Tips for a lifetime logo

How Does Anxiety Affect the Human Body

There are numerous anxiety effects on the human body. Generally, people suffer from anxiety in some demanding situations, but chronic stress can turn their life upside down. It significantly impacts their physical health and daily life. Persistently anxious people will experience several health problems, including digestive issues and cardiovascular complications. The most common symptoms of anxiety include:

 

  • Constantly fatigued
  • Frequent sweating
  • Poor digestive health
  • Sleep disorder
  • Feelings of nervousness
  • Increased heart rate

 

How Does Anxiety Affect the Human Body

 

Anxiety disorders are the most common mental illness in the U.S., affecting 40 million adults in the United States age 18 and older, or 18.1% of the population every year. Anxiety disorders are highly treatable, yet only 36.9% of those suffering receive treatment. (ADAA.ORG)

 

 

Effects of anxiety on the human body

 

Below are the main areas of the human body that receive a significant blow from chronic anxiety:

Immune system

Chronic stress can severely harm your immune system. A weaker immune system makes you vulnerable to infectious diseases. If a person with a solid immune system falls ill, he will recover more quickly than someone with a weaker immune system. A compromised immune system leads to frequent visits by infections like pneumonia and bronchitis.

 

Heart disease

The abnormal heart functioning poses a threat of sudden cardiac arrest. Chronic stress can prove an obstacle to the proper functioning of the heart. It leads to heart diseases and is a significant obstacle in recovery. The persistent state of anxiety is dangerous for those with preexisting cardiac issues. These individuals will experience an increased heart rate.

Anxiety also causes high blood pressure, which proves highly detrimental to the heart’s health.

 

Digestive health

Stress badly impacts the health of your digestive system. When you are under pressure, your body releases hormones and chemicals that enter your digestive tract. It causes several stomach problems, including loss of appetite, indigestion, constipation, and IBS. These problems severely impact a person’s quality of life.

 

Central nervous system

If you are continuously under stress, your brain releases stress hormones. These hormones lead to conditions such as dizziness and headaches. It proves a contributory factor to conditions such as weight gain. If you continually expose yourself to these hormones, it will decline your physical health.

 

How Does Anxiety Affect the Human Body

 

Types of anxiety disorder

 

Below are the primary categories of anxiety disorder:

Obsessive-compulsive disorder

The individuals who suffer from this condition manage their stressful thoughts by compulsively performing the same action. An example of this is a feeling of fear that other people may transfer you a non-viral illness through touch. This fear leads individuals to wash their hands over and over again.

 

OCD affects 2.2 million adults or 1.0% of the U.S. population.

 

It temporarily relieves them of these unbearable thoughts, but it offers no permanent solution.

Panic disorder

People mistakenly assume it is cardiac arrest. Individuals with this anxiety disorder experience sudden feelings of acute terror even though there is no real danger. These sudden feelings of extreme panic can lead to chest pain, stomach disorder, increased heart rate, etc.

 

Post-traumatic stress disorder

PTSD results from a terrible episode such as sexual violence or a horrifying accident. A person who has experienced a life-threatening event will undergo this type of stress disorder. He fails to stand anything that has a connection with that triggering incident.

 

How can you get rid of anxiety disorder?

Although a professional can better guide you on the best way to tackle this condition. There are specific steps that you can take to improve your lifestyle. It will help minimize the impacts of anxiety on your daily life. These steps include:

 

Physical activity

Physical activity plays a crucial role in relaxing the human body. Make sure that you perform some physical exercise 7 days a week to reduce the stress symptoms. It will uplift your mood and enable you to focus on the positive aspects of life.

 

Take proper sleep

Sleeping 6-8 hours a day is a must for someone under stress. If such a person fails to get sufficient sleep, it will increase his frustration. He will feel fatigued the entire day, and his productivity will fall significantly.

 

Healthy diet

What you eat has an impact on your brain. Eating a healthy diet can help reduce the stress symptoms in your body. Some individuals experience unpleasant physical reactions to eating certain foods. It leads to significant changes in mood and can prove a reason for anxiety.

You need to include vegetables and fruits in your daily diet. It will ensure that you enjoy good physical and mental health.

 

Share our blogs

How Does Anxiety Affect the Human Body

Follow Us

Recent Posts