8 Need To Know Facts About Anxiety

Whether it is you or a loved one that is struggling with anxiety there are a few things you need to know about it. These 8 facts about anxiety will help you have clarity to be able to accept and help yourself or a friend. 

Fact 1 About Anxiety

Anxiety is treatable. You need to know this fact because there are millions of individuals suffering from anxiety but not going for treatment. People chose not to receive treatment for many reasons, with one of the largest reasons being stigma, and suffering because of it.

Do not become one of those individuals! Seek help and take care of yourself. To that same point if you know someone else that is struggling with anxiety, support them and recommend they seek treatment!

Fact 2 About Anxiety

Anxiety often co-occurs with another disorder. It is important to know that anxiety often comes hand-in hand- with other mental illnesses such as Depression, ADHD and/or Eating Disorders.

This is yet another reason treatment is important! If you notice that you are having more than your “normal” anxiety symptoms it may be time to reassess yourself and your needs. 

Fact 3 About Anxiety

Anxiety can affect your physical health. If you have anxiety you may notice physical symptoms like nausea, fatigue, headaches, pain in shoulders or back, and/or chest pain. This is why it is important to practice mindfulness to be able to identify symptoms of anxiety before they become more severe or you begin to panic!

Fact 4 About Anxiety

Anxiety can be triggered by food. Foods that are very sugary or skipping meals can cause you to shake and trigger anxious feelings. You need to stay hydrated and nourished to avoid food triggers.

It is also important to limit or avoid caffeine consumption. I am still working on this myself, but I can definitely tell the difference when I do not have caffeine as my anxiety symptoms are less severe. 

Fact 5 About Anxiety

Women are more likely to have anxiety. In comparison to their male counterparts, women are more likely to have anxiety due to brain chemistry and hormones. I am not sure why us women get all of the “fun” things, I guess we have to take the good with the bad.

We are more likely to be anxious due to sensitivity to stress processing serotonin differently and our “fight or flight” staying active longer than men. This is why I express such importance for women to care for their mental health and have many self care activities, we need to unwind!

Fact 6 About Anxiety

You Should Face Anxiety Head On. The more you avoid it the more severe your anxiety gets. When you identify the triggers to anxiety and decide that the best way to deal with them is to avoid them, you will suffer longer than you should. You can identify your triggers with this freebie!

Avoiding triggers for a short time while you identify ways to combat your anxiety can be helpful however this should not go on much longer than necessary.  Just because you are avoiding the trigger does not mean you will not think of them. My Anxiety Workbook goes into more detail and is an excellent way to combat your anxiety.  

Fact 7 About Anxiety

Exercise Helps. Try to get out and move for at least 30 minutes a day to help lower your anxious feelings. When you exercise it releases happy-feel good chemicals that improve your mood and lower stress. You can read more about that here.

Fact 8 About Anxiety

You Are Not Alone. More than 40 million adults in the United States that struggle with anxiety. While it is not fun to cope with, you can join many support groups and gain awesome insight as to how to cope with anxiety from those who understand your struggles. You can read about my experience with anxiety and how I cope here.

I hope this helps to inform you of some facts of anxiety, why it is important to know and how to cope going forward. Read more facts about anxiety here!

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