Demystifying Anxiety
Like the word “depression,” use of the term “anxiety” has become more and more widespread in recent decades–which is in many ways a good thing! Folks have more language than ever before to communicate about emotions and mental health. People commonly use the word “anxious” to refer to a worried or apprehensive emotion.
While worry is one significant manifestation of anxiety, it’s not the only one by any means. And sometimes people struggle to recognize what they are feeling as anxiety because they do not necessarily feel “worried.”
In clinical terms, anxiety is a state of hyperarousal; basically, an alarm system in your mind has been set off, and now you are looking out for potential threats in your environment. In a state of anxiety, you might be worried, but you might also be energetic, angry, or irritable.
Generalized Anxiety Disorder, or GAD, is a DSM-5 (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition, 2013) diagnosis. Therapists and doctors apply this diagnosis to people who have experienced chronic anxiety, which has taken a toll on them cognitively, emotionally, and even physically.
The DSM-5 describes anxiety symptoms which include uncontrollable worry, as well as restlessness, fatigue, difficulty concentrating, irritability, muscle tension, and problems with sleep. Therapists and doctors know that anxiety can impact every part of a person, and for this reason, can cause a great deal of trouble.
Someone diagnosed with this disorder may have developed a very sensitive alarm system, which goes off intermittently, even when there is no actual threat in the environment. However, some people with anxiety disorders experience existential anxiety, meaning that their alarm systems are responding to very real structures that threaten the very existence of the individual or their community. Their anxiety is valid and reasonable, and makes living under oppressive conditions even harder.
Anxiety could show up for you in the way you think, the way your body feels, and in the way you behave. If you think you may be struggling with an anxiety disorder, reach out to a mental health professional to treat the problem at its roots!
