Many people must have felt anxious or nervous in their lives, for example when facing problems at work, before taking an exam, before a job interview, or when having to make an important decision. Anxiety that arises is normal because it is a response experienced when someone experiences stress.
However, it should be watched out for when a person experiences feelings of anxiety which are usually marked by nervousness, worry, fear, or excessive anxiety for no apparent reason or there is a discrepancy between the seriousness of the cause and the magnitude of the anxiety that occurs. In many cases, excessive anxiety can cause organs such as the stomach, lungs and heart to work abnormally. Often sufferers with high anxiety feel as if they are going to die because of chest tightness or stomach pain, or a heart that is beating faster than usual which can cause weakness. But in reality, laboratory results or supporting examinations state that all organs are functioning properly.
This condition is known as a panic attack. How do anxiety disorders like this happen? Anxiety disorders occur when a person’s coping mechanism is no longer able to handle anxiety, so that there are errors in the brain that make a person think there is a danger or threat, even though there really isn’t one.
Coping mechanisms are various efforts or steps taken by a person to overcome problems that cause stress to him. Also included are efforts to solve problems directly, adapt to change, and defense responses to situations that threaten or exceed the limits of individual abilities cognitively and behaviorally to protect themselves from the problems they face.
Some of the symptoms of anxiety that a person may feel include psychological symptoms, namely:
1. Excessive worry or fear, even panic
2. Tense, feeling uncomfortable, feeling always in danger
3. Feeling restless
4. Talk excessively and quickly
5. Hard to concentrate
6. Fear of losing control, fear of death, or fear of going crazy
7. Trouble sleeping
8. Feeling like fainting or choking
Symptoms of anxiety in a person can also manifest in several physical symptoms, including:
1. Blood pressure and heart rate increase
2. Tighten the muscles in your head or neck
3. Headache, dizziness, or lightheadedness
4. Nausea or discomfort in the stomach
5. Diarrhea or constipation (constipation)
6. Cold sweats
7. Dry mouth
8. Abdominal or chest pain
9. Tightness in the throat and difficulty breathing
10. Short or fast breath
11. Shaking, feeling weak, limp, or tired
12. Numbness or numbness and tingling
Is there a way to prevent anxiety disorders from occurring? Anxiety, like many other mental health conditions, can be more difficult to treat if it is allowed to drag on. So, there’s nothing wrong with seeking help earlier if you already feel excessive anxiety. If allowed to drag on, anxiety disorders can trigger serious complications that will affect physical conditions, such as digestive or intestinal problems (such as irritable bowel syndrome or gastrointestinal ulcers), headaches and migraines, sleep disturbances, heart health problems, and disease another chronic.
In addition, there are several preventive measures that can also be taken, such as:
- Write a journal in the form of personal notes to help identify stress triggers, how progress is made in responding to and dealing with them, whether you experience failure or success. In this way, we can find the right steps to manage stress.
- Seeking support, namely by telling what is felt to the right person to relieve anxiety.
- Relax with relaxing activities such as meditation, muscle relaxation, sitting in nature, or listening to relaxing music.
- Prioritize careful management of activities and time and energy to reduce anxiety.
- Divert your mind with constructive and fun activities, such as doing sports to relieve stress or anxiety.
- Keep in mind that the anxiety that arises is related to thoughts of something that may not necessarily happen. This may not happen or indeed nothing has happened so far.
- Avoid consuming harmful substances such as alcohol and drugs because they can exacerbate anxiety. Likewise with excessive intake of nicotine and caffeine. Excessive consumption can be addictive and difficult to stop. If it is difficult to stop the habit, see a doctor immediately to find the best solution.
So, does someone also need to come to the doctor when experiencing anxiety disorders? There are several conditions that you need to consider seeing a doctor immediately, including:
- Feeling so worried that it interferes with daily life
- Anxiety, fear, or worry that you feel makes you depressed and difficult to control.
- Feeling depressed to the point of using alcohol or drugs to cope or have other mental health problems besides anxiety disorders.
- The anxiety you feel is caused by another mental health problem.
- Thinking of suicide.
If you think you need help dealing with anxiety disorders, see a doctor immediately. The doctor will determine whether the anxiety disorder that appears is related to the underlying physical health condition. Then, the doctor will provide the right treatment plan to help reduce your anxiety disorder, including referring to a psychiatric specialist to help diagnose the anxiety disorder you are experiencing.