To think "I have anxiety" is becoming the new 'go to' armchair diagnosis?

[ClothEaredBint]

I'm saying this as someone who actually has an Anxiety Disorder, diagnosed, medicated, lived with it for 20 years and which has a serious impact on my ability to function day to day..

I seem to be spotting it being thrown out like a disclaimer for peoples neurotic behaviour on here just lately, and its really actually starting to get on my fucking nerves.

Yes, you might be anxious, it does NOT mean you HAVE Anxiety.

Anxiety is a recognised mental health disorder that seriously affects peoples ability to function, it filters into every aspect of their lives.

Claiming you 'have anxiety' when something is worrying you is as offensive to those of us who actually DO have it as saying 'a little bit OCD' when you like something done a specific way, or 'a little bit depressed' when you're a bit sad about something.

Stop it.

You're minimising a very real and very upsetting disorder that people actually suffer with.

Posted too soon!
(And I'll admit it, I'm only human) and feeling the frustration at the illogicality of it all makes me angry when I see every other person throwing this "diagnosis" around.

Feeling anxious is normal. Constant, crippling, inconvenient anxiety is not.

Psych, it may be straightforward to get a referral, but services can be scarce.
In my area, when I first approached about ASD and anxiety I was first offered group CBT, this was not an option for me at all. Luckily my GP was understanding of this and referred me straight through for the first step of ASD assessment.
Not everyone is as lucky though, autism is very commonly missed, particularly in women, and whilst you can maybe be referred to MH services, they are often not appropriate.
Without autism, services are still not always helpful, and cbt doesn't help everyone.
Just because the referral stage may be straightforward, it doesn't mean that that's it, there's no excuse for people to have anxiety.

Yes definitely agree. Everyone has the occasional situation where they feel out of control or uncomfortable, or have to be in a social situation where they feel out of their depth.

That's not "having anxiety".

Anxiety means being anxious. I have had PTSD, and am familiar with the clinical use of the word. I felt anxiety before and after that though. I have always been an anxious person. And now we don't use verbs so much. So people say "I have anxiety".

I mean adjectives!!

words and use of a diagnoses often change become the buzz term to use on social media, radio etc

a few years ago it was passive aggression, then depression, then they might have an undiagnosed adhd, or they suffered from PTSD, OCD, then it was people being diagnosed as narcissistic now it seems to be anxiety

just because someone hasn't been diagnosed doesn't mean they wouldn't be and we can all go through periods of our life when we will suffer with anxiety that really impact our lives. Many people with depression and anxiety are able to mask it so well that others wouldn't know and the passing comment they are making might be them trying to inform you that they are really struggling at the moment and many do not get treatment and do not want medication as they feel so anxious that they are wary of seeing their gp

I wouldn't let it get to you, when someone is telling you they are struggling in some way that is what they are saying, it could mean that they are in a very bad place or maybe that is not the case but not being diagnosed doesn't mean they are not facing the same struggles as someone who has been

I agree ... I have very bad anxiety (diagnosed) - basically agoraphobia where I can only leave house with partner and not go further than a few miles ... it's horrendous and debilitating and has ruined my life for the past 8 or 9 years

I was diagnosed with GAD in 1992 & it has never really gone away, the intensity varies and it has had a huge impact on my life. My GP thinks it's hereditary as both of my brothers (who I didn't grow up with) have it too & all of our childhoods where unremarkable & happy. It was always in the background from around the age of 14/15 but a traumatic event triggered it aged 20.

It's become more common for people to say they had a panic attack over something trivial like losing a favourite lipstick or suchlike. It can be irritating but it's just an expression so doesn't bother me too much.

kittytom- oh, fear not, I think the people the OP is referring to have no problem whatsoever in asking for help.

I opened 5 threads yesterday- all of them had goady OPs seeking assertion from others that their very Unreasonableness, wasn't. And waving the "I suffer from anxiety so (that's why I'm acting like a goady aggressive twat)"

Anxiety is the new black.

I don't suffer from anxiety- but like the overuse of the word "bullying" for every little altercation that comes your way in life, these "I suffer from anxiety" people have a) cottoned on that you only need to put that in your OP and the gushers and savers will come running to defend whatever crap you come out with and b) makes the word meaningless and undermines the very real problem that some people really do have.

I agree. Anxiety is really disabling for me. People think if they're worried it's the same thing!

Some of the comments on here are awful, but the sad thing is maybe a year ago I would have agreed with some of them. Fast forward a year down the line and only yesterday I was prescribed a drug from my gp for the anxiety I am experiencing.
Be careful looking down mocking others mental health, you don't know what's round the corner for you

As someone with anxiety and OCD I can't say how much people saying they have a little bit of either pisses me off

CloudPerson I know CBT doesn't help everyone, it's not even my preferred way of working (I had to train in it for work as the govt likes it) but for 'simple' axis one Disorders it does have a v good evidence base.

Comorbid Autistic Spectrum conditions will obviously add a level of complexity and would be less to improve a great deal. I hope you're feeling more supported now anyway

I think it's incredibly judgy to think anyone on here can diagnose (or undiagnose) another poster - even if you're a psychologist, you can't say for sure whether a stranger on the internet has or doesn't have GAD without assessing them face to face.

So IMO yes, YABU. Not everyone likes to share every single detail of any condition they have, and nor should they have to. It's not anxiety top trumps, OP.

Are people deliberately being silly? Saying you have anxiety is exactly the same as having a one off anxious moment. 'Anxiety' isn't the disorder it's the same as saying anxious. Being diagnosed with it doesn't change the meaning of a word.

Less likely to improve that should say

Anxiety is one of those word that cover so many emotional state that it actually doesnt say anything.
Its the same with tiredness. Ask someone with ME what tiredness is and you will a very different answer that Linda down the road who is tired after a day shopping iyswim.

It woiuld be nice to actually have a wider vocabulary that will allow to express all those variations.

I don't have an official diagnosis of anxiety.

According to the NHS mood diagnoser test I show signs of anxiety and should see my GP.

I will once I stop worrying about phoning the practice, scheduling the appointment, leaving work to go to the appointment and wasting the GPs time.

I can't be the only person in this situation.

I only realised there may be a problem (I do a job where obsessing over possibilities that could go wrong and thinking of every single detail is necessary) when I realised that my 7 year old is exactly the same as me. I have done this to her.

The only person in real life who knows is Dh.

YABU. Why do we fell we should be able to judge someone who is feeling like shit over whatever issue. Clinical judgement gives you a clinical diagnosis but for those who don't have a clinical diagnosis because they are too fucking anxious to go to the Gp's surgery, their anxiety can still be quite paralysing - even without the diagnosis.

I think saying you have are anxious about going to a meeting or being depressed at cat dying are reasonable - these are still possible emotional states even if not severe enough to warrant a medical diagnosis - GAD or whatever . I for one get anxious about a lot of things - doctor once said some physical symptoms were probably caused by anxiety- but have no idea if I would be 'officially' diagnosed or not.

It's different to saying 'I'm a bit OCD ' or 'a bit Asperger's' as those are specific terms which shouldn't be bandied about.

Plus, like ASD and others, there presumably are a lot more people being diagnosed with such conditions - either because of changes in how they are recognised, more awareness so more people seeking help, changes in the world which make them more prevalent, or changes in what symptoms 'label' you with a particular illness.

I hate it too when CBT is been branded as THE solution for anxiety.
Its not and certainly doesn't work for everyone.
And even then, what you do get from the NHS (when you finally get it!), isnt always top quality work (to say the least).

So I ahve a big issue with comments 'you dont need to suffer in silence' which also tend to go with 'it's something you can easily solve with a bit of CBT'

Psych, there isn't really any support, but there is safety in finding others like me, and being able to use strategies that I wouldn't even have known about before.

I believe that a lot of people with anxiety and other MH stuff may be undiagnosed autistic, but because the system isn't geared up to recognise it, they will be stuck in a cycle of trying things and jumping through hoops that won't work, and will very often be dismissed as being a bit precious, or of being obstructive to their treatment.

I don't think it's people's fault that one word describes many things and they may have misunderstood the difference between anxiety and Anxiety. I do think that it says a lot about how little awareness there is of the various Anxiety disorders. The thing is, everyone gets stressed and at times of extreme stress someone without Anxiety will probably experience some of the effects. The difference is the sustained, debilitating nature of the ongoing condition. But you don't get a medal for having it worse than someone else! Why compare?

I wouldn't wish it on anyone, short or long term. But the reality is it's part of life. We know that 1 in 4 adults will have mental health issues at some point in their lives and it seems likely to me that some of those people will be drawn to a forum like this at those times. To me the exact tipping point of when anxiety becomes Anxiety doesn't really matter. If a person is in distress, is the cause really that important?

Just as an aside in case it helps anyone:

I have EMDR for my GAD and it's absolutely amazing. Transformative. With that, alongside medication, and heart rate variability breathing ( and 4,7,8 breathing) my Anxiety is at manageable levels.

I am probably convinced. I don't have anxiety (as the dr is suggesting). I have homelessness looming. Which seems mad with our household income being in the 90k mark. But there you go. We're just stuck in a crazy stressful situation and it keeps spilling out in day to day moments. If we find somewhere to all live together then i know i'll be fine again. Dr doesn't seem convinced. Anxiety is surely somethi g NOT solved so "easily" a condition throughout all aspects of life. Not a reaction to one thing.

PinkPeppers I won't take that personally

And yes I agree CBT is not the best approach for many issues and yes the govt probably likes it coz it's cheap and cheerful but it's worth getting your free 6-20 sessions anyway and seeing how you get on no?