# Understanding Anxiety
Anxiety is something we all experience.
You might feel anxious before an important meeting, when waiting for medical results, before an exam, or when facing a difficult conversation. In situations like these, anxiety is a normal response to uncertainty or perceived danger.
But sometimes anxiety becomes more persistent. You may feel worried even when there is no obvious reason, find it difficult to switch your thoughts off, or notice that anxiety is beginning to affect your sleep, relationships, work or everyday decisions.
Understanding what anxiety is — and why your mind and body respond the way they do — can be an important first step towards managing it.
What is anxiety?
Anxiety is part of the body's natural response to threat.
When your brain believes that something may be dangerous, it prepares your body to respond. This is often described as the fight, flight or freeze response.
Your heart may beat faster. Your breathing may change. Your muscles may tense. You become more alert and focused on what is happening around you.
These reactions can be extremely useful when you are genuinely in danger.
The difficulty is that our threat system doesn't respond only to physical danger. It can also be activated by thoughts, memories, uncertainty, social situations or worries about what might happen in the future.
Your body can therefore produce a very real anxiety response even when there is no immediate physical threat.
What does anxiety feel like?
Anxiety can affect both your mind and your body, and people experience it in different ways.
Emotional and mental symptoms
You may notice:
- persistent worrying
- feeling nervous or on edge
- difficulty concentrating
- expecting something bad to happen
- repeatedly thinking through possible problems
- difficulty making decisions
- feeling unable to relax
- becoming more irritable than usual
Some people describe anxiety as having a mind that simply won't switch off.
Physical symptoms
Anxiety can also cause noticeable physical sensations, including:
- a racing or pounding heartbeat
- sweating
- shaking or trembling
- tightness in the chest
- shortness of breath
- dizziness or feeling light-headed
- nausea or an unsettled stomach
- tense muscles
- headaches
- difficulty sleeping
- feeling unusually tired
These sensations can sometimes be frightening, particularly when you don't realise that anxiety may be contributing to them.
However, new, severe or unexplained physical symptoms should not automatically be assumed to be anxiety. If you are concerned about physical symptoms, it is important to seek appropriate medical advice.
Why do we become anxious?
There isn't always one clear reason.
Anxiety can develop through a combination of experiences, circumstances and individual differences.
Stress at work, financial difficulties, relationship problems, health concerns, bereavement or major life changes can all contribute.
Past experiences can matter too. Difficult or frightening experiences may leave us more alert to particular situations in the future.
Sometimes anxiety develops gradually without an obvious trigger.
It is also possible to become anxious about anxiety itself.
For example, you notice your heart beating faster and think, Something is wrong. That thought increases your anxiety, which makes your heart beat even faster. The stronger physical sensation then seems to confirm that something really is wrong.
Understanding this cycle can help explain why anxiety sometimes seems to escalate so quickly.
When does normal anxiety become a problem?
Feeling anxious does not necessarily mean that you have an anxiety disorder.
Anxiety becomes more concerning when it is persistent, difficult to control or starts limiting your life.
You might begin avoiding situations because you are worried about how you will feel. Perhaps you stop travelling, avoid social situations, repeatedly seek reassurance, put off important decisions or spend increasing amounts of time preparing for things that might go wrong.
Avoidance can bring short-term relief.
Unfortunately, it can also reinforce anxiety. If you always avoid something that frightens you, you may never have the opportunity to discover that you could cope with the situation.
Over time, your world can gradually become smaller.
Different types of anxiety
Anxiety can appear in several different forms.
Generalised anxiety often involves persistent worry about many areas of life, even when there is no immediate reason for concern.
Panic disorder involves recurring panic attacks and often a fear of experiencing another one.
Social anxiety centres around social situations and concerns about being judged, embarrassed or rejected.
Phobias involve an intense fear of a particular object or situation.
Health anxiety can involve persistent fears about illness and frequently checking the body or seeking reassurance.
There are also conditions such as obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in which anxiety can play an important role, although they have their own distinct features.
A mental health professional can help you understand what you are experiencing rather than trying to diagnose yourself from a list of symptoms.
The anxiety cycle
One reason anxiety can become persistent is that our attempts to protect ourselves can sometimes unintentionally keep it going.
Imagine that you are anxious about speaking during a meeting.
You predict that you will make a mistake and everyone will notice.
Because you feel anxious, you decide not to speak.
Immediately, you feel relieved.
Your brain may then learn:
“I avoided speaking, and nothing bad happened. Avoiding it kept me safe.”
At the next meeting, the urge to remain silent may become even stronger.
This pattern can occur in many areas of life.
Recognising these cycles doesn't mean forcing yourself into frightening situations. It means beginning to understand how thoughts, physical sensations and behaviours can influence each other.
Can anxiety be treated?
Yes. There are effective ways to manage and treat anxiety.
The right approach depends on your circumstances and the type and severity of anxiety you are experiencing.
Talking therapies can help you understand what contributes to your anxiety and develop different ways of responding to it.
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) is commonly used for anxiety and focuses on the relationship between thoughts, feelings and behaviours.
Other therapeutic approaches may explore emotional experiences, relationships, past events or patterns that contribute to anxiety.
For some people, medication may also be appropriate. This is something to discuss with a doctor or other qualified healthcare professional.
Often, treatment involves a combination of understanding anxiety, developing coping strategies and gradually changing patterns that have been keeping the anxiety going.
What can I do when I feel anxious?
Small changes can sometimes make anxiety feel more manageable.
Pay attention to what tends to trigger your anxiety and what happens next. Notice the thoughts that appear, how your body responds and what you feel tempted to do.
Regular sleep, physical activity, eating consistently and reducing excessive caffeine or alcohol may also help some people manage their overall anxiety levels.
Relaxation and breathing techniques can be useful, particularly when your body feels highly activated.
It can also help to talk about what you are experiencing rather than trying to hide it.
Most importantly, try not to judge yourself for feeling anxious. Anxiety is a human response designed to protect us. The goal isn't necessarily to eliminate anxiety completely, but to prevent it from controlling the way you live.
When should I seek help?
Consider speaking to a professional if anxiety is becoming difficult to manage or is interfering with your everyday life.
You don't have to wait until things become unbearable.
You might seek support because anxiety is affecting your sleep, work, relationships or confidence. Perhaps you are increasingly avoiding situations, experiencing panic attacks, or simply spending too much of your day worrying.
Your GP can be a useful starting point, and a qualified therapist can help you explore what is happening and what type of support may be appropriate.
Anxiety doesn't have to make your decisions for you
Anxiety often tries to protect us by encouraging certainty, control and avoidance.
But life rarely offers complete certainty.
Learning to manage anxiety isn't about becoming someone who never worries or feels afraid. It is about developing the ability to experience those feelings without automatically allowing them to decide what you can and cannot do.
Understanding anxiety is an important first step.
The next is discovering what helps you move forward despite it.