When you wake up every morning, you feel sick to the very pit of your stomach.
Your appetite is dwindled, with even your favourite foods no longer attracting you.
When you stand you feel dizzy. Your head often feels heavy and your legs like jelly, barely holding you up.
You cry all the time and constantly feel as though you are in one of those haunted house attractions, waiting for an actor dressed as some grizzly creature to jump out at you from behind the next wall.
You are living on the edge but you aren't any racing fast cars. This adrenaline is certainly not the same as when you're queuing for the biggest roller coaster at Alton Towers either. It's always there. And you don't really know why.
This is Generalized Anxiety Disorder, also known as GAD.
GAD is a physiological disorder that is often diagnosed in people who suffer from an excessive or unreasonable anxiety within everyday life. This level of 'extreme worry' can be extremely debilitating and disruptive to an individual's life.
Everybody at one stage in their lives will suffer from Anxiety about certain aspects of their life. This can include worries about school or a job, a relationship and finances. But when that worry consumes a person to the point of causing them ill health and prevents them from living a healthy, happy life, it is often Generalised Anxiety Disorder that is orchestrating it.
You may just think you are ill or stressed out.
When I was diagnosed with GAD a few years back I just thought I had the flu but anxiety can make you feel like you are unwell.
So I thought some bite size information on GAD might help a few people looking for information.
So, what causes GAD?
Abnormal neurotransmitter levels within our brain are the reason for many anxiety disorders. They cause the brain to behave inappropriately as they control the nervous system. Neurotransmitters affect our mood, our concentration as well as our sleep and weight and when their levels are unbalanced, they can cause the number of anxiety related symptoms.
When it all boils down to it, our Brain Chemistry is the prime reason for Anxiety and Stress related illness.
But of course, Anxiety can be triggered or caused by a number of different factors. These can include:
Trauma
Stress
Side effects of certain medications
Genetics
Medical Conditions (This is why you should always have your GP diagnose Anxiety rather then assume that is what you have, just to make sure you are not suffering from a medical illness)
What are the symptoms of GAD?
There are a number of mental symptoms, which will lead to the diagnosis of GAD.
These, of course, will include excessive worry and anxious thoughts.
But many people find themselves confused by the other symptoms of Generalised Anxiety Disorder.
Here I'll explain the science behind the most common GAD symptoms.
Headaches
An anxiety headache will most likely be caused by muscle tension. We have a number of different muscles not only in our head but our neck that we tense when anxious or under stress. This muscle tension can lead to muscle fatigue and aches. Your headache may also be caused by dehydration, as when we are suffering from anxiety, we tend to forget to stay hydrated and healthy.
High levels of stress and anxiety can also cause migraines. Remember to take the time to look after your health and keep hydrated! You can also use techniques such as mindfulness meditation to relax yourself, relieving headaches caused by tension and stress.
Nausea/Digestive Upsets (includes Acid Reflux, IBS etc)
High-stress biology will cause the production of extra stomach acid as well as tension within the stomach muscles, which can throw your digestive system out of check and balance.
You can deal with this by eating little and often. You could also try taking a pro-biotic to maintain healthy bacteria within your digestive system.
Dizziness and Shaking
These symptoms are often caused by hyperventilation. People with anxiety will commonly over breath which means they will take in to much oxygen. This is also common with panic attacks. The best way to deal with this is to take deep, slow breaths in through the nose and slowly breath out through pursed lips as though you are blowing a dandelion. This will regulate your breaths and help you to calm down, therefore stopping you over breathing.
Depersonalization
This is often described as being in a dream-like state. People with GAD will often feel detached from their own thoughts and wonder if they are going insane. This is mainly because of anxiety causing an erratic nervous system. Using breathing techniques and grounding (I'll do a blog post all about this) will really help you to relax and have a calmer mindset.
Easily tired/Insomnia
With anxiety, our brain is always on high alert and acts inappropriately to everyday worries. The best way to describe it is watching Horror films constantly. Your brain and nerves are on edge like some crazed, masked man called Mike Myers is going to jump out and chase you down the street. Because of this, people will anxiety disorders like GAD will feel emotionally exhausted. They may also find it hard to keep a regular sleep pattern or 'wind down', in turn leading to Insomnia.
Check my blog post on Insomnia to learn more about this and how to better deal with sleep disorders.
Other symptoms of GAD can include;
General Tension
Difficulty concentrating
Irritability
Being easily startled.
These are all caused by high stress biology.
If you or someone you know is suffering from GAD, share this post and encourage them to see their GP for a general health check and a proper diagnosis. This will also allow you to access various services, which could help you to deal with the disorder.
I really hope this blog post has helped anyone looking for more information and insight on GAD or anxiety in general.