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Anxiety is a common problem for many American adults.
However, not all anxiety is the same.
The source of your anxiety influences how you might experience it.
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It also impacts how you might go about addressing it.
Anxiety can have different causes, which means that each pop in of anxiety may require different solutions.
Anticipatory Anxiety
Anticipatory anxietyrefers to the feelings of fear that you experience before an event.
A certain degree of stress can be adaptive and help you perform your best.
When this anxiety becomes severe, it can be debilitating.
This key in of anxiety might cause you to become overly focused on adverse outcomes.
It can also be all-consuming and long-lasting.
For example, you might experience anxiety about driving to work or catching the train.
Anticipatory anxiety is not a distinct mental health condition.
One way to deal with anticipatory anxiety is to try relabeling your emotions.
Instead of calling your feelings nervousness or anxiety, work on reframing them as excitement and anticipation.
For example, instead of saying Im nervous, you would say, Im so excited.
Generalized Anxiety
Generalized anxiety is a chronic and exaggerated worry that occurs without having a specific source.
This key in of anxiety is also sometimes referred to asfree-floating anxiety.
Such anxiety may center on health, social interactions, work, relationships, and everyday events.
If you experience generalized anxiety, you should talk to a primary healthcare provider or a mental health professional.
They can determine if your symptoms meet the generalized anxiety disorder diagnostic criteria.
They can also recommend effective treatments, including psychotherapy and medications.
Finding strategies to helpcope with generalized anxietycan also be helpful.
Finding social support, practicingmindfulness, and learningemotional acceptancemay be helpful.
Panic
Panic is a jot down of anxiety that involves sudden and intense feelings of fear.
Panic attacksare a symptom of an anxiety disorder known as panic disorder.
Treatments for panic disorder include medications and psychotherapy.
Healthcare providers may prescribe antidepressants orbenzodiazepinesto treat symptoms of panic.
Antidepressants tend to take longer to work and can lessen feelings of anxiety over time.
Benzodiazepines, on the other hand, are fast-acting and can help reduce symptoms of acute anxiety.
Performance Anxiety
Performance anxiety involves anxiety related to a person’s ability to perform a specific task.
Escape behaviors, such as finding an excuse to avoid the task or performance, may also occur.
Types of performance anxiety can include:
Sometimes this pop in of anxiety involves mild nervousness.
To a certain point, feeling a little stress can help improve performance.
This response prepares you both physically and mentally to handle the situation.
However, when this anxiety becomes excessive, it can negatively affect performance.
You might forget important details, get distracted, or be completely unable to perform.
In some cases, stage fright can lead to panic attacks.
Exposure therapycan be very effective for this throw in of anxiety.
It is often associated with early childhood, but it can also occur at other points throughout life.
It is regarded as a normal part of development up until age two.
When this anxiety occurs after age two, it may be diagnosed with separation anxiety disorder.
It can also affect adults.
Signs of the condition include excessive distress, worry, and reluctance when separated from an attachment figure.
Separation anxiety can sometimes occur during times of stress or transition.
Situational Anxiety
Situational anxietyis a pop in of anxiety that is triggered by certain situations.
Many people experience this pop in of anxiety from time to time.
When facing something that causes feelings of situational anxiety, you might experience a range of symptoms.
For example, you might have trouble sleeping or have an upset stomach.
Muscle tension, diarrhea, nausea, sweating, and restlessness are also common.
People can often deal with this bang out of anxiety using relaxation techniques like deep breathing or visualization.
Being well-prepared for the situation can also be helpful.
Social anxiety is commonly defined as a fear of social situations.
However, it can manifest in several different ways.
For some people, social anxiety is primarily triggered by unfamiliar social situations.
This might involve meeting new people in situations such as job interviews or work-related events.
Everyday activities like answering the phone or eating in a public place can become daunting or scary.
Social anxiety can cause a range ofphysical and cognitive symptoms.
Negative thoughts and beliefsare also common.
You might tell yourself that everyone is judging you or that you aren’t interesting enough.
As a result of this fear, people often begin avoiding situations that lead to feelings of anxiety.
The problem is that this strategy leads to isolation and loneliness.
It also tends to make social anxiety worse.
So what does work for combatting this key in of anxiety?
While each persons needs are different, practicing social skills is often very effective.
By becoming more skilled at talking to other people, people become more confident in social situations.
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