People encounter stress in almost all of their daily activities. Whether it would be waking up in the morning or choosing what to eat for lunch in the afternoon, stress is a factor that influences choices and actions. However, with stressful actions comes anxious thoughts. Everyone worries about the traffic on the way to work or the deadline of their next report. Now, worrying and anxious thoughts is a normal passage in a person’s everyday life. However, if not managed, anxiety can lead to the development of an anxiety disorder. Not everyone manages stress and anxiety well and because of this, similar causes and effects prompt different types of anxiety disorders.
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is an anxiety disorder that develops in a person after being involved or affected by a frightening or traumatic event. Some symptoms of this disorder are having nightmares or flashbacks of the event and triggers which are reminders of the trauma that cause people to panic or become scared. PTSD is common among soldiers who have been in war, child abuse victims, and rape victims. In some cases, victims of bullying can also have PTSD. Another anxiety disorder is Panic Disorder and from this people tend to have frequent panic attacks and constant fear of additional attacks occurring. These people are known to have high levels of anxiety and have difficulty going out in public places. Some symptoms include chest pains, difficulty breathing, and a rising heart rate.
Now, before anxiety can be diagnosed as a disorder, there has to be a cause. Aside from too much stress, anxiety disorders can be caused by trauma. Feelings of fear and anxiety become too overwhelming and such results in symptoms such as panic attacks, raising heart rate, and the avoidance behavior wherein people who have experienced trauma tend to avoid other people, even their friends and family. Mainly PTSD is caused by a traumatic event or experience but there are some instances where Panic Disorder can also be caused by trauma. Another cause for anxiety disorder is illegal drugs. Illegal drugs such as cocaine induces panic attacks and LSD causes hallucinations and paranoia. Withdrawal from drugs can also cause severe anxiety.
Just like drugs, anxiety disorders have their effect on people too. Insomnia is the lack of ability to stay or fall asleep and this is evident in anxiety disorders such as PTSD as people experiencing PTSD experience nightmares and hallucinations making it difficult to stay asleep. There are even instances where patients of PTSD fear going to sleep because of nightmares which result in them staying up all night. Another effect of anxiety disorders is suicide. Because of strong levels of anxiety and sometimes even depression, people experiencing anxiety disorders tend to take their own lives because of the high amount of stress. Among all the anxiety disorders the most popular for the occurrence of suicide can be found in PTSD and Panic Disorder.
Because similar causes and effects prompt different types of anxiety disorders, people must learn to take care of themselves and their mental health. To many people, stress becomes a daily routine. But without proper care, these stressful episodes could lead to an anxiety disorder. It is important that people manage their stress and find ways to relax and take breaks. There has to be an effort in not only maintaining a healthy body but a healthy mind as well. It is normal to feel anxiety but there must always be a balance in stress to avoid anxiety disorders. Being healthy physically and mentally is the key to a happy life.
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