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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 10 of 10. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by turalizz on October 25, 2002, at 2:37:43
Seriously, I don't think that I know the difference between the two feelings.
I know they are closely related, but how do you tell if you are under stress or having anxiety?
thanks,
cem
Posted by Phil on October 25, 2002, at 8:13:35
In reply to What is the difference between anxiety and stress?, posted by turalizz on October 25, 2002, at 2:37:43
Stress is a physiological reaction to real pressure or the demands of living.
Anxiety is more of a dread of something happening in the future that may or (probably) may not come to pass.
That's my guess.
I gotta go..I think I'm going to have a bad day.Phil
Posted by Hattree on October 25, 2002, at 8:55:18
In reply to Re: What is the difference between anxiety and stress?, posted by Phil on October 25, 2002, at 8:13:35
How about...anxiety is a symptom of stress (among other possible causes)?
Posted by WorryGirl on October 25, 2002, at 12:34:08
In reply to What is the difference between anxiety and stress?, posted by turalizz on October 25, 2002, at 2:37:43
Hello,
The other two responses sound pretty accurate. But I understand your question, because, for example, if I'm dreading an upcoming event, for whatever reason, my husband will think that I'm "stressed out" when I'm actually anxious.For me, being stressed out is when I haven't had a decent night's sleep for over a week, the bills should have been paid 2 weeks ago, new messes are continuously being made no matter how often I clean, the phone is ringing nonstop, one or both of the kids are wailing, etc. and I have important company (usually relating to my husband's job) arriving in 30 minutes.
The anxiety happens after the company arrives. Did I say the right thing? Do they think I'm stupid? Do they even like me? Did I serve the right kind of food? Did I come across as nervous, etc.?
Posted by vince on October 25, 2002, at 14:34:00
In reply to What is the difference between anxiety and stress?, posted by turalizz on October 25, 2002, at 2:37:43
> Seriously, I don't think that I know the difference between the two feelings.
>
> I know they are closely related, but how do you tell if you are under stress or having anxiety?
>
> thanks,
> cem
>I can only speak for myself, but for me anxiety is to stress as major depression is to "I feel so down today because my goldfish died"
Hope that makes sense.
Vince
Posted by bonnie_ann on October 25, 2002, at 19:01:27
In reply to What is the difference between anxiety and stress?, posted by turalizz on October 25, 2002, at 2:37:43
For me stress is overwhelming myself with all the things that I think I should be doing and doing them at 100% 24/7
Anxiety is - uneasyness - a bad feeling that something terribly awful is going to happen. And you play it over and over in your mind. It's like a broken record of worry- the what if's.
Posted by linkadge on October 25, 2002, at 19:23:49
In reply to Re: What is the difference between anxiety and stress?, posted by vince on October 25, 2002, at 14:34:00
It is of course it is a continous spectrum
of intensities. I believe stress is a broader
term, it does have pysicals symptoms but
are less in intensity.Stress - I have butterflies in my stomach
- I notice my heart is beating faster
- I can't wait till this event is over
- I can't wait to have a good nights sleep.
- I need to have a warm to help me relax
- I'll sleep better tomorrow night
- I'll Deep breathing helps me relax
- I always feel better after exerciseAnxiety - I feel like I will throw up
- I think I am going to have a
heart attack
- Oh God I can't take any more of this
- I'm never going to sleep tonight
- I don't think anything can calm me down
- I can never fall asleep when I need to
- Deep breathing only reminds me of the
what I'm trying to calm myself down from
- My body can't take exercise, I would
probably collapse.If the stress is really getting in the way of you doing your best then it might be worth treating
Linkadge
Posted by Alara on October 25, 2002, at 21:53:07
In reply to Re: What is the difference between anxiety and stress?, posted by linkadge on October 25, 2002, at 19:23:49
Isn't it funny that we all have closely-related, yet different, personal definitions of stress?
I have always thought of stress as the CNS response (adrenalin rush) to external stimuli. (It's the trigger which braces our muscles for either a fight or a flight response.)
For me, anxiety results if I can't deal with the flood of adrenalin, instead allowing it to build up in my system. It is exacerbated by intense rumination over past/future events (eg; Turalizz's example about worrying over the company visit).
I see stress as the temporary set of conditions or trigger. Anxiety is the sometimes chronic condition which results.
Posted by Alara on October 25, 2002, at 21:55:58
In reply to What is the difference between anxiety and stress?, posted by turalizz on October 25, 2002, at 2:37:43
This is a really interesting thread. I really believe that we could solve a lot of our anxiety problems if we learned to understand the relationship between anxiety and stress!
Posted by Dr. Bob on October 26, 2002, at 11:20:13
In reply to Re: What is the difference between anxiety and stress?, posted by Alara on October 25, 2002, at 21:55:58
> This is a really interesting thread.
I agree, but since it doesn't have to do with medication, I'd like it to be continued over at Psycho-Psycho-Babble. Here's a link:
http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/psycho/20020829/msgs/1410.html
Thanks,
Bob
PS: As usual, follow-ups regarding posting policies should be redirected to Psycho-Babble Administration
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