Here's what people with anxiety want you to know!
| Updated: Mar 22, 2018, 11:53 IST
Anxiety, if it exceeds a 'normal' limit can become a disorder and it can disrupt many facets of daily life. Anxiety manifests in various different ways. It can be as simple as feeling nervous about an upcoming exam or as complicated as feeling so frazzled that you don't quite know what the direct cause of your anxiety is. Today, we've got you what people with anxiety want you to know.
First off, anxiety isn't just nervousness. It's much more than that actually. It could be anything from anxiety attacks to more general, manageable anxiety that never seems to go away. People with anxiety don't all experience the same symptoms. Someone with a generalised anxiety disorder may not experience panic attacks or fear certain things like someone with a specific phobia. Regardless, not displaying certain symptoms doesn't make their anxiety any less valid. Also, they never know when the anxiety is going to hit, it could even be about things that don't bother or matter to them and so "you have nothing to worry about" isn't something they want to hear. Instead, provide productive solutions to help them cope with it. Also, and this one is important: do not try to 'fix' them.
Your efforts and support will be appreciated more than you know.
First off, anxiety isn't just nervousness. It's much more than that actually. It could be anything from anxiety attacks to more general, manageable anxiety that never seems to go away. People with anxiety don't all experience the same symptoms. Someone with a generalised anxiety disorder may not experience panic attacks or fear certain things like someone with a specific phobia. Regardless, not displaying certain symptoms doesn't make their anxiety any less valid. Also, they never know when the anxiety is going to hit, it could even be about things that don't bother or matter to them and so "you have nothing to worry about" isn't something they want to hear. Instead, provide productive solutions to help them cope with it. Also, and this one is important: do not try to 'fix' them.
Your efforts and support will be appreciated more than you know.