Anxiety and Stress

Anxiety is the normal human feeling of fear that everyone experiences when faced with threatening or difficult situations. Anxiety can help you to avoid dangerous situations by making you alert and giving you the motivation to deal with problems you face. Anxiety is the feeling of worry, apprehension, fear and/or panic in response to stimuli which seem overwhelming, threatening, unsafe or uncomfortable. You may experience anxiety as an intense worry before a final exam, the nervousness felt before making a presentation, or the heightened alertness when you believe you are in danger.

Anxiety and stress symptoms are deeply related. Dealing with anxiety always starts with understanding how your body reacts to the influence of stress. As you know, stress can affect your body in very serious ways.

Stress can affect the body in many different ways – headaches, stiff muscles, sleep deprivation and even weight gain. According to the American Psychological Association, 43% of adults suffer adverse health effects from stress. Stress can affect anyone — even kids — who feels overwhelmed. Toddlers, for example, may be anxious if the person they most need to feel safe — a parent — isn't around enough. Stress can affect a person’s self-esteem in ways people would believe it would not. When a person is stressed most of the time the person focuses so much on the stressor they don’t realize the stress they are having may be affecting other areas in their lives.