What it's like living with anxiety

With anxiety, the restless feeling never completely goes away. Both gradually and all at once, the onset of my anxiety illness occurred. For a long time, I'd brushed them off as nerves or stress and tried to regulate them via regular exercise. After a series of life changes, my anxiety became unbearable.

It all began with a few nights of insomnia.

When I couldn't sleep because of my anxiousness, I began to pay attention. Because my mind was like a sluggish old ghost train with no off-switch, I was never rested enough to do my job well. My heart was racing, my stomach was churning, and I had the distinct impression that I would never be able to get my thoughts together, let alone manage my life.

As Synergy eTherapy's professional psychologist and anxiety expert, Dr. Lisa Lovelace, confirms, those were all classic indicators of anxiety, including a racing heart and clammy hands.

Anxiety symptoms, according to the DSM-V, can also include:

Overwhelming anxiety that is hard to control

The sense of being on edge or the brink of a nervous breakdown

Tiredness is a common symptom.

Inability to concentrate or a complete loss of mental clarity

Irritability

Tension in a muscle

Disturbance of sleep (difficulty falling or staying asleep, or restless unsatisfying sleep)

Watch and wait, and keep exercising, were the recommendations of my primary care physician. To help you better understand and manage your symptoms, your primary care provider may also recommend that you see a psychologist or psychiatrist.

Choosing the best anxiety medication is crucial.

As time went on and my anxiety didn't improve, my doctor suggested that I try an SSRI to assist alleviate my symptoms—and to bring back my much-needed sense of serenity. Even though I was apprehensive about starting a new medicine, I decided to take the risk because I was at a stage in my life where I couldn't function without it.

Zoloft was recommended to me by my doctor in a low dose to begin with. My brain gradually began to respond to the drug, despite the fact that the results weren't immediate. I was able to cope better with the stresses of everyday life as my sleep patterns improved. Many people have to go through a period of trial and error before finding an anxiety medication that works for them, so I consider myself really fortunate to have found one right immediately. If the first treatment doesn't work, talk to your doctor about trying something else. There are always other options.

Alternate therapy and alterations in lifestyle

Talk therapy and a course in cognitive behavioral therapy were also recommended by my primary care physician (CBT). I gained more self-assurance and clarity in my thinking after seeing a therapist, who helped me better understand why I was feeling the way I was. I was able to begin managing my anxiety in my daily life after learning the basics of CBT. There are many ways to change behavior patterns, but one of the most important is to become aware of them and recognize the actions as they occur. Anxiety specialists can aid with this because it's challenging to do on your own."

Therapy helped me recognize that I needed to make significant lifestyle adjustments in order to better manage my anxiety illness. Anxiety can be reduced by eating well-balanced meals of unprocessed whole foods, limiting alcohol and caffeine intake, getting adequate sleep, and exercising regularly to generate endorphins that can suppress feelings of anxiousness, according to Shirin Peters, MD, of Bethany Medical Clinic.

Moving on: Coping with anxiety in daily life

For the past five years, I've been taking the same prescription. I still experience anxiety, but I'm better able to deal with it when confronted with difficult events. Moving closer to family and friends, as well as cutting out some of the pressures in my life, have helped me feel more secure. I'm able to control my illness with the support of rest, exercise, and sleep, as well as the techniques I've learned in therapy. It takes effort to control anxiety, but it is achievable. If anxiety is a part of your life, don't give up until you find a therapy and strategy combination that works for you.