My Mind Gems
A bad day is not a bad life
Giving hope & humour to those with ADHD & Anxiety
Anxiety
Anxiety is not stress. Everyone feels stress. As a matter of fact everyone feels anxiety. But anxiety becomes highly unpleasant when we feel it for long periods of time. I have anxiety as a result of having ADHD and not knowing that I did. I always felt like I wanted to move around a lot and that is not always an option. Somehow along the way I got really anxious. Anxiety can feel like your heart is going really fast and you just want to run away. It can be known as Generalised Anxiety Disorder or GAD or panic disorder or social anxiety disorder. Anxiety and panic attacks don't just occur in your mind. The body physically feels anxiety. This feeling of wanting to run away is known as fight or flight and is a system your body has in place to protect you from danger. But when we have suffer from ongoing anxiety, our brain and body see things that are not life-threatening and trigger our body into fight or flight. This is not a nice feeling, and can make you feel very alone and scared.
It is especially not fun if you get that feeling in a public place. You are not alone in experiencing anxiety. The Anxiety & Depression Association of America states that anxiety disorders are the most common mental illness in the U.S and 18.1% of the population is effected every year. Beyond Blue also states that over 2 million Australians have anxiety. But guess what? Many people suffer in silence, as there is still a stigma in the world about mental illness. It has improved, but there are still millions of people suffering silently. Many people put on a mask to look competent in order to keep their jobs or relationships. But what if we talked about it? What if people felt relaxed about discussing their anxiety? If you suffer from anxiety please find a good health care professional and don't stay in silence.
