By Mental health issues including anxiety and depression are difficult to manage. They’re significant mental illnesses that can affect your relationships, career, and daily life. In spite of their differences, anxiety and depression can have similar effects on one’s quality of life. Below, we’ve included a handful of the most common symptoms of sadness and anxiety, along with their potential consequences.
It’s vital to know there are therapies available to help you feel better when you’re battling with anxiety, even if you try to “tough it out” on your own. Untreated anxiety can have serious consequences for your health, and we’ve compiled some data to help you learn more about those consequences.
Issues with falling asleep and staying asleep
Worrying too much might prevent you from getting a good night’s sleep or from staying asleep once you do fall asleep. Anxiety hinders your mind from relaxing and drifting off to sleep, which keeps you from recharging your batteries the next day.
You Might Feel A Lot Of Guilt
Anxiety and depression aren’t picky when it comes to who they blame. They both like cranking up the volume on their feelings of worthlessness.
You could feel bad about the tiniest things if you have one of these illnesses. For instance, if you suffer from depression and feel too tired to play with your cat as much as you would want, you may feel bad about failing to do so. Or, if you suffer from social anxiety, you could worry that you won’t be able to enjoy time with your friends.
Gaining weight
Feeling anxious triggers a chain reaction of hormonal responses, one of which is the production of cortisol. Your body’s stress reaction is a temporary mechanism for adjusting to the stressful situation. However, prolonged stress, characterized by persistently raised cortisol levels, can have deleterious effects on a person’s health if brought on by chronic worry.
Not only does cortisol cause a rise in blood sugar, but it also causes cravings for sweets and promotes fat accumulation. Scientists have known for a long time that persons who suffer from anxiety are more prone to put on weight due to their higher cortisol levels. Eating high-calorie foods while anxious is only one example of how anxiety affects actions that lead to weight gain.
Perhaps you’ll fall ill more frequently
Anxiety and sadness may wreak havoc on your immune system, making you susceptible to frequent colds. As a result of either of these circumstances, cortisol levels in the body may rise. Stress hormone that improves energy metabolism in the brain and aids in tissue healing.
If your cortisol levels are consistently high, you may find it more difficult to fight against infections. Your immune system becomes more compromised as your stress levels rise. If you’re anxious about a loved one who’s in the hospital, for instance, you may be more susceptible to illness yourself.
Discomforts and aches
Mind and body are interconnected; one affects the other. The mental and emotional toll of living with chronic pain is considerable, and the fact that it is also a typical indication of anxiety disorders compounds the problem. The chemistry of the brain is altered by suffering. Constant suffering can alter the way your brain processes pain, making it more intense. Anxiety increases the likelihood of experiencing pain, and pain can exacerbate existing anxiety in certain people.
It might be challenging to maintain relationships with loved ones
Anxiety and depression often make it difficult for individuals to establish social connections, although these difficulties can take on a variety of forms.
If you suffer from social anxiety, you can find it difficult to strike up conversations with strangers. Concern for others’ opinions of you is a common symptom of social anxiety. It has the potential to keep you from going out with friends and family and confined to your house. If you do venture out, you’ll likely spend a lot of time attempting to rehearse your responses in your thoughts, leaving you less open to the subtle nuances of conversation. To put it simply, this makes it challenging to meet new people and begin romantic relationships.
If you’ve been reading these examples and thinking, “That’s me!” you have options. You don’t have to go through this anymore. Depression and anxiety are treatable conditions, and with the help of a doctor and prescribed medication, you may gradually feel better until you are back to feeling like yourself.
