As already mentioned, the two main behaviours associated with fear and anxiety are to either fight or flee. Therefore, the overwhelming urges associated with this response are those of aggression and a desire to escape, wherever you are.
But in some people anxiety can provoke an aggressive, violent response. Aggression and violence may not be "common" in those with anxiety, but they're very real and can be extremely problematic for those that suffer from them.
The autonomic nervous system has two components, the sympathetic nervous system and the parasympathetic nervous system. The sympathetic nervous system functions like a gas pedal in a car. It triggers the fight-or-flight response, providing the body with a burst of energy so that it can respond to perceived dangers.
The fight or flight response is an automatic physiological reaction to an event that is perceived as stressful or frightening. The perception of threat activates the sympathetic nervous system and triggers an acute stress response that prepares the body to fight or flee.
When people with social anxiety find themselves in a situation where they are worried they will be judged, the fight-flight-freeze response fires up. Some or all of the following sensations might be triggered: racing heart. blushing.
Since the fight or flight response underlies many of the symptoms common with panic disorder, researchers have investigated ways of taming this response.
Deep breathing, relaxation strategies, physical activity, and social support can all help if you are feeling the effects of a fight-or-flight response.
People with higher pain levels often experience heightened fight-or-flight responses, which throws the nervous system off-balance. Things like stress, pain, and lack of sleep trigger these responses. When we're stuck in fight-or-flight mode, our automatic functions stop working properly.
So, if you find that your body is constantly reacting to everyday stress with the fight-or-flight response, it should be a warning sign that your sympathetic and parasympathetic systems aren't working together in harmony.
Chronic stress in turn is an unwanted state where the brain concludes that we are under threat. The body is continuously ready to fight for our lives, which is a burden both physically and mentally. Chronic stress can lead to burnout and to many physical illnesses.
Drugs such as Xanax (alprazolam), Klonopin (clonazepam), Valium (diazepam), and Ativan (lorazepam) work quickly, typically bringing relief within 30 minutes to an hour. That makes them very effective when taken during a panic attack or another overwhelming anxiety episode.
Examples of anxiety disorders include generalized anxiety disorder, social anxiety disorder (social phobia), specific phobias and separation anxiety disorder. You can have more than one anxiety disorder. Sometimes anxiety results from a medical condition that needs treatment.
having a sense of dread, or fearing the worst. feeling like the world is speeding up or slowing down. feeling like other people can see you're anxious and are looking at you. feeling like you can't stop worrying, or that bad things will happen if you stop worrying.
When is anxiety a mental health problem? Anxiety can become a mental health problem if it impacts your ability to live your life as fully as you want to. For example, it may be a problem if: your feelings of anxiety are very strong or last for a long time.
Although anxiety disorders are typically characterized by social withdrawal, inhibition and shyness, and discomfort in social expression, individuals with anxiety disorders often express intense and out of proportion anger and aggression [7; 8].
Hyperstimulation anxiety happens when your stress response is kicked into high gear without being given a chance to come back down. Along with feeling an increased heart rate and other signs commonly associated with stress and anxiety, many people will also feel the effects in their muscles.
The “freeze” response occurs when our brains decide we cannot take on the threat nor are we able to escape. Often when this happens our bodies might remain still, unable to move, numb or “freeze”. We may feel as if we are not actually a part of our bodies.
Chronicfatigue, tiredness, and lack of energy.
"When the body cannot handle emotional overload, it simply begins to shut down. And that is often manifested by a sense of extreme tiredness and fatigue," says Kalayjian.
High adrenaline levels
Studies have shown that people with PTSD have abnormal levels of stress hormones. Normally, when in danger, the body produces stress hormones like adrenaline to trigger a reaction in the body. This reaction, often known as the "fight or flight" reaction, helps to deaden the senses and dull pain.
A person in fight or flight may feel extremely alert, agitated, confrontational, or like they need to leave a room or location. A severe fight or flight response can become a panic attack. It can also trigger asthma attacks in people with the condition.
That's what PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) is—our body's overreaction to a small response, and either stuck in fight and flight or shut down. People who experience trauma and the shutdown response usually feel shame around their inability to act, when their body did not move.
The difference between fear and anxiety. Fear responds to a real threat by putting you into fight-or-flight. However, when the fear is imagined, and the fight-or-flight instinct kicks in, this may be a sign of an anxiety disorder.