What is the difference between normal and abnormal anxiety?
Anxiety often causes feelings of tension or uneasiness and stems from the apprehension of danger. Anxiety is an emotion and like all emotions it can be experienced at varying degrees of intensity. One definition of an emotion is "A mental state that arises spontaneously rather than through conscious effort and is often accompanied by psychological changes" (www.thefreedictionary.com).
At the right level, anxiety is normal and can help you to perform well, although it can become a problem if it is experienced too often, for too long, or at the high end of the intensity range. For example, experiencing panicky feelings or anxiety before giving a speech or taking an exam is a completely normal emotion, however, abnormal anxiety interferes with everyday life and may cause you to avoid certain situations because you are too worried about them. For instance, I used to try and avoid any quiet settings as I used to feel severe levels of anxiety and panic. It really affected me in school during lessons and it controlled my decisions about which subjects to take at A-level. This is clearly abnormal anxiety as there should be nothing worrying or dangerous about quiet places!
Anxiety can cause bodily sensations such as an increase in heart rate, faster breathing, sweating, dizziness, chest pains, nausea, hot flushes and many others. Anxiety can cause you to overestimate the risk of danger and underestimate your ability to cope and this can make your symptoms worse, but always remember that however extreme they may feel they can't harm you.
Anxiety disorders have been shown to best respond to cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT). It focuses on what people think, how these thoughts effect them emotionally, and how they ultimately behave. If you think you are suffering from abnormal anxiety go and see your GP, and also, why not try some CBT techniques? For example take a look at the STOPP worksheet that I posted about back in February.
