Being anxious is being human. Everyone has anxiety because anxiety is naturally built into the human brain. The fight or flight response system is part of the way humans have evolved to survive. When anxiety becomes a mental health issue in the form of an anxiety disorder, the brain gets stuck in survival mode. Everything becomes a threat to survival, including the symptoms of anxiety themselves. While anxiety is helpful and necessary for extreme situations of survival, anxiety can become debilitating and an interference with the rest of life. Telling the difference between the two can be difficult, especially with anxiety in the way.
Self writes that “…living in a constant heightened state of anxiety can be distracting at best and debilitating at worst,” in their article “This Is When to See a Mental Health Professional About Your Anxiety”. “When anxious thoughts are interfering with your life and causing you significant distress,” continues the article, “that isn’t something you should just chalk up to nerves and push through. That’s something you can get help with.”
Like most mental health disorders, anxiety disorders have a collection of stereotypes, stigmas, and token phrases that “chalk up” anxiety to nerves. Nervousness and anxiety are not the same. Some people can be excessively worrisome without be anxious. Anxiety disorders aren’t people worrying too much, thinking too much, overthinking too much, taking things too seriously, etc. Anxiety disorders are real mental illnesses with real symptoms which have real effects.
Can you tell the difference?
Thanks to the worldwide web, everyone is a professional when it comes to making a diagnosis. However, only a licensed professional like a psychiatrist or a psychologist can make a thorough assessment and diagnosis. Not being able to tell if your anxiety is anxiety or problematic anxiety is not something you’re really supposed to do. What you can do is get to a point where you realize something isn’t working for you anymore and you want life to look differently. If anxiety of any kind starts to interfere with your life to that point, the point where it isn’t ‘working’ anymore, it is time to seek the guidance of a professional. Your professional may recommend therapy or treatment.
If your trusted professional recommends a treatment program, call The guest House Ocala. Our private treatment programs operate out of a private estate providing you with the luxurious amenities of home. When creating your treatment plan, we use a concierge level of customization, taking everything unique about you into consideration to make sure you receive the best care possible. Everyone has a story. Yours is about to change. For information, call us today: 1-855-483-7800