I have had pretty severe anxiety since I was 14 with mostly physical symptoms: big adrenaline rush, shaking, heart racing, etc. when I was speaking in public. It was humiliating. I tried to deal with it for 15 years, but finally got an Rx for a beta blocker (they block the release of adrenaline) which worked miracles and I was able to speak in public for the first time without the embarrassing physical symptoms. After I used the med a few times, I got more comfortable and confident, and I was able to speak in public without taking it. I never enjoyed it, but I was able to do it without looking like a fool.
Then, I started peri-menopause and started having excessive worries and rambling thoughts and also had one horrible panic attack that was about 100 times worse than any of my earlier anxiety attacks. I honestly felt like I was going to die and made my H take me to the ER. I had very bad physical symptoms (heart racing, hyperventilating, severe chills), but I was also mentally convinced I was dying, when I never had that feeling when I was younger. I also developed a fear of flying when I had flown all over the world for years without a care. I haven’t flown in about 8 years.
I started having random “adrenaline rushes” out of nowhere sometimes daily for weeks on end. Usually at bedtime when I was reading or watching TV calmly not worrying about anything. I developed some heart issues as my heart would beat irregularly, or would race for hours after I got the “rush”. I’ve been to the ER several times and was diagnosed with SVT, a kind of abnormal tachycardia. I also have a minor defect of one of my heart valves (MVP - Mitral Valve Prolapse) that is not supposed to be of any concern, but anxiety is also associated with the condition. Medical professionals can’t quite explain why this happens. But they think it could be related to a type of autonomic dysfunction condition as noted in #4 (but a different kind than EDS). It may not be “anxiety” at all, the adrenaline rushes and tachycardia might be a physiological thing, but then how do I explain the fact that I have both physical and mental symptoms. It’s a complicated thing.
Both sides of my family have had mental health and heart issues. My Mom went off the rails also emotionally when she went through menopause, so I know that hormones, along with genetics are factors that have played a role in my anxiety.
I think people who don’t have anxiety should try to understand that there is a difference in being stressed or worried and real anxiety. Anxiety can be crippling and affect a person’s ability to function in daily life. Looking back, I really have no clue how I managed to push through the embarrassment and humiliation that my anxiety caused me when I was young - I suffered through high school, college, and the first part of my career with it. Yet in normal social situations I was perfectly fine. I had a relatively normal life and lots of friends and got along well with my co-workers. But I think if I had been just a bit less motivated or a little less able to just “shrug off” those embarrassing incidents, things could have been much different for me. I might have given up and never graduated from college or persisted in my career. I empathize so much with the students on CC who suffer with anxiety - I know how hard it can be to carry on with everyday life while feeling like you’re being chased by an ax murderer. That’s seriously how it was and is with me - the physical and mental reactions to simple life tasks and events (and sometimes nothing at all) are absurdly exaggerated, and exhausting.