13 Unusual Symptoms Of Anxiety That May Surprise You

Anxiety is one of the most typical mental health conditions in the world. In mild cases, it may cause feelings of fear, helplessness, tension, and worry in people. However, it may cause panic attacks and even physical problems in severe cases, like racing heartbeat, high blood pressure, etc.

It is easy to identify anxiety in most cases, but some of its symptoms are hard to relate to. In addition, stress manifests differently in different people because they are fundamentally different from others. That’s why health2delivery mental health experts have devised a comprehensive list of unusual symptoms that may help you identify anxiety earlier and seek help accordingly.

Unusual anxiety symptoms

Following are a few anxiety symptoms of the more bizarre category. Though most of these symptoms are not uncommon, they are still unusual. Nevertheless, if you experience them, it is better to seek medical attention so you can rule out another underlying medical condition because almost all anxiety symptoms can be associated with other medical conditions.

1. Indigestion

In some cases, anxiety may cause temporary indigestion. It may even cause chronic indigestion in severe anxiety cases. Passing gas, burping, heartburn, diarrhea, bloating, stomach ache, and uncomfortable sensation in the stomach can all be related to anxiety.

2. Ringing in the ears

Tinnitus is a medical phenomenon that causes phantom ringing in your ears. Generally, it is caused by stress or anxiety and manifests in several ways. For example, you can hear humming, bell ringing, buzzing, chirping, whizzing, swooshing, roaring, or any other sound that may render you incapable of action.

3. Itching and burning sensations

Sometimes, you can feel phantom burning and itching sensations in your extremities, lips, tongue, palms, and even your eyes. The burns may feel like sunburns –either a prickling sensation on an organ or shooting sparks of heat.

4. Irregular heartbeat

Arrhythmia is one of the more common symptoms in case of anxiety. Sometimes, your heart may skip a few beats, palpitate, or race more so than usual. In some cases, it may become difficult to differentiate between anxiety and heart attack without a proper medical diagnosis. Therefore, please seek medical treatment right away in case of arrhythmia.

5. Numbness or tingling sensation

You may feel numbness or tingling in your arms, legs, face, hands, and feet because of anxiety. Numbness in the organs may also cause a feeling of physical weakness in your body.

6. Excessive yawning

Hyperventilation is a common occurrence in anxiety attacks. It makes your body feel there is not enough oxygen in your system, which may result in frequent yawning to compensate for the lack of oxygen.

7. Olfactory hallucination

In some cases, you may smell some phantom odors due to anxiety. You may smell something that just isn’t there. In some cases, a neutral atmospheric smell may become unpleasant, making it difficult to breathe.

8. Brain shivers or zaps

This is a rather bizarre kind of sensation that is not especially common. In most cases, brain shivers and zaps occur when you are either starting the use of or withdrawing from antidepressants. Brain shivers may reach from mild to severe –the intensity varies from person to person. However, most shivers and zaps last for only a short time. They may feel like a sudden shaking, jolt, tremor, or a vibration in the brain.

9. Phantom vibration sensations

This may seem strange, but this symptom is quite real. Some people can feel a phantom sensation of vibration on their skin, not unlike a vibrating sensation due to a phone in your pocket. This kind of sensation is generally caused by attachment anxiety.

10. Tremors in the body

Anxiety is often accompanied by shaking and tremors in the body, including spasms, trembling and cramping. In some cases, you may experience prolonged, drawn-out shaking than usual.

11. Detachment from the reality

In some severe cases of anxiety, you may feel as if you are not part of this reality. This sensation can be felt in many different manners. You may think that you are disconnected from the people and your surroundings. It may feel like a dream state or as if you are seeing everything through like a movie. You may feel the space, time, and size of things in your vicinity are distorted while also feeling foggy or fuzzy. In addition, you may also feel like you are a passenger in your own body.

12. Difficulty swallowing

This symptom is pretty common in anxiety. You may feel as if there is a lump in your throat, making it difficult to swallow. In some cases, it may feel like there is a tightness in your throat.

13. Vision problems

Many people feel their vision blurring when anxiety or panic attacks hit. You may feel your eyes becoming watery and see certain phantom shapes appearing in front of you or the corners of your eyes. You may also have dilated pupils in anxiety.

Last word

Anxiety is pretty standard, especially in today’s world, where there is an endless burden of expectations on your shoulders. So if you feel any of the above symptoms appearing, take deep, slow breaths and start counting down backward from a hundred. If none of the self-help tips work, contact your doctor for a better diagnosis and treatment.