Anxiety is really the experience of having irrational thoughts influencing your body to react as if you are in danger.

One of the best ways to describe anxiety is “having a really busy brain that is difficult to shut off”.

Other words that describe anxiety include “worry”, “nervousness”, “scared”, “frightened”, “cautious”, “uptight”, “obsessive”, “compulsive”, “neurotic”, etc. There are so many ways to describe it because anxiety is, in fact, very common, affecting different areas of people’s lives. Anxiety is really the experience of having irrational thoughts influencing your body to react as if you are in danger. Most (but not all) people with anxiety experience feelings of irritability, restlessness, shakiness, rapid heart rate, sleep difficulties, difficulty breathing, and distractibility (at times).

Some people with milder anxiety manage to cope by being very organized, over-prepared for situations, and choosing places and people who will cause less discomfort. They may also try to control behaviours (their own or others’) or other aspects of life. Other people with more severe anxiety can be managed by the anxiety itself. They may continue to avoid people, places, and situations until they accomplish considerably less each day and find themselves isolated. Severe anxiety can be very debilitating, but most people can learn to manage it well with help