View Full Version : Does everyone suffer from anxiety?
I live pretty much in my comfort zone and for the most part I am fine, when I venture outside my comfort zone I have anxiety, What I mean by this is things like weddings/funerals give me anxiety, things I don't encounter very often. I suppose as you get used to something my anxiety becomes less. I wonder if everyone is the same? Have anxiety until they get used to something?
The difference between me and average joe I guess is average joe doesn't know what it is and just gets on with it. I know what can happen, it can end in a panic attack which makes it worse and more scary so I just tend to get out of that situation ASAP
theharvestmouse
04-02-12, 13:35
Moments of anxiousness are normal but when it becomes more than that its a problem. Everyone has a comfort zone, but I suppose it depends on what your comfort zone is, if you are able to live day to day without feeling anxious a lot then I think its more normal. But if someone is holed up in their house and that's their only comfort zone then that is not really being able to cope with anxiety.
Its very true that when you push yourself out of your comfort zone then that becomes easier. Then the more you do things then anxiety will become less apparent. But going back to what you said, most people get anxious about things, but I suppose its about how we deal with those feelings.
Its when you push yourself to do things, that you thought were going to be really scary, and then realising after that actually you were ok and it wasnt so bad... thats when your anxiety starts to wear off a bit... because your not in danger everywhere you go, nothing will happen if you go... and once you start to realise its just your unfounded fears stopping you, you can start to feel less anx about going out...
I recall having anxious feelings about things ,this is before i became a real sufferer, I recall long driving trips for work years ago, and always worried i get lost... i can recall feeling anx the night before a trip, but as a non sufferer then, its just the norm and i just got on with it the next day.... But as sufferers our anxiety is way over the top about everything!
---------- Post added at 14:34 ---------- Previous post was at 14:28 ----------
The difference between me and average joe I guess is average joe doesn't know what it is and just gets on with it.
I think everyone actually knows when they feel anx, so the average Joe knows what it is when they feel it too... same as wedding nerves, interview nerves, etc, all those norm feelings people have... they just dont overthink it, theyre not scared,and see it for what it is and let it go... and of course they prob have never experienced panic.
I mean before we experienced panic , we were also just average Joes!
Its when you push yourself to do things, that you thought were going to be really scary, and then realising after that actually you were ok and it wasnt so bad... thats when your anxiety starts to wear off a bit... because your not in danger everywhere you go, nothing will happen if you go... and once you start to realise its just your unfounded fears stopping you, you can start to feel less anx about going out...
I recall having anxious feelings about things ,this is before i became a real sufferer, I recall long driving trips for work years ago, and always worried i get lost... i can recall feeling anx the night before a trip, but as a non sufferer then, its just the norm and i just got on with it the next day.... But as sufferers our anxiety is way over the top about everything!
Exactly, I think after an anxiety disorder your scared everything is gonna trigger it off again where as before you'd just get on with it. I can relate to long trips but it does feel great when you just do it. I find after the first 30 mins the anxiety level drops anyway. Last summer we went on a 400 mile round trip, I dreaded it days before and I am particularly anxious on motorways but I did it. I've been on motorways since and I feel ok now.
---------- Post added at 14:40 ---------- Previous post was at 14:38 ----------
I think everyone actually knows when they feel anx, so the average Joe knows what it is when they feel it too... same as wedding nerves, interview nerves, etc, all those norm feelings people have... they just dont overthink it, theyre not scared,and see it for what it is and let it go... and of course they prob have never experienced panic.
I mean before we experienced panic , we were also just average Joes!
Exactly, its the fear of panic, and for me anyway fear I'll go mad.
Also 'average joes' actually look forward to things like weddings, parties, going out , infact going everywhere!.. so id have to say answer is NO, people in general arent anxious about everything until they get used to it.. only us sufferers are !!
Like i said, i had anx about long trips BEFORE I SUFFERED PANIC ANX... when i was an average Joe!
Now as a sufferer, i guess i feel more anxiety than the norm about a long drive alone, but i still make myself do it!
When you say 'just wondering if everyone was the same' did you mean sufferers? as yes i guess until we do more and realise its not so bad, then yes we feel anx about going places... if you meant average non sufferers, then no, they dont feel anx about everything at all...
Its the fear of panic that keeps it alive !! While you fear it, it wont go...
i dont fear it, and i no longer have panic attacks..
My view is that most people get anxious under certain circumstances and that can be really beneficial, in its place. Those of us who suffer from some kind of anxiety disorder have confused what is logically worth becoming anxious over and what isn't. Just the fear of an anxiety attack is enough to bring one on. I can easily provoke an attack in myself, just by thinking about it.
I certainly agree with previous posts about facing situations which you know will make you anxious. I have always been determined (but not always successful) not to avoid anything which I fear will bring on my anxiety and, sometimes, it is unbelievably difficult. I've caught glimpses of what can happen when I don't face up to things and it has terrified me because it's like a roller coaster you can't get off and it just spirals out of control.
Sometimes I still find it hard to accept that my brain can cause such illogical responses and make me feel so physically ill. Someone posted on another thread that, although anxiety causes us so much pain, in some ways it has made us the people we are and we are often very strong and determined yet sensitive to others' feelings. I think there may be something in that. I'd do anything to be rid of my anxiety but, at the same time, I know I would be a different person, maybe not completely for the better.
Pip
Its generally sensitive gentle natured people that are afflicted with anxiety
Yes Stormsky, you're probably right though, having suffered from anxiety for so long, I wonder if being sensitive has made me anxious or being anxious has made me sensitive. Probably me just over-thinking things as usual!
I'm also an over thinker and very sensitive about things. So I think you could be both right!!
I have often wished I could be like people who block off from things and don't really care what people think of them etc etc....
I wonder how you do it???
:shrug:
Kendra - I agree and I think that being sensitive means we'll always care what others think.
I'd be interested to know if anyone thinks that heredity plays a part. Me and my dad are so similar in our anxiety (and in most other ways too). In fact, I've come to accept that I'm turning into him!
swanlinnet
04-02-12, 20:54
Yes I beleive all people have anxiety although they do not suffer from it in the sense that it causes them to modify their behaviour.
There are degrees of it also ...
And there are people who are totally free from it such as the saints, for example, who all went to their deaths smiling cheerfully . God knows how they attain such composure:)
Of course it's normal for everyone to feel anxious.
But people who suffer from anxiety disorders are different because they cannot cope with their feelings of anxiety. They are anxious of irrational fears, e.g. leaving the house, going on a bus, being left alone in the house, going to the supermarket. Most people take these simple tasks for granted and do not feel anxious about doing them.
It is normal to feel anxious if you are about to do a bungee jump or make an important speech in front of hundreds of people.
Anxiety becomes a problem when it interferes with your day to day life and stops you from doing things you enjoy.
Deep down I know that I have nothing to fear that but fear itself BUT when you have an anxiety disorder that can be VERY difficult to apply.
Haz.x
---------- Post added at 21:14 ---------- Previous post was at 21:04 ----------
Kendra - I agree and I think that being sensitive means we'll always care what others think.
I'd be interested to know if anyone thinks that heredity plays a part. Me and my dad are so similar in our anxiety (and in most other ways too). In fact, I've come to accept that I'm turning into him!
My psychologist told me that some people are born with a predisposition to anxiety. This does not necessarily mean that they will develop an anxiety disorder. According to this particular theory, the next step is whether you were brought up in an anxious household. For example, take two siblings brough up in the same houshold, one born with the predisposition and the other not. The one with the predisposition is more likely to suffer from an anxiety disorder.
Anxiety and other mental health problems run in my family. I was also brough up in an anxious household.
Interesting theory?
Haz.x
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