spaces. Being in enclosed spaces. Standing in line or being in a crowd. Being outside of the home alone.

Sleep problems

Chronically find yourself lying awake, worried or agitated about specific problems (like money), or nothing, in particular, it might be a sign of an anxiety disorder. By some estimates, fully half of all people with GAD experience sleep problems. Trouble falling asleep or staying asleep is associated with a wide range of health conditions, both physical and psychological. Blame your mind’s inability to "shut off", a pattern that’s unconsciously perpetuated by anxious thoughts and behaviors.

Flashbacks

Flashbacks may occur with other types of anxiety as well. Such as being publicly ridiculed. These people may even avoid reminders of the experience. Another symptom reminiscent of reliving a disturbing or traumatic event, a violent encounter, the sudden death of a loved one, is a hallmark symptom of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), which shares some features with anxiety disorders.

Self-consciousness

In these situations, people with social anxiety disorder tend to feel self-conscious, as if all eyes are on them, and they often experience blushing, trembling, nausea, profuse sweating, or difficulty talking. These symptoms can be so disruptive that they make it hard to meet new people, maintain relationships, and advance at work or in school. Social anxiety disorder doesn't always involve speaking to a crowd or being the center of attention. In most cases, anxiety is provoked by everyday situations.

Panic

Panic attacks can be terrifying: Picture a sudden, gripping feeling of fear and helplessness that can last for several minutes, accompanied by scary physical symptoms such as breathing problems, a pounding or racing heart, tingling or numb hands, sweating, weakness or dizziness, chest pain, stomach pain, and feeling hot or cold. People with panic disorder live in fear about when, where, and why their next attack might happen, and they tend to avoid places where attacks have occurred in the past.