It may sometimes be difficult to understand the difference between stress and anxiety. When you look at the words Stress and Anxiety, don’t they look similar to us? Have you found yourself using them interchangeably? Both are emotional responses to challenging or overwhelming situations, however, as similar as they may seem, they are quite different from each other.
What is Stress?
When defining the various emotional states, stress is viewed as a natural response of our body to a change in circumstance or experiences of threat in our lives. You may undergo stress due to deadlines, conflicts or life transitions which leads to each person responding to them. One key difference between stress and anxiety is that we may feel stressed when the pressures outweigh the resources we have to cope up with a situation. Imagine a weighing scale, in which one side is tipped down: you can think of this as the pressures that outweigh your resources to cope.
What is Anxiety?
Anxiety is characterized by excessive worry that persists even without the presence of a stressor. The symptoms of stress and anxiety are often similar like weariness, tense muscles, etc. and they both can be experienced physiologically, emotionally, or psychologically.
While we observe the two, we may sometimes feel that they are almost the same due to their negative impact on your overall well-being like disturbances in sleep, health concerns, eliciting concerns in concentrating among others.
Difference between Stress and Anxiety
This is where the questions pops into our mind: is there a difference between stress and anxiety? The answer is Yes. Stress and anxiety are interrelated emotional responses that share somewhat similar signs or symptoms, however there is a difference between stress and anxiety, as they may differ in causes, duration, intensity and even the required treatment plan.
This makes it important to shed light on the distinctions so that you can effectively understand the difference between stress and anxiety and manage these emotions. The following are ways that can help you know the difference between stress and anxiety:
External Trigger vs Internal Trigger
Stress is viewed as a response triggered by external events that one sees as overwhelming, challenging or threatful, for instance, a long list of tasks that are pending, too many responsibilities etc. However, anxiety is typically a reaction to stress where it is more internal and reflects your perceptions or ideas about how you can’t handle different life situations or how you worry about not having control over circumstances or events that occur in your life.
Nature Of Trigger
Another point of difference between stress and anxiety is that stress can be more tangible in nature, where the presence of a stressor can be identified more easily. In the case of anxiety, it is more ambiguous in nature, where despite the absence or presence of a stimulus, one feels worried, distressed, overwhelmed, restless (among others) for a consistently longer duration.
Duration
It can be noticed that stress has a nature of being short-term and once the concern is resolved, you can notice the stress reducing. On the contrary, anxiety is more persistent in nature where it is present for a longer duration despite the concern being resolved. It may last over days, weeks, months or even years as it is dependent on our perception, negative thought process, irrational beliefs among others.
Sequence
Oftentimes, you can even notice that when stress lingers for a longer duration, it may give rise to your anxiety as well. Prolonged stress can be the trigger of experiencing anxiety. For instance, you may feel stressed about your performance in different settings and if it tends to persist, it can internalize and turn into anxiety where there is a sense of worry in terms of performing well enough in every setting or even future events even though they have not happened.
Symptoms
The symptoms of stress and anxiety may seem similar where you may experience increased heartbeat, shallow breathing/breathlessness, overwhelming thoughts, mood fluctuations ranging from anger to unhappiness, loneliness, nausea, dizziness, gastric concerns, etc. In those lines, aspects that help in knowing the difference between stress and anxiety is the presence of certain specific symptoms where you may experience an acute feeling of anxiety, a constant feeling of dread and worry, immense restlessness, panic and anxiety attacks, brain fog, etc.
Symptoms of Stress and Anxiety
While there is a clear difference between stress and anxiety that is present, the symptoms you may undergo for these emotional states are a bit similar.
As mentioned before, stress and anxiety can be experienced through:
- Increase in heartbeat
- Palpitations
- Breathlessness
- Mood fluctuations
- Nausea
- Dizziness
- Headaches
- Lack of Concentration
- Lack of Attention
The main difference between stress and anxiety in symptoms lies in the intensity and duration of symptoms like constant fear, panic attacks, anxiety attacks, and constant heaviness, among others.
Coping Strategies or Treatment for Stress and Anxiety
It is not uncommon to encounter stress and anxiety now and again, and this makes it important for you to explore what can be helpful to work through them by using healthy strategies.
Relaxation Techniques:
The most researched and go to strategy to help regulate and work through various uncomfortable emotions are relaxation techniques. The relaxation techniques include a range of styles like deep breathing, mindfulness, visualization, muscle relaxation, practicing yoga and tai-chi among others.
Finding your own physical activity:
Any form of movement like exercise, walking, running, Zumba, dance, jogging, swimming etc. that you feel more comfortable with, can be included in your day-to-day activities.
Journaling:
It is another powerful tool for redirecting/channelizing intense and overwhelming emotions to healthy, and comforting spaces. It is a type of self-talk and expression that can prompt self-awareness. You can bring creativity to journaling spaces by converting it into a video/audio recording, art piece, poem, lyrics or even a story.
Developing a self-care routine and indulging in hobbies:
Taking care of oneself is very necessary as it helps us practice control over things in our hands. Self-care activities like focusing on health, maintaining boundaries, socializing, or even having a basic routine are something that contribute to maintaining your health and wellness. It can be helpful to go back to activities of your liking due to the soothing experience it can provide you, such as listening to music or podcasts, going into your garden etc.
Creating a healthy lifestyle:
Maintaining and formulating a healthy lifestyle becomes crucial for having stability during the chaos of emotions, as you initially start compromising on this. Maintaining a healthy diet, getting enough sleep, limiting consumption to caffeine, alcohol, substance, and smoking can be helpful.
Seeking Support:
It is important to stay connected with people who can comfort you like friends and family members, and even reaching out to a therapist. They can offer spaces where your concerns are addressed, and emotional support is provided.
Medications:
If you are undergoing intense distress, a doctor may prescribe medications to help manage anxiousness or stress. This is especially considered when symptoms are intense and have been posing significant challenges in our lives.
While coping through your discomfort with the help of these strategies, it is important for you to remind yourselves that one technique may work for some and may not be efficient for another, which is completely okay! Working through emotional concerns is a very personalized journey and you might want to focus on what works the best for you. It is important for you to explore different strategies and find ones that resonate.
When to seek professional help?
Even after practicing a few techniques from your end, if you find yourself stuck with multiple stressors or constant worry, you could benefit from some professional therapy and treatment. You can reach out for professional Counselling for several scenarios, such as:
- When you feel that your everyday activities or other areas of life like relationships, work, social life, health etc. are being impacted
- There is noticeable change in your eating and sleeping habits
- You experienced a traumatic event which keeps coming to the forefront even today
- There is a presence of other mental health concerns as well like depression, substance abuse etc., and
- Lastly, if you feel that you have been experiencing thoughts of hurting yourself
Therapy can help you gain knowledge of useful strategies for managing stress, for coping with stress and anxiety, and for changing your patterns of thought and behaviour that can be responsible for your well-being. The best gift therapy can give you are effective tools that you may require to maintain good mental health, irrespective of the intensity with which you experience them.
Now that you know what the difference between stress and anxiety looks like, it might be helpful for you to be aware of what you experience and be in sync with your mind and body. Working through emotional concerns is a very personalized journey and you might want to focus on what works best for you. It is important for you to explore different strategies and find ones that resonate with you!