Signs of Anxiety You May Not Expect

Anxiety is the most common mental health disorder in America with almost 20% of the population, or 40 million Americans, receiving an anxiety diagnosis. Anxiety only appears to be increasing with nearly 40% of individuals feeling more anxious this year than they were in previous years.  Anxiety disorders come in many forms, including Social Anxiety, Separation Anxiety, Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD), Agoraphobia, and more.  There are multiple causes of anxiety as well, with just some being genetics, relational problems, workplace issues, and environmental stressors (keep an eye out for a future blog on this!).   Some of the most common signs of anxiety are feeling keyed up or tense, feeling like something bad is going to happen, and feeling restless or lacking sleep.  However, anxiety presents differently in everyone.  Check out our list of 3 signs of anxiety you may not expect: Gastrointestinal Problems   Gastrointestinal issues, or GI, may be an unexpected result of enduring anxiety.  While we don’t always acknowledge it, the mind and body are more connected than we think!  Some GI problems found alongside anxiety include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, indigestion, and increased or decreased appetite.  Look out - anxiety can cause some nasty GI symptoms! Phantom Vibrations, Smell, and Ringing If you’ve never heard of phantom occurrences, these are instances where we think we feel, smell, see, or hear something, but it is not actually occurring.  Phantom vibrations are those times you think you feel your phone go off, but it didn’t.  Phantom smells are when you swear you smell something familiar, but nothing is making the scent.  Phantom ringing is a signal in your ear, like buzzing, humming, or chirping, that doesn’t have an external source.  If you’re continuously experiencing any of these things, it could be a sign of anxiety. Sore Muscles   Sore muscles with no workout in sight could be another sign you’re experiencing anxiety.  Anxiety makes us tense, keyed up, and on edge.  As a physical response, we may be clenching our muscles - especially our jaw and shoulders - without even realizing it.  If you’ve been unintentionally tense for a long time, your muscles may be sore from the tightening caused by anxiety.  Yoga may be especially helpful here as we tend to store emotions in our hips.   Whether you’re experiencing some of these less common symptoms or anxiety or good old-fashioned tenseness, irritability, and nervousness, we’d love to help you on your healing journey.  At Therapy Beyond Healing, we have clinicians that are experienced in working with individuals suffering with anxiety.  Reach out today by filling out a contact form and someone on staff will be in touch with you shortly.  We look forward to hearing from you!