Anxiety: Does Someone Have Mental Health Problems If They Experience Anxiety?

Nowadays, there is a strong chance that someone will reach out for support if they have mental and emotional problems, and there are at least two reasons for this. Firstly, it is more acceptable to talk about these kinds of things.

This is not to say that everyone who they come into contact with will support them; what it comes down to is that there are plenty of people who will. Secondly, there is a lot of support that is provided by society.
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The Past

Yet, if one had an inner challenge a few decades ago, they may have just suffered in silence. What they were going through probably wouldn’t have been spoken about in the public eye, and the people around them might not have said anything about it either.

Still, one may have believed that what they were going through was just part of life, which would have stopped them from trying to do anything about it. What this emphasises is that someone can believe that an inner experience is just part of life if no one says otherwise.

A Frame Work

So, now that so much attention is given to mental and emotional health, it can allow one to see if they have a problem. There is then no need for them to just put up with what is taking place within them.

And, through going to see an expert, one can get an understanding of how they should be experiencing life. Said another way, one will find out what it is like to be a well adjusted adult.

One Problem

If one was to reach out for external support, what it could show is that they have anxiety problems. This could something they have struggled with for a few months, or it could go back even further.

Along with this, it could be something that has an effect on one area of their life or it could affect just about every part of it. One will then have done the right thing by going to see someone about it.

Labelled

It might then be only be a matter of time before one is told that they have some kind of disorder. Thus, not only will the person in front of them ‘know’ what is wrong with them, they will also know.

As a result of this, one could end up being put on some kind of medication and/or they could be referred to a behavioural therapist. One can then walk away with the belief that there is something wrong with them and that they will soon be fixed.

An Accurate Assessment

If one has the tendency to be overwhelmed by anxiety when they are around others and/or they feel this way when they are by themselves, for instance, it is going to be clear that something isn’t right. What is going on within them is stopping them from being able to function and something clearly needs to be done about it.

But while some people will experience life in this way, there are going to be others who have a different experience. What some of these people could find is that there are moments when they feel anxious about the future, when they are around others and/or when they try something for the first time, for instance.

A Different Experience

If someone like this was to go and see a professional, they could be told that what they are going through is just part of life and not something they need to be worried about. This would then show that this person understands that there is a reason why human beings have the ability to experience anxiety.

Through bring able to experience anxiety, it can give one the ability to prepare in the right way and it can alert them to danger. Therefore, if one didn’t have the ability to experience anxiety, it would create another set of problems.

Another Outcome

Alternatively, one could be told that what they are going through shows that they have mental health problems. So, once they can no longer experience anxiety, they will be a well adjusted human being.

What they are going through would have been seen as just part of the human condition in the past, but now it will have been pathologised. And, instead of feeling better about themselves, they can come away feeling even worse.

One Extreme to Another

It is then as if we have gone from a world where people’s mental and emotional health wasn’t given enough attention, to a world where it is given far too much attention. Being mentally and emotionally healthy is then not so much about being able to handle the challenges of life and the full emotional spectrum; it is more about feeling good all the time and experiencing endless inner peace.  

One has to wonder how mentally and emotionally healthy the people are who are redefining what it means to be human. Perhaps the people at the top, as well as those who are supporting what they come out with, are completely out of touch with themselves.

Awareness

To be able to feel good all the time or to experience endless inner peace might sound like the ideal, but it would be a pretty sterile existence. The highs are the lows are what give life meaning and they are what allow us to grow and develop, amongst other things.

So the fact that one experiences anxiety shows that they are human; nothing more, nothing less. Nevertheless, if one’s life is defined by anxiety it is going to be vital for them to reach out for the right support.

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Oliver JR Cooper
http://www.oliverjrcooper.co.uk