Difference between Stress and Anxiety
In our modern society, every aspect of life seems to have become very complicated. With these complications, we face tremendous psychological stresses and anxiety. Some people have had times in their lives when things were just simpler and people felt as if they were dealing with less stress. Today we all seem be living in complicated societies where nothing is simple and straightforward. In addition, stress and anxiety tend to lead to health problems and society’s number one nemesis; heart disease. Stress and anxiety are two different disorders that affect pretty much every human being.
Triggers
Stress can be triggered by work issues, family problems, general frustration, going through a divorce, time management challenges, economic issues, etc. While stress is normal and part of everyday life, if left untreated... it can become detrimental to one's health and lead to anxiety. So you see, stress has to be addressed both from the person’s orientation towards situations in one’s life as well as addressing the propensity to finding oneself in situations which bring on overwhelming reactions. Perhaps just the admission that one has a Type A personality is a red flag for the person to recognize that work must be done to relieve the stress in their lives. Anxiety is a condition that is often triggered if stress is left untreated. Therefore, it's absolutely imperative, that one effectively strive to manage their stress.
Symptoms
Symptoms of stress are feeling tired, lethargy, frustration, anger. Nevertheless, stress symptoms are mild and tend to go away with a little rest and relaxation. On the other hand, symptoms of anxiety can be more complicated. Symptoms of anxiety include a constant fear of facing challenges, feelings of fear that doesn't seem to have an origin, you feel your heart racing, feeling that your body is going into overdrive and you can't control it and you might just have an heart attack. One of the most common symptoms is feeling a tightness in the chest, which feels like a heart attack but is usually a group of overly tensed muscles attached to the back of the breastbone. These are some key symptoms to keep in mind, and controlling them is essential for one's overall health.
Treatment
You can treat stress by many natural techniques such as yoga, getting a massage, aroma therapy, camping out in the woods, curling up with your pet or kids, self help books, getting out of town, turning off the Blackberry, not undertaking stressful jobs, relaxing more, taking a vacation regularly, etc. On the other hand, anxiety treatment tends to be a bit more complicated, and may require medications and the help of a professional psychological consultant.
Stages and Types
Stress seems to grow in stages, the first stage is the "alarm" stage, the second is the "resistance" stage, and the third and final stage is the "exhaustion" stage.
While anxiety doesn't have stages, it can take many different forms and types. These forms include: Test and performance anxiety, stranger and social anxiety, trait anxiety and finally, choice or decision anxiety. Only your psychologist can help you understand, and can accurately determine the type or level of anxiety or stage you are going through.
Summary
Life today, as we know has become extremely complicated then it use to be. Therefore, we now face tremendous stress in our daily lives. Nevertheless, stress is normal, but shouldn't be allowed to progress into anxiety.
- Triggers of stress can be found in our daily lives, such as family stress, work stress, traffic stress, some people are more prone to stress than others, and some people tend to live a non stressful life, naturally.
- Symptoms of stress include: exhaustion, irritability, inability to concentrate, headaches, and rapid heart beat. symptoms of anxiety include: fatigue, nausea, chest pains, stomach pains etc.
- Stress can be treated using natural techniques, which can be surprisingly quite effective. Anxiety on the other hand needs to be treated by a professional medical practitioner.
- Stress tends to progress in stages, while anxiety tends to have many different forms and must be diagnosed by a professional.
