What is Anxiety?

Anxiety is a completely normal feeling that most of us has probably felt in our life. Have you ever had butterfly’s when you are going for a job interview?, or maybe sweaty palms when taking a driving test or some other kind of exam? well these things happen when we feel anxious. Don’t worry these type of feelings are nothing to worry about and in fact it just shows that we are human.

The feelings of anxiety can present itself in many different ways, not just mentally but physically too. It is our body’s way of dealing with fear and worry. Think about this situation for a moment, you have just had a great night out with your friends, and it’s time to go home. You step outside, it’s dark and raining and there’s no-one around. You turn left into an alleyway and suddenly you hear heavy footsteps coming faster and faster towards you. What do you feel? scared? panicky? Kind of breathless? Well this is also anxiety that is making you feel this way.

Whilst in the above situation anxiety is actually a good thing, it is making us aware of any danger that we could be facing. However for some people anxiety can become a real problem. It can overwhelm them and take over their life. They constantly feel jittery and on edge, it affects their relationships, their ability to hold down a job and even the way they behave. They can wake up with a feeling of dread that they just can’t seem to shift. When anxiety becomes this bad it can be very scary.

The feelings of anxiety no matter how big or small are usually triggered by an event. whether it be a current situation you are in like a confrontation with someone or it could be triggered by something big that has happened in your life like moving house or a death of a loved one. The most important thing to remember is that anxiety is a part of every day life and you shouldn’t be worried about it. The more you worry about feeling anxious the more anxious you are likely to feel. If these feelings become too much and happen on an every day occurrence it could be the time to seek medical advice.