Anxiety Signs and Symptoms
If you think that you may be anxiety experiencing symptoms, take this free quiz.
Anxiety is not uncommon. In fact, the National Institute of Mental Health says around 19.1% of adults in the United States had an anxiety disorder last year, and was more prevalent in women than men. Close to 1/3 the population will or has experienced an anxiety disorder at any point in their life.
It can come in many different forms, social anxiety disorder, separation anxiety disorder, phobia-related disorders, and the most common, generalized anxiety disorder (GAD). Each of these can lead to symptoms that have a significant impact on daily life, such as driving, sleeping, and trouble concentrating. While there are many treatments that can help, some require a lot of time, effort, and certainty that the treatment will work.
That is why Stella is dedicated to furthering innovative treatments like the dual sympathetic reset (DSR), an advanced stellate ganglion block (SGB), and ketamine infusion therapy to help those experiencing emotional trauma and mental health challenges like anxiety.
What Are the 8 Most Common Symptoms of Anxiety?
- Restlessness
- Impending Doom or Worry
- Panic Episodes
- Difficulty Concentrating
- Fatigue
- Trouble Sleeping
- Obsessions/Compulsions
- Agitation
Many people can have symptoms without an anxiety diagnosis. People often experience more than one anxiety disorder. If those symptoms are lasting they can greatly affect us. Anxiety disorders can occur at any point in our life, either individually or as a result of another underlying mental health challenge like post-traumatic stress. While there could be more, in reality, many mental healthcare resources highlight the below 8 most common symptoms of anxiety.
Restlessness
Restlessness often refers to our inability to sit calmly, relax, or respite during a time of anxiety. It can lead to other debilitating symptoms and can exacerbate other symptoms of anxiety as well, leading to panic, difficulty concentrating, and worry. Restlessness can also lead to trouble sleeping, which can have a profound effect on both mental and physical health.
Impending doom or worry
This is often one of the first symptoms a medical provider addresses during an assessment or appointment. Thoughts of doom or worry can revolve around ourselves, friends, and loved ones. They frequently arise and are prolonged when a situation is out of one's control.
Panic episodes
Panic is common with anxiety. When we are suddenly overwhelmed, it could mean that we are experiencing a panic attack. Sometimes these episodes seem to come without warning or reason. Other times, they happen in response to a reminder of an underlying thought of anxiety.
During a panic attack, we may feel like we're not in control or afraid of dying. Chest pain, trembling, hot flashes or chills, a choking sensation, and other physical symptoms are commonly associated with panic attacks.
Difficulty concentrating
Anxiety can make us feel like we must be on constant high alert or keep us fixated on one thought. This, in turn, makes it challenging to concentrate or think clearly.
Fatigue
The persistent feeling of being overworked, tired, and exhausted often comes with the territory of anxiety. Stress hormones, like cortisol, fill the body, leading to fatigue at any point during the day. It can build from the other symptoms we're experiencing, like difficulty concentrating and lack of sleep.
Trouble sleeping
When in an anxious state, our body may be on edge, and our mind may be in constant worry. This can lead to a disturbance in our sleep patterns. Intrusive thoughts and the stress hormone cortisol can keep us up long past the time we planned to fall asleep. The lack of sleep can exacerbate anxiety symptoms and lead to other mental and physical health challenges.
Obsessions/Compulsions
While anxiety and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) are different mental health challenges, we may develop symptoms that behave in ways that look similar to OCD. For example, we may check the locks on their doors several times before leaving the house in response to the hypervigilance that can come after a trauma. People with OCD and/or anxiety can suffer from intrusive, disturbing thoughts.
Agitation
Agitation is a feeling of anxiety or nervous excitement. It is understood on a spectrum. Words like restless, uneasy, and tense generally describe mild agitation. When we're agitated, we may be fidgety or find it hard to sit still. Agitation can build to the point that we become short-tempered or continually irritable. Untreated trauma can contribute to aggressive or harmful behavior toward ourselves or others.
Stella's Symptom Quiz is a brief assessment that measures symptoms related to post-traumatic stress, depression, anxiety, and stress. Take the quiz to gain an understanding of your symptoms and see if you may be a good fit for Treatment by Stella.
Treating Anxiety with Stella
In recent years, the dual sympathetic reset (DSR), an advanced stellate ganglion block (SGB), has emerged as a promising treatment option for symptoms like anxiety. Stella founders Dr. Eugene Lipov and Dr. Shauna Springer recently published a study with other trauma experts that indicates that the Stellate Ganglion Block (SGB) is an effective treatment for trauma symptoms – such as anxiety – regardless of gender, trauma type, PTSD-related medication use, history of suicide attempt, or age.
In 2020, a clinical trial evaluating the impact of the stellate ganglion block Treatment revealed a notable decrease in symptoms related to post-traumatic stress, including anxiety. The participants who received the treatment saw a significant improvement in their assessment scores across all core measures including the PTSD Checklist (PCL-5), Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9), Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7-Item Scale (GAD-7) and K-6 Distress Scale.
In 2023, another research article that was based on a case series of 285 patients showed that dual-level stellate ganglion block can effectively reduce anxiety symptoms by 50% measured by Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD-7) scores.
DSR SGB by Stella has the potential to help millions of people with emotional trauma experience lasting relief. To learn more, please visit our Care Approach page.