How to cope with anxiety

How to cope with anxiety

What Does Anxiety Usually Look Like?  

Anxiety can look different for everyone. However, if you qualify for Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) then you could probably relate to a lot of the most common symptoms such as constant worry, fatigue and feeling on edge for most of the time on most days. There is no shame in having anxiety and it can be treated with therapy and sometimes with the combination of therapy and medication. 

Anxiety disorders are the most common mental illness in America. However, they can often go undiagnosed and untreated because many people are unaware that they struggle with anxiety. Others fear shame or rejection if they acknowledge their anxiety and may fear that talking about their struggles might make it worse so they typically suffer in silence. Anxiety can actually serve as a protective barrier from their feelings.  Someone who likes to stay extremely busy might try distracting themselves from feeling their anxiety.  Distraction might help in the short term, but it will often further the feelings of anxiety and can actually make one feel more anxious in the future.

Emotions are indicators of what is going on inside of a person and they are neither good nor bad, they can be viewed as neutral.  We need to pay attention to our emotions so we can achieve our best mental health and be intune with how we are feelings and what we are thinking.

Anxiety Disorder Symptoms:

  • Poor sleep
  • Panic attacks
  • Constant worry
  • Racing thoughts
  • Fatigue
  • Lack of appetite
  • Panic, fear and uneasiness
  • Avoiding places, things or people
  • Tense muscles
  • Headaches
  • Feeling agitated
  • Restlessness
  • Difficulty concentrating
  • Irritability

Here are some questions to ask yourself to see if you might struggle with anxiety:

  • Do you often ruminate or get stuck on the same negative thoughts?
  • Do you think of things as being black or white and good or bad?
  • Are you replaying conversations over and over again in your mind while blaming yourself for saying the wrong thing in conversations?
  • Do you struggle with making decisions on your own?
  • Are you finding yourself often thinking of the worst case scenario happening?
  • Is it challenging for you to control your thoughts?
  • Do the anxiety or worry symptoms cause significant distress and impair daily functioning?

If you have experienced three of the following symptoms for the majority of the past few weeks, then you might have a generalized anxiety disorder and working with a therapist could be very beneficial.

Symptoms

Anxiety symptoms include but are not limited to restlessness, excessive fatigue, trouble paying attention, irritability, difficulty sleeping and muscle tension. It is also important to note that only one of the symptoms is required in children for them to have anxiety. Anxiety often manifests in children or teens as irritability and frustration.

Medication can also be hugely successful if anxiety is interfering with your ability to function in daily life.  Anxiety has a genetic component to it as well. If someone in your family takes anxiety medication and benefits from it, then medication might also work for you. Starting a new medication for anxiety can be challenging because sometimes the symptoms get worse before they get better.  Taking medication is not a one size fits all, some people are very open to it, while others do not want to be on medication at all.

Coping Skills Can Alleviate Anxiety

Here are just a few things that can help someone with anxiety: friendship, exercise, and hobbies. Exercise can provide the healthy stress-relieving endorphins one needs to fight off anxiety. Get creative with exercise! Find something that feels fun for you. Walking the dog, going for a run or a hike. An amazing book about how to close your stress circle with exercise is called Burnout: The Secret to Solving The Stress. 

Anxiety Counseling for College Students in Akron, Ohio

If you want to learn more about how I treat anxiety you can checkout my anxiety counseling page. As a therapist who works primarily with young adults,  I understand campus life better than most private practice therapists.  I have experience helping other young adults navigate the stressful college years and I enjoy counseling college students.  I see a variety of people in my Akron, Ohio counseling office. I treat people with depression, anxiety, religious trauma and gender dysphoria.  Still have questions? Get answers to common questions about counseling here or simply schedule a counseling session today to get started!