We have all felt anxiety at some time : before an exam, a job interview, a public exhibition; but when it settles in our lives it starts to limit our day to day.

After a breakup, a loss of a loved one or just suddenly, for no apparent reason, that’s when anxiety starts to worry us.

Now… what is anxiety and how does it affect us? Let’s see.

What is anxiety?

Anxiety is an adaptive response of the human being, as long as it is proportionate to the stimulus that triggers it. It is an alarm signal that if it is prolonged in time for no apparent reason, it is warning us that we have something to review in our life.

Another positive aspect of anxiety is its relationship with performance , described in the Law of Yertes-Dobson in 1908; this law states that in the face of a stressful situation, such as taking an exam, anxiety increases, but there is also an increase in efficiency, attention and performance in the response, as long as it does not exceed certain limits. If we go beyond that line, then performance drops and the information recovery processes are blocked.

Anxiety begins to worry us when it appears suddenly, unjustifiably and for no apparent reason. If the physical symptoms are very high, we will also get scared . Tachycardia, difficulty in breathing, dizziness, muscular tension, etc, are some of the characteristic symptoms of anxiety. When its appearance is maintained over time, in a high form and in the face of stimuli that do not pose a real threat, this is when we speak of maladaptive anxiety.

When anxiety manifests itself without warning or apparent reason, it can generate a decline in self-esteem and the “fear of going crazy” typical of anxiety; this in turn generates a drop in mood and a feeling of helplessness.

Sometimes stress, the appearance of specific problems or difficulties, some traumatic event or the loss of a loved one are some of the causes behind the anxiety.

Examples of anxiety disorders

This disproportionate anxiety gives rise to the different manifestations or pictures of anxiety, as they are:

  • Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD).
  • Anxiety crisis.
  • Panic attacks .
  • Agoraphobia.

Main symptoms

Next we will see the physical symptoms, that is, the physiological reactions on our body; the cognitive symptoms, related to cognitions, thoughts and effects on information processing; and the symptoms related to behavior and how anxiety influences it.

Physical symptoms of anxiety

These are the main physical symptoms of anxiety .

– He’s tachycardic.
– Sensation of pressure in the chest and shortness of breath.
– Muscle tension and trembling .
– Cold sweats.
– Tingling in extremities, sensations of corky skin.
– Difficulty falling asleep or waking up startled in the middle of the night.
– Lack of appetite or overeating and not being hungry.
– Tension or knot in the stomach.
– Feeling dizzy, etc.

Cognitive symptoms

Among the cognitive symptoms of anxiety we highlight the following.

– Excessively negative or catastrophic thoughts .
– Recurrent thoughts of fear of physical symptoms appearing, anticipating them.
– Thoughts of anticipation of the future, with fear of the future and uncertainty.
– Difficulty in maintaining attention and concentration, significantly lowering memory capacity
– Disorientation and feeling of loss of control .
– Fear of going crazy.

Behavioral symptoms of anxiety

Finally, these are the symptoms that lead to action.

– Avoid crowded places or going out alone.
– Social relationships can be avoided .
– Constantly checking to get a sense of control, whether about the future for fear of uncertainty, fear of illness, etc. This is usually done by asking family and friends, thinking up the doctor more than usual, etc.
– Constantly checking that everything is in order , to feel some control.

Treatment with a psychologist: how is it done?

The psychologist is aware of how limiting anxiety is for his patients when they do not understand how anxiety works. The good news is that understanding it and knowing what it is is the first step to overcome it .

Many people suffer the appearance of symptoms without warning and suddenly, causing them to spend most of their time on alert. It is this alert that ends up generating the appearance of symptoms sooner or later. This unpredictability about the appearance of anxiety attacks is one of the causes that most affects the person, since can generate low moods .

It is evident the success of cognitive-behavioral therapy in the treatment of anxiety disorders ; nowadays its very positive results in its treatment are more than known thanks to the application of techniques developed after long years of research in psychology, such as the techniques of progressive exposure, of systematic desensitization and the development of coping and unlearning skills of anxiety.

During therapy a fundamental objective is that the person learns to use these techniques in their day-to-day life and thus regains a sense of control over their body and their mood so that the symptoms of anxiety and its crises can be reduced.

Together with the techniques of unlearning anxiety from cognitive-behavioral psychology, it is very positive, in parallel, the work in psychotherapy of emotions through humanistic psychology as well as the latest techniques developed from the discoveries of neuropsychology, such as EMDR or Brain Integration Techniques.

For the psychologist, the main objective is not that anxiety disappears, but that the person loses fear of anxiety and its appearance : by identifying how anxiety manifests itself in our body, emotion and thought and being aware that it is a warning sign that can teach us a lot about ourselves and how to improve our lives.