What Does Anxiety Feel Like?
The Symptoms Affecting Your Mind And Body
From the most common to the most unusual, we break down the physical and mental symptoms of anxiety, why they happen, and what you can do to minimize them.
Have you ever taken a deep breath and suddenly felt a sharp pain in your chest?
Maybe you were sitting at your computer, not moving much, or even just standing completely still when you unexpectedly felt a burn in your chest.
James, an iOS developer in his early thirties, had been experiencing something similar to that. But instead of going away after a few breaths, the pain would remain. For nearly two weeks, he kept feeling the same ache in the exact same spot on his chest.
At first, he tried ignoring it- assuming it was part of a cold or something. But it just kept coming back. A previous smoker who had only recently quit, James started to believe the sharpness was a sign of something much more serious.
But an appointment with his doctor revealed a diagnosis he never would have expected:
Stress.
The answer stunned James. He just wasn’t one to get stressed. In fact, he considered himself to be someone who thrived in a fast-paced work environment.
Besides, James always associated stress with feelings of worry or as a form of anxiety. Those just weren’t emotions he had been feeling, not consciously anyway.
But the more his visit with his doctor went on, the more he realized she was right.
James was in fact very stressed.
Like James, many of us tend to think of anxiety as just excessive worry. And while worry is one of the most common symptoms of anxiety, it certainly isn’t the only one.
In fact, there are dozens of different ways your body can react when it’s under heightened stress. And chest pains happen to be one of the most common.
Here we’ll cover different symptoms of anxiety from the most common to those you may not recognize, why these symptoms happen, and what you can do about them to improve your overall wellness.
01
First, why do these symptoms even happen?
According to Dr. Richard Honaker, Chief Medical Officer of YourDoctors, it’s what our bodies have simply been made to do:
Basically, when our bodies are under pressure, they respond by releasing different chemicals into our bodies that can cause all sorts of reactions. Everything from negative thoughts to facial twitches.
And for the most part, our body’s ability to do this is actually helpful. It can protect us from the most dangerous of threats and help us determine when it’s time to run away.
But:
When we’re not in real danger- when we’re simply trying to deliver a presentation at work, interviewing for a new job, or meeting someone new for the first time - this type of response can be unnecessary and can, in some cases, deter from your quality of life.
02
What does anxiety actually feel like?
The answer is:
It depends on you.
Anxiety is not a one-size-fits-all experience. Different situations cause us to feel stressed, with our bodies all responding to that stress in various ways.
And that response can be both mental as well as physical.
Symptoms of high functioning anxiety, or even just plain old stress, can be experienced in the form of feelings and emotions, but they can also be felt in our physical bodies as well.
And sometimes, like in James’ case, they can seem like something completely different than anxiety altogether.
Take Stephanie’s story for example:
Stephanie has long considered herself to be a perfectionist. Her friends and family regularly teased her for being an overachiever. And in a lot of ways, her high-achieving attitude has been what’s made her successful, even earning her two awards at work within the same year.
But the same perfectionism that helped Stephanie succeed also caused her to be incredibly hard on herself and experience a constant fear of failure.
Anytime a project wasn’t going well or she received critical feedback on her work, she took it very personally. She would become consumed with racing thoughts, even convincing herself that, despite having two awards that told her otherwise, she was failing and would be fired at any moment.
Stephanie had been noticing the rash on her skin for a few weeks. Having always had sensitive skin, she just assumed it was from something she was using - her laundry detergent or one of her skincare products.
But switching detergents and swapping out different lotions didn’t change anything. She still had that same red, itchy rash that just wouldn’t go away.
Finally, Stephanie saw her healthcare specialist who recognized her skin condition as an anxiety-induced rash. Not only that, her doctor informed her that some of the other symptoms she was experiencing - shakiness and dizziness - were also due to her anxiety.
Up until this appointment, Stephanie had never attributed any of these things she’d been experiencing to anxiety:
“I thought anxiety was just someone having an emotional breakdown. I didn’t associate rashes or dizziness with it.”
What Stephanie was experiencing is what some would refer to as high-functioning anxiety.
And while it isn’t an officially designated mental health diagnosis, it’s a commonly used term for those whose anxiety allows them to be high performers but still leaves them experiencing detrimental health effects.
It’s crucial to recognize how you personally react when anxious - mentally and physically. Knowing the types of symptoms you experience will better equip you for finding ways to cope with anxiety and the symptoms that come with it when it happens.
For many, this starts with assessing your mental state when stressed.
Anxiety can cause us to experience an overwhelming set of different emotions and feelings.
Some of the most common are:
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Not only can these emotions feel overwhelming, but they can be downright confusing. It’s totally normal to not even be able to describe how you’re feeling.
Some may feel a little off- like something just isn’t quite right. Others might feel completely on edge and even inexplicably angry.
Often, people will say they feel like they can’t focus. Alternatively, others say they can’t pull their thoughts away from one single thing, overthinking the same scenarios over and over.
Finally, one of the most commonly reported mental symptoms is burnout. And this makes total sense because anxiety is exhausting! Even worse, it can lead to poor sleep habits, which don’t do anything to help your energy levels.
In fact, Dr. Lynn Marie Morski, physician and author of Quitting by Design says that: “Many people who have anxiety experience their worst symptoms at night, which can have a significant impact on their sleep schedule. Even if the individual does get to sleep, their mind is still racing, and their sleep is not restful or restorative.”
An anxiety disorder may be classified as a mental health condition, but that doesn’t mean its effects are limited to the mind. Anxiety can wreak havoc on your body too, including:
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Think about the last time you faced something that made you nervous - maybe it was finally asking someone out on a date or asking your intimidating boss for a raise you knew you deserved.
While you may have “felt” nervous, your body was likely sending you physical signals as well (ie: what you may think of as your nervous habits).
For instance, your hands may have started to shake or your voice trembled when you started to speak. You might have felt a wave of heat move across your face as you started to blush. Or your heart rate might have been going at the same high speed it does when you’re working out, even though you weren’t moving all that much.
Though most of the physical symptoms of anxiety are simply annoying and distracting, some can be downright painful.
It’s not uncommon for people to experience headaches, chest pain, back pain, or even pain in their jaw.
Some people even report that they suddenly feel ill or faintish.
03
So anxiety can feel like something totally different?
It most definitely can.
A few less common but certainly real symptoms that people often don’t attribute to anxiety include:
- Erectile dysfunction
- Hives and rashes
- Tingling in fingers and around the mouth
- Feet tickling
- Feeling very hot or very cold
- Weight changes
- Changes in appetite
And sometimes anxiety symptoms mimic other conditions. In the case of Stephanie, she assumed her rash was due to one of her skincare products. James, on the other hand, feared his chest pain was a sign of a serious condition, perhaps in his heart or lungs.
So if anxiety can feel like something completely different altogether, then how the heck are you supposed to know if what you’re experiencing is from anxiety or not?
Dr. Morski notes the importance of paying attention to yourself and mindfully tracking patterns:
04
When should you seek help for anxiety symptoms?
Some symptoms of anxiety can be totally alarming. And that alone makes them something that shouldn’t be ignored.
However, you can take comfort in the fact that, for the most part, there’s nothing dangerous about these symptoms themselves.
However, it is important to seek help if your symptoms persist. While the symptoms themselves might be harmless, the long-term effects of anxiety on the body can be anything but.
Dr. Morski points out that it’s best to seek help for your symptoms early on:
“Long-term anxiety can lead to different health conditions in different people. Some get Irritable Bowel Syndrome, some get GERD, some get insomnia (which can lead to a host of other health problems, since sleep is so crucial for overall health). It can lead those with panic attacks to fear social situations because they don’t want to have an episode in front of others. It can put a strain on relationships with loved ones and make life overall less comfortable for the sufferer, as living in a fight or flight state in situations that are not life or death is physically and mentally draining and prevents a feeling of peace and equanimity.”
Most importantly, it’s important to point out that, even though you may feel like it at times, you’re absolutely not alone in your anxiety.
“People who are anxious think that they’re the only ones who are anxious and that everyone else is just so well adjusted. Be reassured in the fact that what you’re feeling is extremely common. There’s absolutely nothing strange or weird about it. It’s just part of being a human,” says Dr. Honaker.
Because a diagnosed anxiety disorder is classified as a mental illness, it can scare some people off from seeking medical health. But to overcome anxiety, and maintain both a healthy body and mind, it’s important to reach out for support.
05
How can anxiety symptoms be managed?
If your anxiety is keeping you from the life you want, there are options available to help you cope.
As mentioned above, the first step in managing any symptoms - whether they be physical, emotional, or mental - is to speak with a mental health professional who can help you better understand the type of anxiety you’re experiencing (generalized anxiety disorder, social anxiety disorder, panic disorder, etc.) and guide you to the appropriate care options and coping strategies.
Though it may sound basic, the first level to managing anxious symptoms is self-care. Taking steps like eating well, finding time for exercise to take care of your physical health, and creating a solid sleep schedule can help better equip your body to handle any stress that comes your way.
It’s also important to remember to give yourself regular breaks. Leave disruptive devices, like your phone, behind for an hour or two to leave space for mindfulness. Or allow yourself a little extra sleep when you need it.
Though self-care and being more aware of your general mental health can certainly help minimize some of the symptoms of anxiety, it likely won’t prevent them altogether.
If you find that your symptoms are persisting and becoming disruptive to your life, there are many different treatment options available that include cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), talk therapy, medication, and other coping mechanisms. The important thing is to find the path that’s right for you.
Kick Health helps self-aware, ambitious, and capable professionals overcome the situational fears that hold them back. We offer personalized beta-blocker prescriptions to block racing hearts & shaky hands during public speaking, interviews, and more.