Misinterpretation

Being on this forum has sure taught me so much about learning about the cycle of anxiety.  I have answered many posts and PM’s about peoples’ concerns about their physical symptoms.  They often wonder how this all could just be anxiety when they actually feel horrible (i.e. aches, pains, tiredness, etc).  Instead of rambling on, I will try to be as concise as possible.

Remember, when we are feeling anxious, it does take a huge toll on us both physically and mentally.  Being at such a high state of alertness for so long causes us great fatigue.  In my opinion, this is a huge factor in keeping us in this never ending cycle of worry, panic, worry.  We also tend to misinterpret many feelings that people just shrug off of every day.  I usually ask people what they thought of a headache or aches and pains before suffering through this, and overwhelmingly they said that they would pop a Tylenol or aspirin and shrug it off.  But now because of our concerns these aches and pains often become catastrophic in our minds.  So, when I was dealing with this (and I still am to a certain degree), I decided to accept that there was probably nothing major wrong with me and trusted the doctors.  In my mind, acceptance of this cycle over medical symptoms is one of the most important steps in breaking it.  Once you accept it, you open your mind to learning about it, confronting and beating it.