Weird Symptoms of Anxiety- what do you get?

Mental health
1

Anxiety can be weird. I've suffered with it all my life and it can cause some really unusual symptoms! I have my anxiety in check now, I have strategies that have helped me live my life almost without noticing it (feel free to ask if your curious or want advice). But obviously sometimes I can't avoid it, it does sneak back into my head...I was just wondering what strange symptoms others get? Most people, when they think of anxiety, they just think of it as a mental illness. But they don't take into account how much it can physically effect you such as:

-Numbness/tingling/pinsandneedles/vibrations/crawling anywhere in the body (including head)

-Pain anywhere in the body (including head)

-wobbles

-dizzyness

-vertigo

-muscle twitching or spasms

-bladder problems

-tight throat

-sweating (sometimes hot/cold sweats)

-Fatigue/tired

-heavy eyes

-weird pressures on the body (i mainly get them in my head)

-Either really hungry or not hungry at all

-nausea (i used to feel sick ALL the time)

-Insomnia

-Cramps

I get mental symptoms of course too, but some of them are a bit bizzare...what do you think? I get:

-depression (it's often a package deal with anxiety)

-Scared of public places

-Scared of public transport

-Scared of being alone

-Worrying about anything and everything (the main ones for me being death, getting ill and losing my loved ones- i worry about it more then most others i know)

-A sense of doom

-A feeling that something/a situation is about to go drastically wrong

-Feeling to aware of my actions, becoming too aware of myself and then i'm 'me'. (this, although most of the time doesn't last long, can be pretty scarey!) 

-Depersonalization (similar to above but more a sense of feeling out of your own body, watching yourself, third person)

-Always thinking about what could go wrong e.g. i'm on a bus, and i'll start worrying that the bus will crash or someone on the bus will try and attack me (silly, i know..)

There are so many more symptoms i haven't describe but...anyone else get weird symptoms? And if you do, you aren't alone!

2

Oh my goodness EVERYTHING you have listed is all what I've experienced.

My excessive worrying is mostly about death and I focus ALOT on my heart to see if I have any issues.

Can you please tell me about,the strategies you use that help you cope with anxiety?

3

I feel the same way and the only thing I don't get is the depression I get all the other symptoms

4

I get a lot of those symptoms too, but I actually have OCD. I thought it was just anxiety for a long time until I was officially diagnosised.

5

Heya,

My heart goes out to you. I used to focus on my heart a lot too! I was always worried about having a heart attack or having a stroke etc.  So I have a couple of techniques to suggest, and they may seem small or silly,  but for me they really really helped!

The first is: keep a thought log +reality check. So basically, when I was freaking out about my health, or panicking or excessivly worrying about something, i would right all about it. e.g. I have really weird pains in my head and is making me really scared because i keep thinking that i have brain tumour etc (a common thing that made me panic). That in itself provides some relief for your mind, because you've let it all out, all your worries. On the next page i'd do a 'reality check' where I would try and make sense of it e.g. The pains in my head are most likely not a tumour. I know the pains are caused by my anxiety and although it's scarey, i know it's not real. This may seem like a strange technique, but for me it really worked. Don't force yourself to do the reality check, but its always good to get that out, it's essentially telling you brain that you are okay, and it should start to focus less on the symptoms that aren't really there!

The second is homeopathy. I know it sound stupid, and when i was reccomened it i laughed and said 'no way, that won't help.' But, i bought some lavender oil, some geranium oil and some citrus oil. I used to dab a peice on some tissue and stuff it down my bra (although try to avoid letting it touch your skin). It worked absolute wonders for me. I went through a phase of having panick attaks in school (i was doing my final exams at the time). The scent of it really helped me calm down and i eventually stopped having panic attacks. The lavender helped me sleep too!!

(I have to pop out, but i'll add a few more strategies when i'm back, bare with me! hope i'm helping so far) 

6

Defiantly have a lot of those symptoms. Burning and tingling sensation in my head, dizzy spells, headaches. Chest tightness body twitches due to probably being so tense. I definalty fear death or that I have a tumor in my head or fear losing my loved ones. I have also always been ok to be alone but lately in the past few weeks since my anxiety has been so severe that I don't like to be alone. I am single and live with my bro and cousin and I find myself always wanting to be with them and sleeping in one of there beds. I've never been like this before but I just need the comfort right now. You aren't alone either I completely understand.

7

I get most of these symptoms- at the minute I am obsessed with checking my heart rate and I am on beta blockers as it was quite high, I am terrified of dying and I also hate being alone! How did you get over worrying about being alone? I use to love being in the house alone- now I count down the minutes till someone is back! So strange and not like me but I just get so worked up! Thanks for sharing nice to know your not the only one!!xx

8

Heya, 

Sorry to hear you're feeling like this too! I haven't really gotten over the being alone thing, I just don't mind it as much as i used too. When i'm alone in the house, i try to keep myself occupied- do a bit of drawing (boy, i cannot draw!) watch a film loudly, listen to music and bake something. It might sound silly but if you keep yourself busy you wont notice that you're alone as much. If you watch something loudly, it fills the silence and gives you a sense of ease. It's difficult, but they're small steps to help you cope on your own. 

If it makes you feel safe, lock your doors and windows. If you have a pet, keep them in the same room as you (really comforting!). It's really difficult when you're scared of being on your own, and you're left alone! I hope these techniques help. Honestly feel free to message me if you're left alone and you're afraid/anxious, i'd be happy to help and talk it out with you  

9

Thank you! I appreciate that. I would love to have a doggy but I own a business and just not ready for the responsibility yet but hopefully one day soon. Thx again hope this will pass soon enough.

10

Ah I see, even a pet as small as a fish can be reassuring (actually fish a proven to create a relaxing atmosphere!) But yeah, honestly any time. It will deffo pass, I have no doubt  

11

Hrm, yeah it seems to be quite common! I thought I was just really strange for ages until I looked on some forums haha!

12

Heya,

Yeah, my gp said I had 'OCD like symptoms' too. When I have bad anxiety phases I tend to clean a lot, and thouroughly. I wouldn't call myself OCD but I think I understand what you mean!! 

13

Heya,

Yeah i know exactly how you feel. I'm 19 and i still sometimes sleep in my sister or even my mums bed when I'm feeling 'wobbly' as I put it. Don't feel ashamed about it, if you need support, you need support. I'm sure they completley understand. It's nice to have people around you who accept you no matter what! Thank you for the support! I can tell you that it does get better though. For me it tends to come in phases, i'm sure it could be the same for you!

14

Aw thank you so much- comforting to talk to someone who understands instead of people who just think it's silly! I'm going to request CBT from my doctor this week too so hopefully that will help as I've heard it has helped a lot of other people! Thanks again will be in touch x

15

I know this is an old post and all, but I️ thought that I would chime in since I’ve been struggling lately. I totally have the symptoms you listed, especially the being too aware of what I’m doing, and coupled with some depersonalization that makes it really freaky. I also get constant racing and intrusive thoughts that leave me feeling confused because I don’t have time to process it all. Like crazy weird stuff about death and going crazy. And I also feel like time is passing weird sometimes, like stuff happens too quick and I’m so stuck in my own head I can’t process much outside of myself. 

Just really glad to find people experiencing similar things ❤️