9 rare symptoms of anxiety that often go unnoticed

Some symptoms of anxiety often go unnoticed. Under certain circumstances, anxiety can be considered normal; However, it can become a mental health problem when it becomes frequent, overwhelming, and causes significant clinical distress.

The most recognized and common symptoms of anxiety are nervousness, the feeling of imminent danger, insomnia, increased heart rate, tremors, sweating, rapid breathing and worries. But, there are other less common and rare ones that may go unnoticed. Let’s see what they are.

1. Bitter or metallic taste in the mouth

One of the rare symptoms of anxiety is a persistent metallic taste in the mouth. Science still does not know with certainty the cause of this phenomenon, but it is believed that it is due to dryness and reduced saliva levels in the mouth as a result of the physiological activation of anxiety.

In 2017, a study found that anxiety decreases saliva secretion and causes xerostomia (dryness under normal salivation conditions).

These taste changes They may also be the consequence of the activation of chemical substances that the body releases in response to a threatening situation. For example, it is known that norepinephrine can temporarily change taste receptors in the mouth.

2. Stomach problems

Anxiety has a link to digestive problems. In fact, Functional disorders of the digestive system, such as irritable bowel syndrome, are frequently associated with disorders such as anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder. In research it was found that people with this syndrome have higher levels of anxiety, depression and anguish.

The physiological activation of anxiety, in association with the stress it generates, can affect the production and release of gastric acid, necessary to digest and break down food. The consequence may be a hemorrhagic or erosive gastropathy, known as stress gastritis.

Irritable bowel syndrome is sometimes related to high levels of anxiety.

3. Frequent forgetfulness

Worry and obsessive thoughts typical of anxiety can cause forgetfulness because the information is not encoded well due to dispersed attention. These forgetfulness can also be caused by poor consolidation of information, due to lack of sleep or insomnia.

Lack of concentration is another symptom of anxiety that goes unnoticed. This symptom is a product of the person’s self-absorption in their worries and rumination of their ideas. The exclusive focus of attention on the object of anxiety interferes with the person’s ability to realize it.

4. Recurring nightmares

Dreams have a deep connection with the experiences that an anxious person lives, they reflect the way in which he experiences his relationship with the world. The recurring feeling of the imminence of a threat can turn into nightmares, since it is the only thing that is gravitating in the person’s life.

Many repressed emotions, fears, anxiety and worries are expressed through nightmares. that disturb the anxious. This type of distressing dream persists over and over again to maintain the state of alert that the person has activated as a result of the perception of a threat.

5. Skin conditions

Skin reactions may be due to increased levels of cortisol and adrenaline. It has been found that stress associated with cortisol can affect, reveal or even exacerbate a number of skin disorders, such as psoriasis, atopic dermatitis, pruritus, alopecia areata, lichen planus, seborrheic dermatitis, rosacea or hives.

Human beings are not designed to always be alert. This fight or flight mode, caused by anxiety, can have serious negative effects on the body. Additionally, the continued release of chemicals to maintain this state can affect the skin.

6. Repeated yawns

Another rare anxiety symptom that goes unnoticed is yawning. In a study at Bournemouth University, a direct relationship was found between the frequency of yawning and the production of cortisol, the stress hormone that is released in threatening situations.

The greater the number of yawns, the greater the amount of cortisol. This is because cortisol increases body temperature and yawning helps lower it.

These yawns also occur as a result of insomnia or sleep problems that the person with anxiety has. By not sleeping well, it is normal to spend the day drowsy, which is even more activated by yawning.

7. Cold feet

Cold temperature of the lower extremities is a symptom that is rarely identified with anxiety, although it can be.

This phenomenon occurs because blood tends to accumulate in the organs of the torso. When this happens, the extremities, especially the feet, receive less blood and, therefore, their temperature drops.

People in a state of continuous alert may have cold feet for no apparent reason.

8. Impulsive behaviors

Another rare symptom of anxiety is impulsive behaviors. Anxious people feel their emotions are overwhelming, which causes them to act strangely.

Thus, these individuals can end up saying or doing things without thinking them through well. These impulsive attitudes or compulsive they end up becoming a coping strategy poorly adaptive to control other symptoms of anxiety.

9. Changes in eating habits

Anxiety is associated with hunger and excessive food consumption (disinhibition), This was demonstrated by a study published in Nature. The researchers maintain, in line with what other research has been demonstrating, that uninhibited food consumption could be a coping strategy to regulate negative emotions and anxiety.

In another investigation that sought to test the relationship between anxiety and caloric intake, it was found that In women, higher anxiety is associated with higher BMI (body mass index), increased caloric intake, increased consumption of high-fat foods, and persistent activation due to fattening food cues after a meal.

Rare symptoms of anxiety can range from behavioral to cognitive patterns that not only affect how a person relates to the world, but also how they relate to themselves through healthy eating and sleeping habits.

Which of these symptoms do you have when you are anxious? Did you know they were associated with anxiety?

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