Anxious people experience overreactions to threatening things in their environment, which causes them to have a more severe stress response in their body than someone else would have to that stimulus. They are not able to tolerate uncertainty about the future very well as they fear many things that may go wrong. This could be about world events - including terrorism and plane crashes - or internal problems such as relationships ("What if he doesn't really love me?") or health concerns ("What if I've got cancer?")



The anxious person believes subliminally that there is danger all around in this world and that if they're not always on guard there may be potential threat to their body or psychological well being. They are constantly thinking 'what if this?' and 'maybe that?'

Their behavior is motivated by an attempt to reduce or get rid of the stressor that is causing them to feel stressed. For example, the anxious person may always say, "Yes" if asked to take on extra work by the boss and is thought to be obliging. It could be however, that he is anxious about being criticized or being disapproved of if he says, "No".

Sometimes the anxious person is not aware that he experiences anxiety. The physical manifestations of discomfort, and changes to the gut or bowel, or problems with the immune or nervous systems, are often seem as physical problems requiring tests and treatment, and the cognitive (thinking) involvement is not at first recognized.

Often, every anxious or negative thought (which then becomes the stressor) can cause adrenalin to rise in the body. Adrenalin is the stress chemical with the 'fight' or 'flight' mechanism in case the situation is dangerous. This adrenalin gets stored in the muscles leaving the person feeling 'on guard' in the event of any danger. This stress feeling may result in the person having an overreaction to a small event due to the build up of adrenalin already in the body. Others may be surprised by this intense reaction.

Many anxious people are sensitive, and are commonly known as worriers. The sensitive person has a brain that is sensitized to threat, and instructs the body to produce adrenalin at the first hint of there being a stimulus that could in any way be dangerous to the person. This could be external stimuli (heat, noise, unpleasant smells, crowds, bright lights, scratchy clothing, food with strange textures) or internal perceptions especially pertaining to being disapproved of, disliked or criticized.

A person with an anxious personality is likely to have strong floods of adrenalin in an environment where there are raised voices, irritable tones, or any suggestion of conflict, regardless of whether or not they are involved in the conflict. It is common for them to be jumpy and startle easily.

The adrenalin arouses the nervous system, creating the "anxious" feeling, even before the person can rationalize the situation. But once the brain recognizes the adrenalin arousal, it begins to "watch out" for the danger, and the thoughts then commence, 'what if' this and 'what if' that. The thoughts typically flow to the person's vulnerability at the time, which may be about their health, finances, relationships, children, work, being disliked, being inadequate - there is always something the brain will find as dangerous to justify the physical anxious sensation.

All the best, Karen Gosling