- Sabrina Trobak
Symptoms of Anxiety

For most people, they don't know what their anxiety looks like until the anxiety is really high, maybe 8, 9, 10 out of 10. There are some problems with this. One, by the time the anxiety is at an 8, 9,10 out of 10, it take a long time and a lot of effort to bring the anxiety back down. The second problem with this is, if people don't know what anxiety looks like until it is an 8, 9 or 10 out of 10, they are not going to do anything about it until it is already really high.
In order to better manage anxiety, people need to gain an understanding of what anxiety looks like as it is increasing. If people can put strategies in place to address the anxiety when it is a 3, 4, 5, 6 out of 10, it doesn't have to go to the higher levels of anxiety.
The tricky part of this is, everyone's anxiety can look different. There are many symptoms of anxiety but each person experiences their own symptoms of anxiety and each person's symptoms can occur at different levels of anxiety as well. For example one person may get sweaty palms when his anxiety is around a 3 or 4, but another person may get sweaty palms when her anxiety is at an 7 or 8. So each person can have different symptoms and the symptoms can also vary depending on the intensity of the anxiety.
Symptoms of anxiety generally appear in 3 areas, physical symptoms, mental symptoms, behavioral symptoms. Below is a list of different symptoms of anxiety. These symptoms can be at a 1 or a 10 or anywhere in between. The symptoms can also be for other things, so it is important to think about if the symptom is related to anxiety. For example, rapid heart beat is on the list. If you only get a rapid heart beat when you are running, then it is likely not related to anxiety.
Physical Symptoms of Anxiety

rapid heart beat
shortness of breath
shallow breathing
loss of breath
holding breath
gasping for breath
clenched fist
clenched jaw
grinding teeth
tight shoulders
tight back/neck
feeling very hot or very cold
shaking/trembling
numbness
tingling
headache
feeling detached from one’s self
stomach problems (IBS, ulcers, indigestion etc)
tight chest
sweating
weak in the knees
knot in stomach
stomach drop
dry mouth
lump in throat
metal taste in back of mouth
crying
fidgeting
fatigue
paranoid
itchy
light headed
hyper
eye twitch
poor circulation
Mental Symptoms of Anxiety

Angry thoughts
Negative thoughts
Pessimistic thoughts
Critical thoughts
Thoughts of potential threats
Thoughts of being trapped or cornered
Worry thoughts
Constant thoughts
Catastrophizing
Judgement
Self doubt
Obsessing
Easily distracted
Disoriented
“I don’t know”
shutting down/blank
cannot slow down thoughts
shameful thoughts
rigid thinking/stubborn thinking
questioning/self doubt
indecisiveness
can’t focus
fear
insecure
unsure
repetitive thoughts
worrying about things beyond your abilities (earthquakes, global warming)
forgetful
controlling thoughts
compulsive thoughts (counting, checking, timing etc)
dreams of chasing, falling, teeth falling out
Behavioural Symptoms of Anxiety

Avoidance
Arguing, anger rage
Physical fighting
Throwing things
Not eating
Moody
Trouble sleeping
anger
Yelling
Isolating self or needing to constantly be with others
Binge eating, drinking, drugs
Feeling physical pain, feeling “sick”
Hard time focused
Difficulty completing a task from start to finish
Depression
Inability to understand others
Nail chewing
Lack of interest in sex or overly sexual
Pacing
Running away from things (physically, emotionally or mentally)
Controlling
Manipulating
Rigid in beliefs (my way or highway)
Marijuana smoking
Cigarette smoking
Blaming
Excusing
Denying
Justifying
Gambling
Purging
Cleaning
Organizing
Planning
List making
Checking things
Counting things
Seeking attention (center of attention)
Drinking coffee
Leg shaking/bouncing up and down
Foot tapping
Getting things done quickly
Talking quickly
Not talking much at all
Stuttering
Using large words/high educational words/catch phrases
Avoiding eye contact
Playing with hair
Chewing hair
Picking at skin
Pulling hair/eyebrows/eyelashes
Cutting
Self harming behaviors
gossiping
Humor
Sarcasm
Putting other down
Chewing on things (toothpicks, gum, candies etc)
Biting lip