Table of Contents
What is high functioning anxiety?
What is high functioning anxiety? People who suffer from anxiety but do not satisfy the criteria for any specific anxiety disorder have high-functioning anxiety. Symptoms include feeling apprehensive or anxious, wondering about what might happen, lack of sleep or poor sleep, feeling irritable or unhappy, and having outbursts of anger. This type of anxiety can impact how a person performs in school, work, relationships, and other areas of life.
An individual with high functioning anxiety is functional and capable of achieving excellence. They will work effectively yet battle with intense feelings of anxiety and thoughts about money, relationships, and other issues. The high-functioning individual also may feel that there is something wrong with them but will be unable to find help because they can perform their responsibilities without interruption.
Individuals with high functioning anxiety are high achievers, but they also have high levels of stress because of their demands from high-stress jobs, overloaded schedules or high-stress lifestyles.
Some high-functioning individuals have good personality traits, healthy coping skills, and high functioning anxiety doesn’t affect their daily ability to manage life; however, high-functioning anxiety can become debilitating for others. High-functioning individuals must find a treatment option that works for them because high-functioning anxiety can be as severe as other types of anxiety disorders. Therefore, it is advisable to seek the help of mental health professionals as soon as possible.
What is high functioning anxiety – Is high functioning anxiety different from other anxiety disorders?
High-functioning anxiety is different from anxiety disorders such as social anxiety disorder and specific phobias because high-functioning individuals don’t avoid high-functioning tasks or social settings. Instead, high-functioning individuals continue to take on increased levels of stress and increased demands at work and home.
High-functioning anxiety occurs in high-achieving, high-performing individuals who are afraid to fail at work or in personal relationships because they have high self-expectations and high standards. For them, the fear of failure is so great that high achievers will often stop taking on high-stress tasks rather than face the increased likelihood of failure.
Also, high-functioning anxiety is different from other anxiety disorder diagnoses because high-functioning individuals will often deny or minimize their high levels of stress and anxiety reactions to daily life. Instead, high-functioning individuals will blame any failures or missed achievements on “issues” such as health issues, low motivation, or other excuses.
High-functioning individuals with high anxiety may also be unaware that they have increased pressure because anxiety disorders and other mental health disorders are associated with mental health disorders. Some of these include social anxiety disorder, generalized anxiety disorder and panic disorder.
What is high functioning anxiety – Signs and symptoms
Because it isn’t a recognized illness, there aren’t many studies on high-functioning anxiety and how it impacts people. Some specialists believe that the signs and symptoms of high-functioning anxiety are most closely related to those of generalized anxiety disorder (GAD). High-functioning anxiety has less obvious signs and symptoms.
High-functioning anxiety can result in multiple daily tasks taking significantly longer than they should due to constant worry, mental distraction, and feelings of inadequacy. Going about everyday life can be tough with high-functioning anxiety because it feels like everything is a task that needs to be completed flawlessly.
High-functioning individuals usually do not show anxiety through visible behaviors such as panic attacks. Still, many affected by high functioning anxiety end up suffering from depression, generalized anxiety disorder, or a mental disorder later in life.
Other symptoms of high-functioning anxiety include
- Restlessness or feeling keyed up or on edge
- Becoming easily fatigued
- Difficulty concentrating or mind going blank because of anxiety
- Muscle tension
- Irritability
- Sleep disturbance (difficulty falling or staying asleep, or restless unsatisfying sleep)
- Being easily startled
- Sweating
- Feeling shortness of breath due to hyperventilation
- Cessation of activities previously enjoyed
- Dry mouth and headache,
- Trembling hands,
- The compulsion to complete essential tasks perfectly even if they are extremely difficult or time-consuming, and
- Negative thought patterns include “everything is terrible” or “I’m not good enough.”
What is high functioning anxiety? – Causes
High-functioning anxiety is a sort of anxiety that is associated with high levels of productivity and success in high-functioning people. There is no one specific cause of high-functioning anxiety, but many believe that high levels of perfectionism and intense fear of failure contribute to high-functioning anxiety.
Other possible causes are fears of inadequacy or failure, low self-esteem due to having difficulties understanding emotions or healthily dealing with emotions, and fear of disappointing others or feeling like they are not good enough.
What is high functioning anxiety – Positive and negative characteristics
Although there are some positive and negative traits associated with high-functioning anxiety, most individuals diagnosed with this chronic anxiety usually have more negative than positive traits.
Individuals who have high-functioning anxiety are often creative, passionate, loyal friends, and they usually get their work completed on time with top quality. High-functioning individuals may also be very empathetic to others’ true feelings even if they do not understand their own emotions.
Some positive traits of individuals diagnosed with high-functioning anxiety may include being very focused, selfless, motivated, compassionate, empathetic, caring for others above themselves, etc. For example, many athletes with high-level sports performance suffer from some type of high-functioning anxiety to have a very competitive edge that leads to success.
Some negative traits of individuals diagnosed with high-functioning anxiety may include being very critical of themselves and others, extremely hard on themselves in terms of their goals, emotions, etc. Such individuals may experience low self-esteem, fear failure, or not fulfil their very high expectations to avoid negative emotions such as depression, anxiety, etc. For example, some high-functioning individuals feel like they must be perfect and aim for perfection, which causes extreme stress on themselves.
How does high functioning anxiety impact daily living?
What is high functioning anxiety? Individuals with high-functioning anxiety experience high levels of stress and may also feel high levels of sadness, depression, or other negative emotions that prevent them from enjoying their day to day lives. The high-level stress experienced by these individuals can also cause high levels of physical pain.
High-functioning anxiety is a type of mental health problem that impacts individuals who are used to high levels of achievement and success in their day-to-day lives. This form of anxiety does not affect the daily quality of life of high functioning individuals. Still, it may cause high levels of stress, high levels of fear, high levels of sadness, high levels of depression, and high levels of other negative emotions.
Individuals with high-functioning anxiety are likely to have a history of mental health disorders such as depression, generalized anxiety disorder, social phobia, panic disorder, etc., and physical health problems.
How do high functioning individuals deal with high-functioning anxiety?
High functioning individuals who have high-functioning anxiety use avoidance as a coping mechanism to avoid tasks that cause high levels of anxiety. High-functioning individuals may also become high achievers and overachievers to gain approval from others and feel high levels of self-worth.
What is high functioning anxiety – Treatment options
There are several treatment options for high-functioning anxiety, including the following:
- Medication is generally not prescribed because high-functioning anxiety doesn’t meet the criteria of a specific disorder that would necessitate medication. Instead, high-functioning anxiety is most often related to an anxiety disorder that is undiagnosed or untreated. Specialist medical professionals may recommend medication if high-functioning anxiety is linked to depression or another type of disorder that requires medication treatment. The high-functioning individual may resist this option because they fear becoming dependent on medications, which can become a problem with high-functioning individuals who fear that something is seriously wrong with them. Medication for high-functioning anxiety is usually in the form of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor medication. Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor medication is generally taken daily and helps individuals better cope with stress, negative emotions, anxiety symptoms, etc.
- Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) can help high-functioning individuals identify negative patterns in thinking and behaviour, reinforce positive self-beliefs, learn to manage day-to-day stressors, and develop effective coping strategies.
- Behavioral therapy is also helpful for high-functioning anxiety. This group of therapies teaches individuals how to control or change their behaviours by breaking the actions or thoughts into specific steps and reinforcing positive behaviour.
- Support groups provide high-functioning individuals with an opportunity to talk about high-functioning anxiety, learn about high-functioning anxiety, identify the disorder if it is undiagnosed, and share ideas about high-functioning anxiety management strategies.
- Relaxation therapy helps high-functioning anxiety sufferers learn to control their physical responses to stress and relax by using meditation, progressive muscle relaxation, and diaphragmatic breathing exercises.
- Regular exercise helps to reduce autonomic arousal. Calming exercises help regulate reactions to stress and daily life demands.
What is high functioning anxiety – Summary
- What is high-functioning anxiety?
- How do high-functioning people deal with it?
- What are the different treatment options for high-functioning anxiety?
- High-functioning anxiety is a mental health condition that affects highly successful individuals in life, and it doesn’t impact daily life but can result in stress, fear, sadness, and depression.
- High-functioning individuals often cope with high-functioning anxiety by avoidance and becoming overachievers in an attempt to gain approval from others and feel self-worth.
- There are several treatment options for high-functioning anxiety, including medication, cognitive-behavioural therapy (CBT), behavioral therapies, support groups, relaxation therapy, etc.
Frequently Asked Questions and Answers (FAQs)
What exactly does Square breathing entail?
Box breathing, also known as square breathing, is a deep breathing method that might assist you in slowing down your breathing rate. It works by diverting your attention away from your thoughts while you count to four, soothing your nervous system, and reducing stress in your body.
What is the 5 5 5 anxiety method?
There are five things you can see: The sky, your hands, and a plant on your colleague’s desk There are four things you can physically feel: Your feet on the ground, a ball, and the hand of a friend. You can hear three things: the wind, children’s laughing, and your own breath. There are two things you can smell: Coffee, soap, and freshly cut grass
What is the 4 7 8 breathing technique, and how does it work?
For a count of four, close your lips and inhale through your nose. Hold your breath for seven counts. For a count of eight, exhale completely through your mouth, making a whoosh sound. This brings us to the end of one cycle.
What exactly is a foggy brain?
What exactly is brain fog? While not a medical phrase, brain fog refers to the experience of not having complete mental clarity—for example, having trouble recalling things or focusing on a notion or idea.
Is it possible for anxiety to induce strange symptoms?
Certain physical symptoms associated with worry might also generate strange mental sensations. Dizziness can be caused by symptoms that impact the body’s circulatory system, such as heart palpitations, rapid heart rate and brief rises in blood pressure. a feeling of choking
Why do I get anxiety for no apparent reason?
Stress, heredity, brain chemistry, traumatic events, and environmental variables can all contribute to anxiety. Anti-anxiety medications can help to alleviate severe symptoms of anxiety. Even with medicine, though, some people may still have anxiety or panic attacks.
How can I tell if I’m masking or not?
Masking, also known as compensating, is a social survival strategy. Masking can take several forms depending on the person, but it can involve things like forcing or feigning eye contact during interactions. copying other people’s smiles and facial expressions.
What is the 54321-anxiety rule?
When worry threatens to take over, the “5-4-3-2-1” technique is a simple yet powerful method for recovering control of your thoughts – and it involves more than counting backwards from five. Rather, the hack uses our five senses – sight, sound, touch, smell, and taste – to assist us return to the present.
Why do I keep thinking there’s something wrong with me?
Illness anxiety disorder, often known as hypochondriasis or health anxiety, is characterized by excessive anxiety and fear of being seriously ill. It’s possible that you don’t have any bodily symptoms.
Why do I feel jittery and uneasy?
Because anxiety prepares your body to react to an environmental “threat,” your muscles may stiffen up when you’re concerned. It’s also possible that your muscles twitch, quiver, or tremble. Psychogenic tremors are tremors that are produced by anxiety. Anxiety isn’t the actual cause of essential tremor if you have it.
Is it true that anxiety is a mental illness?
Anxiety disorders are the most common mental illnesses, afflicting about one-third of all adults at some point in their lives. Anxiety disorders, on the other hand, are curable, and there are a variety of effective treatments available. The majority of persons who receive treatment are able to live regular, productive lives.
Is it possible for untreated ADHD to create anxiety?
If left untreated, ADHD, like other mental health disorder, can create a personal environment that encourages depression and anxiety. Untreated ADHD has been linked in numerous studies to other mental health issues such as depression and anxiety.
What does high functioning anxiety look like?
High functioning anxiety can look like many different things, but it often manifests as extreme perfectionism, compulsiveness, and drivenness. People with high functioning anxiety are often some of the most talented and successful people in their field because they can work tirelessly towards their goals and never give up.
However, this type of perfectionism comes at a cost. People with high functioning anxiety are often very hard on themselves and feel like they never quite measure up. They also tend to be hyper-vigilant and constantly scan their environment for potential threats. This can lead to stress and anxiety, even when there is no real danger present.
Can high functioning anxiety be cured?
There is no one-size-fits-all answer to this question, as the approach to curing high functioning anxiety may vary from person to person. However, some suggested methods for overcoming high functioning anxiety include therapy, medication, and self-care.
Therapy can be highly helpful in teaching persons with high-functioning anxiety how to cope better with their symptoms. Medication may also be prescribed to manage the chemical in the brain that causes anxiety. Finally, self-care is an integral part of managing any mental health condition and can involve exercise, relaxation techniques, and healthy eating habits.
What is the difference between anxiety and high functioning anxiety?
There is a big difference between anxiety and high functioning anxiety. Anxiety is a mental illness that affects how people think, feel, and behave, and it can cause problems with sleep, concentration, and decision making. People with anxiety often feel nervous or worried about things that don’t usually bother other people.
High functioning anxiety is slightly different in that it does not meet the full criteria for an official diagnosis of anxiety disorder. However, people with high functioning anxiety still experience many of the same symptoms as those with a diagnosable anxiety disorder. The main difference is that people with high functioning anxiety can hide their symptoms better and appear to be more “normal” than those who have a diagnosable disorder.
