Anxiety and stress symptoms come in all shapes and sizes and one problem when it comes to diagnosis lies in the fact that the physical symptoms of anxiety and stress can be identical to those of many common everyday illnesses.
For many people suffering from acute stress the most commonly seen symptoms are emotional distress, muscular problems and stomach problems. Acute stress symptoms, although they can sometimes be quite severe, normally disappear fairly quickly and require little or no intervention.
In cases of episodic acute stress or chronic stress the symptoms can be similar but more persistent and may require professional treatment, which can often take several months to produce results.
When looking at specific symptoms it is important to look not only at the effect that stress is having on your body, but also upon how you feel and how you behave. A headache, for example, can have many causes but when it is accompanied by feelings of anxiety and by either a loss of appetite or a tendency to overeat, it may be seen as an anxiety or stress symptom.
Similarly, chest pain might well be a symptom of stress when it arises together with feelings of restlessness and a tendency towards sudden outbursts of anger for little or no apparent reason.
Back and neck pain can result from many different things, but when they bring with them feelings of sadness and perhaps crying, it can also be another sign of stress.
The list of the physical symptoms of anxiety and stress is long and will include such things as shortness of breath, grinding teeth, indigestion and a tight and dry throat. Each symptom can have a variety of different causes and so it is important to view the wider picture. Shortness of breath having climbed a flight of stairs may be the result of illness, or simply indicate that you are unfit. But, when it is accompanied by feelings of depression and by a tendency to want to withdraw and seek isolation, it is much more likely to be symptomatic of stress.
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