In an ever-changing fast paced world, living with stress has become the new “normal” for many of us.  We have all experienced some form of stress at some point in time, but not everyone’s stress transitions into an anxiety disorder or a full-blown panic attack.   In fact, some people thrive and are more productive when they are in more stressful situations – like the excitement and stress of preparing for a big deadline / presentation / proposal / writing a test.

It is when the emotion becomes all-consuming and interferes with your daily living, that it truly becomes a problem.

What is the difference between Stress and Anxiety?

Stress is generally a short-term reaction of your body to external triggers – a job interview, some pressure at work, a test, etc. Whereas Anxiety is a continuous mental disorder which could be triggered by excessive stress. Both can lead to insomnia, irritability, lack of focus, tension in the muscles and headaches, so it could be difficult at first to distinguish the two and know when to seek professional help.  

The big difference is that Anxiety do not dissipate when the threat is over, it gets stuck and forms a gestalt that keeps you trapped in the emotion for long periods of time and it has a significant impact on your social- and work-life.

Tips to cope with Stress:

There are many ways to cope and deal with stress that will bring immediate relief and change –

Exercise:  Take your dog for a walk, start running, get moving!

Deep Breathing:  This exercise relaxes your solar plexus and shoulders.

Meditation:  Early morning meditation and starting your day relaxed will set the tone for the day.

Music:  Listening to calm and relaxing music will reduce your heart rate and put you in a calm state of mind.

Everyone’s situation is unique, and these tips are just a general guideline to assist you to cope with stress.  Some may experience instant results with amazing and long-lasting improvement in your daily life.  If you still have difficulty coping with stress and it is affecting your normal daily activities, please feel free to complete the request for a Quick online coaching session, so that I can assist you in the best way possible.

Types of Anxiety Disorders:

There are different types of Anxiety disorders which include, but are not limited to, the following conditions:

Generalized Anxiety Disorder: Feeling overwhelmed and worrying without any specific reason and feeling excessively emotional. Affecting your daily activities negatively. This is a result of continuously worrying and anticipating negative outcomes and results.

Social Phobia: You have a phobia about social situations and being judged and mocked/teased by others. You live in absolute fear, worrying and feeling shy and self-conscious about being in social situations.

Specific Phobias: An intense fear of heights, insects, flying – any object or situation that causes you to avoid them, is a sign of phobia.

Panic Attack: A full-blown panic attack that might feel like you are choking or having a heart attack. Excessive sweating, heart palpitations and a feeling of terror that overcomes you. These panic attacks usually have no trigger and will happen randomly.

Questionnaire for General Anxiety Disorder:

If you suspect that you might be suffering from an Anxiety disorder, you are welcome to complete the FREE questionnaire below. Circle the relevant number next to the question after you have printed the form.

You can also write down the relevant answer (number) next to the question on a paper and add the total afterwards to get your results.

This questionnaire can assist you to find out if you might suffer from an anxiety disorder by calculating your symptoms and based on your answer, suggest if you suffer from mild to severe anxiety.

Complete the questionnaire below, by circling the relevant number next to the question after you have printed the form. You can also write down the relevant answer (number) next to the question on a paper and add the total afterwards to get your results.

This questionnaire can assist you to find out if you might suffer from an anxiety disorder by calculating your symptoms and based on your answer, suggest if you suffer from mild to severe anxiety.

Question: Over the past 7 days, have you experienced any of the following?

Choose an answer from the 7 Questions below:

     Never(0) Some Days(1)   More than 4 Days(2) Every Day(3)

1.  Feeling on the edge, nervous or anxious        0 1 2 3

2.  Not being able to control worrying                0 1 2 3

3.  Continuously worrying about different things 0 1 2 3

4.  Unable to Relax                                                0 1 2 3

5.  Feeling Restless                                               0 1 2 3

6.  Feeling Annoyed and Irritated                       0 1 2 3

7.  Feeling fearful, as if expecting a

negative event/situation/outcome                      0 1 2 3

Add your Results per Column

Total Score of All Columns

Results:

Your total score is only a guide to determine how severe your anxiety may be:

0 – 4                 = Mild Anxiety

5 – 9                 = Moderate Anxiety

10 – 14              = Moderately Severe Anxiety

15 – 21              = Severe Anxiety

If you have scored 10 or higher, of if you feel that anxiety is affecting your day to day life, please register for a 60 min Coaching session, where your Transformation Coach, Jurie Fick, will share Information on what exactly causes Anxiety and Tips on how to deal with Anxiety and Stress.

Source:  Healthwise, Incorporated.

This information does not replace the advice of a doctor.  Jurie Fick Transformation Coaching disclaims any warranty or liability for your use of this information.

Anxiety is more than just worrying.

Anxiety is the restless nights of sleep, as you toss and turn. It’s your brain never being able to shut off. It’s the thoughts you over-think before bedtime and all of your worst fears become a reality in dreams and nightmares.

It’s waking up tired even though your day just started.

Anxiety is learning how to function with sleep deprivation because it took you until 2 am to shut your eyes.

It’s every text you wonder ‘how do I word this properly?’ It’s a double or triple text in case you messed up. Anxiety is answering texts embarrassingly fast.

Anxiety is the time you spend waiting for an answer as a scenario plays out in your mind of what they could be thinking or are they mad?

Anxiety is an unanswered text that kills you inside even though you tell yourself, ‘maybe they’re busy or will answer later.’ Anxiety is that critical voice that says ‘maybe they’re deliberately ignoring you.’ It’s believing every negative scenario you can come up with.

Anxiety is waiting. It always feels like you’re waiting. It’s the inaccurate conclusions drawn as your mind takes off and you have no choice but to follow it’s destructive lead.

Anxiety is apologizing for things that don’t even require the words, ‘I’m sorry.’

Anxiety is self-doubt and a lack of confidence both in you, yourself and those around you. Anxiety is being hyper aware of everyone and everything. So much so, you can tell if there’s a shift in someone merely by their tone or word choice.

Anxiety is ruining relationships before they even begin. It tells you, ‘you’re wrong, they don’t like you, they’re going to leave.’ Then you jump to conclusions.

Anxiety is a constant state of worrying and panicking and being on the edge. It’s irrational fears. It’s thinking too much, it’s caring too much. Because the root of people with anxiety is caring.

It’s sweaty palms and a racing heart. But on the outside, no one can see it. You appear calm and at ease and smiling but underneath is anything but that. Anxiety is the art of deception for people who don’t know you. And for the people who do, it’s a constant stream of phrases like, ‘don’t worry’ or ‘you’re overthinking this’ or ‘relax.’ It’s friends listening to these conclusions you’ve drawn and not really understanding how you got there. But they’re there trying to support you, as things go from bad to worse in your mind.

Anxiety is wanting to fix something that isn’t even a problem.

It’s the stream of questions that make you doubt yourself.

Did I lock the door before I left?’

Did I turn off the stove?

Is the straightener still on?

It’s turning back around just to double check.

Anxiety is the uneasiness at a party because you think all eyes are on you and no one wants you there. Anxiety is that extra shot you take and it seems like you’re finally relaxing. Until you wake up the next day hungover, full of regret and wondering what you said to whom and do you owe them an apology?

Anxiety is the overcompensating and trying too hard to please people.

Anxiety is being everywhere on time because the thought of being late would put you over the edge.

Anxiety is the fear of failure and striving for perfection. Then beating yourself up when you fall short. It’s always needing a schedule or a plan.

Anxiety is that voice inside your head that’s saying ‘you’ll fail.’

It’s trying to exceed people’s expectations even if you’re killing yourself to do so. Anxiety is taking on more than you can handle just so you are distracted and not overthinking something.

Anxiety is procrastination because you’re paralyzed with fear of failing so you hold it off.

It’s the triggers that set you off.

It’s breaking down in private and crying when you’re overwhelmed but no one will ever see that side of you. Anxiety is picking up and trying again because the only thing worse than overcoming other people is overcoming you and your own demons.

It’s beating that critical voice that says, ‘you really fucked up.’ or ‘you should feel awful right now.’

Anxiety is the want and the need to control things because it feels like this thing in your life is outside of your control and you have to learn to live with it.

But more than anything anxiety is caring. It’s never wanting to hurt someone’s feelings. It’s never wanting to do something wrong. More than anything, it’s the want and need to simply be accepted and liked. So you try too hard sometimes.

And when you come across friends who begin to understand, they help you through it.

Then you realize this might be a battle you face every day but it’s one you won’t have to face alone.

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