Experiencing that feeling of nervousness and worriedness is a normal part of everyday life. Everybody frets or feels anxious from time to time. Whether it’s a busy schedule or studying for exams, a little bit of anxiety can really help you focus your attention, energy and motivation to the task at hand.
But when that anxiety exceeds its normality, a lot of people don’t realize or understand the direct effects it can have on a person or even themselves. Many times people jump to conclusions and label anxious people as lazy, irresponsible and passive.
So for those who are not anxious people, or maybe just want more insight on how it can affect an individual, please read on to view the top things that people don’t know they’re doing because of their high functioning anxiety.
Decline Invites Despite Wanting to Go: You have received an invite to this big party and have been waiting to go for weeks now, but on the day of, your anxiety begins to take up your whole space. A lot of anxious people can vouch for this: anxiety over an event can become so draining that you feel as if you’re lacking the energy to go out.
You realize this is happening and you don’t want to be a burden where you are supposed to go – so you end up canceling everything and stay home. Avoiding social situations is a very common symptom of social anxiety.
Obsess Over Trivial Things: It could be a simple word that was used or even someone glancing your way for a mere second that will have you rewinding that moment for days to come. The hard truth is that you obsess over everything that has happened a week ago or even a month ago. Calmclinic.com reports that obsessive thoughts are a common symptom of anxiety.
You also obsess over people that do not respond to you. You texted someone and haven’t gotten a response back and it’s been 12 hours. You begin to wonder if they’ve seen the message or are just ignoring you.
Fall Asleep Late and Wake Up Early: Sleeping is the number one problem for those with high anxiety. With so much racing through their head, they find it very tough to go to bed at a decent time according to Health.com.
Health.com adds that the reason those with anxiety are up so early is that their anxiety clock begins to tick and ring as soon as they hear their alarm go off. Once their anxiety switches on, there is nothing they can do to turn it off, so they just don’t go back to bed.
You’re Constantly Thinking of the Worst Scenario: According to Health.com, rather than enjoy the moment, someone with severe anxiety will begin to picture and convince themselves that the worst scenario is on its way.
One example is when they get sick. They will self-diagnose themselves and link their symptoms to the absolute worse disease they can find.
Constantly Rethinking Past Conversations: Health.com explains that those with anxiety will constantly think about the past. No matter how well a conversation went, those with anxiety constantly keep rewinding it in their head. They fear that they may have said something wrong, so they try to avoid confrontation at all costs. That constant rewinding can really drill a hole in their head, so constantly trying to remind themselves that it’s their anxiety tricking their mind is something they try to work on.
Someone’s Concerns About You Makes You Worry Even More: One of the biggest triggers of someone’s anxiety is when someone notices that they’re not alright. They think – if someone else notices, then it must be worse than they thought, according to WebMD.
You Take Blame for Slow Responses: When someone with anxiety is messaging people, they need a quick response back. If they do not receive one, they begin to panic and wonder if they said something wrong. This is also another reason they rewind past conversations. Healthyplace.com reports that guilt is one of the many distressing side effects of living with anxiety.
The Future Terrifies You: Health.com explains that excessive worrying is a direct sign of anxiety. Most people look forward to the future, but someone suffering from anxiety becomes intimidated and frustrated by it. Dealing with the present is so tough for them, they can’t even imagine how much tougher the future is going to be.
Constantly Comparing Success to Others Your Age: A lot of people with anxiety can vouch for this: anxiety can sometimes come with a perfectionist complex. Anxious people may not want to compare their success to others, but their anxiety makes them constantly scroll through Facebook and keep up-to-date with all the successful things their peers have done. It’s not their peers’ success that scares them: it’s wondering if they ever will that does.
You Beat Yourself Up Over Every Mistake: Mistakes are a part of life and a part of growing. But the second someone with anxiety makes a mistake, it will haunt them. Their anxiety doesn’t know it’s a part of life, it only knows that it’s bad! The Mayo Clinic states that this is part of having a sense of impending doom, which is a sign of anxiety as well.
Too Mentally Tired to Get Out of Bed: Even though their anxiety wakes them up early in the morning, it still doesn’t mean they’re ready to get up. Most days they’re too mentally and physically tired to get out of bed and just wish they could stay curled under the sheets, according to the Mayo Clinic.
Don’t Enjoy Meeting New People: They will constantly be worrying “will they like me?” And if they don’t come to them and converse, they will just keep to themselves or even leave the function altogether. The Mayo Clinic states that people with anxiety will try and avoid anything that will trigger it. So if you have anxiety and do not do well in social situations, you will not enjoy meeting new people.
Originally posted: https://www.providr.com/things-others-dont-realize-about-your-high-functioning-anxiety/?utm_source=mysimplereminders&utm_medium=facebook&utm_campaign=providr