Living with Anxiety
Living with an anxiety disorder is a lot harder than most people think. Many of us think that we understand what it means to be anxious and that individuals with anxiety disorders must experience that on just a little larger scale. However, living with an anxiety disorder can disrupt one’s life in many ways.
Some of the symptoms that people commonly experience when having anxiety are: problems sleeping, shortness of breath, inability to be still and calm, numbness or tingling in the hands and feet, feelings of panic, fear, and uneasiness, cold or sweaty hands and/or feet, heart palpitations, dry mouth, nausea, dizziness, and/or muscle tension. When these symptoms are persistent and interfere with an individual living a normal, happy life, there is often an anxiety disorder present.
The main anxiety disorders are: panic disorder, social anxiety disorder, phobias, and generalized anxiety disorder. Although each disorder is unique, the symptoms of each may overlap one another. Tasks that seem simple to most people completely intimidate some with anxiety disorders.
Interestingly, there are some very famous individuals that suffer from anxiety disorders. Leann Rimes and Abraham Lincoln both were diagnosed with generalized anxiety disorder, Johnny Depp, Kate Moss, Emma Stone, Joey Votto, Kim Basigner, Scarlett Johansson, and Adele have suffered from panic disorder and Howie Mandel, David Beckham, and Fred Durst live with obsessive compulsive disorder. Although these celebrities live with anxiety disorders, it is important to note that they each recognized anxiety was an issue for them, sought help, and committed themselves to controlling their anxiety.
Anxiety is not easy to live with and can ruin experiences, relationships, years, and even lives for many people. However, as has been shown by many famous individuals as well as many others, people can live with anxiety and continue to function normally and feel confident and healthy if they will seek help and find ways to treat and/or overcome the anxiety they have.