Why Do I Have Anxiety

Anxiety is an overall feeling of fear or apprehension which can come on at any time and affects different people in different scenarios. Asking yourself why do I have anxiety can sometimes reveal things that you did not even realise were causing you stress.

While, some people have the ability to control their anxiety, there are many more folks whose anxiety can have a big impact on their every day life. That being the case, let us take a look at some of the causes of the disorder and what you may be able to do to control or even overcome those feelings.

Mental Conditions

Unlike a lot of medical conditions, anxiety can affect a person due to mental or physical reasons and even outside influences like drug abuse. Mental conditions that cause anxiety are panic disorder or panic attacks, phobic disorders aka phobias and stress disorders as in large amounts of stress.

Physical Conditions

Physical conditions such as heart abnormalities, an overactive thyroid and various lung conditions. Generally any physical condition affecting the heart, lungs or central nervous system can all cause anxiety in a patient. The anxiety is not due to the patients feelings about the condition but can be a secondary affect of the condition itself.

Common Outside Influences

There are many external factors that can cause anxiety with stress caused by every day life being one of them. Other factors are emotional trauma, caffeine through drinking excessive amounts of coffee, the side affects from long-term medication and shortness of breath.

Nervous and Anxiety Symptoms

There are many different symptoms people feel from anxiety, most of which are felt in the lungs, heart and nervous system. The majority of sufferers will feel their heart beating fast and palpitating, they will feel a shortness of breath and can even feel their body turn cold. Many sufferers will feel so scared that they have to run out of what ever situation they are in. It has been known for people to be in a perfectly normal situation yet feel a panic attack to take hold and have to leave the place they are in without any forewarning.

Seeking Medical Advice

Should bouts of anxiety last for prolonged periods or happen on a regular basis then medical advice should be sought as it can start to affect the way a sufferer carries out their normal everyday activities. The doctor may be able to prescribe medication that can reduce the occurrences and strength of the attacks.  If the anxiety attacks become extremely frequent and are very strong in intensity then the sufferer should seek immedicate medical attention from a hospital as it may mean there is a more serious underlying medical problem.

Tips for Anxiety Sufferers

While having an attack of anxiety can make you feel like you are going to die, this is far from what will happen. If you manage to control yourself long enough the feelings will pass.

If you have not told a loved one or a friend about your anxiety then it may be worth speaking to them so if a bad episode does take place, they will at least understand what is happening. If you don’t tell them and an attack causes you to run off or act in a strange manner due to the situation your are in, they may become emotional.