Stress & Anxiety

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The leading causes of stress include finances, work, family responsibilities, and health issues. Stress can be detrimental when worry is constant, but help is available with talk therapy and medications.

Anxiety symptoms include trouble relaxing, sleep issues, and difficulty concentrating. People with anxiety often report physical symptoms too, such as headaches, fatigue, muscle aches, sweating, and nausea.

A psychologist or psychiatrist can diagnose the condition by asking about anxiety symptoms. Taking an online anxiety test can also help you identify whether you have a problem. Anxiety tests include questions about symptoms such as excessive worry and inability to control that worry, fatigue, trouble concentrating, difficulty sleeping or eating, and problems with alcohol or drug use.

Social anxiety is a particular type of anxiety in which people fear social interactions because they worry others will judge them. About 15 million Americans have social anxiety disorder. The condition can interfere with normal relationships, work, and education. Social anxiety symptoms include sweating, blushing, shortness of breath, dizziness, fast heartbeat, nausea or vomiting, and trembling in social situations.

Another physical manifestation of stress and anxiety is a panic attack. A panic attack produces paralyzing fear that causes real, physical symptoms. Panic attack symptoms can include a pounding heartbeat (palpitations), sweating, shortness of breath, shaking, chest pain, nausea, dizziness, and chills. Sometimes these symptoms resemble those of a heart attack.

Worry and anxiety can become so severe that a person is no longer able to go to work or function in his or her day-to-day life. This phenomenon is sometimes called a nervous breakdown. It’s not a real medical term, but rather a description of symptoms. The inability to function is serious, and it requires help from a mental health provider.

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