20 Anxiety Symptoms Explained

Anxiety can wreak havoc with the body  and the many symptoms it can produce   can make you worry that there is something  seriously wrong with you. Understanding   what causes these symptoms can be the first  step in learning how to manage your anxiety. So in this video I’m going to  explain 20 common and sometimes   uncommon symptoms of anxiety and what causes them.
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Number one is headaches tension in the  suboccipital muscles at the base of the   skull can cause anxiety headaches. See my video  on anxiety and headaches for more information.
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Number two blurred vision. When the body thinks  it’s in danger it releases a lot of adrenaline.   This causes the pupils to  dilate to see the danger better   but paradoxically it can  actually cause blurred vision.   Number three is ringing in the ears. The cause  of tinnitus is a bit of a mystery even to the   ear specialists but changes in pressure and  blood flow in the ears are popular theories.
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Number four is concentration problems or brain  fog. The release of adrenaline and cortisol have   an effect on how the brain operates. This may be  an evolutionary response where your brain shuts   down unnecessary thinking processes to focus  on functions to deal with the perceived danger.   Number five. Dizziness and feeling faint are  common symptoms during a panic attack. Changes   in blood flow in the ears and hyperventilation  can both cause dizziness. However as I explained   in my video ‘will a panic attack caused me to  faint ‘ fainting is unlikely in most people as   blood pressure increases during a panic attack and  fainting occurs due to a drop in blood pressure.
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Number six. A feeling of a lump in the throat  difficulty swallowing or a choking feeling   are all caused by the glottis expanding  to allow more air into the lungs   because your body thinks it has to run or  fight. I have a whole video on this subject   so if you want to know more  click the link in the top right.
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7. Breathing difficulties. Some people who  suffer with panic disorder are abnormally   aware of their breathing ironically it can be the  constant checking if their breathing is normal   that triggers the panic attack and when a panic  attack begins the surge of adrenaline causes   faster breathing. This then leads to more panic  and a greater attempt to control their breathing,   but this often results in fast and shallow  breathing from the thorax instead of the abdomen.   This hyperventilation causes levels of carbon  dioxide in the blood to drop which can cause all   sorts of other symptoms which we will talk about  later. Number eight. Chest pain or tightness in   the chest is another subject I’ve made a whole  video about but the two most common causes are   muscle tension and the arteries or blood vessels  in the heart constricting. And why does this   happen? It’s because as mentioned hyperventilation  causes blood carbon dioxide levels to drop which   makes the blood more alkaline which in turn causes  constriction of the arteries and blood vessels.   Although this can be quite painful  it is not dangerous for most people.
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Nine is palpitations which may be felt in the  chest or throat. The reason you get them is simply   because your heart is pumping much stronger  to deal with a perceived danger that is not   there and the reason you feel it in your throat is  simply because that’s where your carotid artery is   and an increase in blood volume and speed  through this artery is very noticeable.
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10. The feeling of skipped heartbeats.  It’s not easy to explain this briefly   so if this is something you experience I  recommend you watch my video on ectopic   heartbeats and anxiety but suffice  to say they are generally harmless. Number 11 nausea or the feeling  of butterflies in the stomach.   When the body senses danger digesting food  is not a priority so it diverts blood from   the stomach to the arms and legs to fight  or run and that can upset the stomach.   It can also affect the stomach in other ways  like causing acid indigestion so 12 is GERD. 13. Bowel changes. Anxiety can cause  digested food to move through the bowel   quicker leading to loose bowels. There is also a  link between anxiety and irritable bowel syndrome   which can cause diarrhea or constipation  as well as abdominal cramps and bloating   and yes you guessed it I  have a video on that also.
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14. Overactive bladder. An increase in the need  to urinate is a little understood anxiety symptom.   Tense muscles squeezing the bladder is a fairly  simple explanation but there are more complicated   theories about the serotonin system and the  effect of cortisol on the bladder. One thing   is sure is there is definitely a correlation  between anxiety and frequent urination   and by the way a type of  social anxiety called pauresis   could cause the bladder to completely lock and  I have a whole series of videos on that subject. 15 is tremors and twitches. To  deal with danger the nervous system   sends more blood to certain areas ,tightens  muscles ready for action, increases blood sugar   and primes the whole body ready to fight or  run. Any of these can cause twitches or tremors   sometimes even in unusual places like the eye.  Oh and hyperventilation can also cause twitching. 16 is one of the strangest symptoms of anxiety.   The feeling of your skin crawling or burning can  be caused by changes in blood flow. When anxious   the release of cortisol can also make the skin  sensitive to allergens chemicals or even sweat.
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17. Derealization or depersonalization. In  derealization you feel the world around is unreal.   People and things around you  may seem lifeless or foggy.   With depersonalization you feel  disconnected from yourself.   This is mainly caused by hyperventilation and the  effect of alkaline blood that I mentioned earlier,   only this time it affects your brain  causing these strange sensations 18 is heat. The reason you get  hot when anxious is simple.   Your circulation increases  just like when you exercise 19. Weakness or fatigue. In a panic  attack or a prolonged period of anxiety   your body is called on all its resources  to protect you from a perceived threat.   Afterwards it needs to replace those resources  so it shuts down for a while to do that. 20 Aches and pains. If you  suffer anxiety every day   it’s like your body is fighting a  tiger every day or running for its life   so it’s not surprising the aches and  pains can appear pretty much anywhere.
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But you may ask how do I treat each of  these symptoms? The answer is you don’t.   These symptoms are signs that your body  is doing exactly what it’s designed to do   only it’s doing it at the wrong  time because there is no danger.
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If you try to suppress these  symptoms not only will it not work   but the part of the brain that deals with  danger will think the symptoms are dangerous   and activate the fight or flight  response causing even more symptoms.
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To make all these symptoms go away  you have to retrain your anxious brain   not to go into fight or flight mode at the wrong  time and that’s what I teach you to do in many   of my videos so check out the playlist  for whichever anxiety disorder you have.