Coping With Free-Floating Anxiety
Non-specific feelings of tension and a chronic sense of nervousness that seems to come and go for no reason are sometimes referred to as free-floating anxiety. This type of anxiety can be a common symptom of generalized anxiety disorder.
Recognizing anxiety symptoms as they’re happening, learning about the causes of free-floating anxiety, checking your self-talk, and putting a positive spin on negative thoughts can be helpful. Thinking realistically, avoiding reading too much into your anxiety symptoms and taking care of your body can alleviate anxiety as well. Getting help from a licensed mental health professional via traditional or online therapy can be another helpful method of working through anxiety.
This article explores what free-floating anxiety is, reasons why you might experience free-floating anxiety, and options like progressive muscle relaxation techniques and talk therapy to manage it. Keep reading to learn more about this type of anxiety.
Why you may experience free-floating anxiety
If you have a general sense of anxiety with no apparent cause, a good first step can be to see a doctor for a full physical check-up. You can talk to your doctor or primary care provider about your anxious feelings.
Through a check-up, your doctor may be able to determine whether there’s a possibility that the free-floating anxiety you’re experiencing could be due to an underlying physical condition.
Understanding anxiety disorders
Free-floating anxiety can be a symptom of many different types of anxiety, but it’s typically common for people who have generalized anxiety disorder (GAD). Symptoms of generalized anxiety can include:
- Excessive worries
- Irritability
- Restlessness
- Feeling on edge
- Headaches
- Trouble concentrating
- Nausea
- Tiredness
- Sleep problems
- Being easily startled
Free-floating anxiety can also involve physical stress. Physical anxiety symptoms can include muscle tension, sweating, and raised heart rate.
It can be important to note that free-floating anxiety is often different from other anxiety conditions, like panic disorder and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD).
When you have generalized anxiety disorder, you might have unrealistic thoughts, feelings, behaviors, and views regarding problems or situations in your life or the world in general. You might automatically assume the worst anytime you’re unsure of what might happen next.
If you have generalized anxiety disorder, you may find yourself dwelling on negative or anxiety-inducing thoughts, distressing events, or upsetting conversations and interactions.
To determine whether you have generalized anxiety disorder or any anxiety disorder, talking to a licensed mental health provider (or first to your primary healthcare provider) can be an important step on the path to healing. Licensed mental health professionals are generally trained and qualified to make an anxiety diagnosis. They may ask you about your medical, family, and mental health history.
You may discuss your experiences, your anxiety symptoms, and how your thought patterns have affected your life. Speaking openly and honestly with your healthcare provider can help you get the best care for your anxiety. If your doctor or licensed mental health professional diagnoses you with generalized anxiety disorder, you might experience a sense of relief. You may discover that your concern has a name and that there are very effective treatments for managing anxiety disorders.
Recognizing anxiety symptoms
Because free-floating anxiety can seem to come out of nowhere, it can be helpful to learn to recognize that what you’re experiencing may be a symptom of an anxiety disorder. It can be natural to try to find an explanation for uncomfortable or anxious thoughts and feelings. You might find yourself wondering if something disastrous is about to happen, for example.
But just knowing that anxiety can be a symptom of a mental health disorder - and is not likely to be a sign that something disastrous will happen - can help you avoid jumping to negative or upsetting conclusions.
A way to look at why you have free-floating anxiety can be to consider the causes of generalized anxiety disorder.
Family history
In one study, people with generalized anxiety disorder and people who didn’t have an anxiety disorder were interviewed to learn about their family histories. The research suggests that people with generalized anxiety disorder tended to be more likely to have family members who also lived with anxiety, which may suggest a genetic component to anxiety.
Sometimes, the home environment in which you were raised can play a part in anxiety disorders. For instance, if parents have a certain parenting style or show signs of being fearful, anxious, or avoidant when faced with a threat, children raised in such an environment might tend to repeat the same anxious behaviors. Similarly, if parents have a low tolerance for uncertainty, children might learn to react the same way.
Brain structure
Environmental factors
Personal experiences and environmental factors, like traumatic events, significant losses, or abrupt changes, can also contribute to generalized anxiety disorder.
If you are experiencing trauma, support is available. Please see our Get Help Now page for more resources.
Managing free-floating anxiety
Check your self-talk
When you have generalized anxiety disorder, negative self-talk can increase your symptoms of anxiety. If you believe you may be experiencing free-floating anxiety, improving the way you talk to yourself can be helpful. One step you can take to manage your self-talk may be to pay attention to your anxious thoughts and notice any unnecessary negative thinking patterns.
Notice negative or anxious thoughts
If you live with anxiety, you might have negative thoughts that are reality-based, but dwelling on them may not be helpful for your anxiety. There are often sad and distressing occurrences in life. However, many people with generalized anxiety disorder have negative, inaccurate thoughts based on faulty or exaggerated assumptions.
Noticing these negative thoughts and understanding that not all negative thoughts may be true or helpful can empower you to cope with the symptoms of generalized anxiety disorder. It can be possible to be self-aware and learn to exercise more control over your anxious thoughts.
- Will you see someone you enjoy spending time with?
- Will there be food or entertainment that you’d like to experience?
- Will getting out of the house give you a good break from your routine?
- Will you gain a sense of accomplishment from facing this challenge?
Look at the facts
Don’t read too much into your anxiety symptoms
If you have free-floating anxiety, you might worry about what’s causing it. It can be natural to try to make sense of the anxiety you’re experiencing. However, trying to make sense of the symptoms of generalized anxiety disorder can be a fruitless exercise in some cases.
If the anxiety is coming and going for no apparent reason, it can be helpful to remember that these are just symptoms of an anxiety disorder and don’t necessarily indicate that a crisis is about to happen. You might try telling yourself that your negative feelings are just anxiety and aren’t necessarily based on facts or reality. You might also find it helpful to power through or endure the anxiety symptoms until they pass by doing deep breathing, progressive muscle relaxation, listening to music, taking a walk, or even tackling something on your to-do list.
Take care of your body
One more thing you can do to cope with free-floating anxiety may be to take good care of your physical health. Getting enough sleep may help you enjoy a more relaxed state during the day and improve your emotional management.
Consider cognitive-behavioral therapy
Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) is often the first-line treatment for generalized anxiety disorder and many other anxiety conditions. CBT usually focuses on addressing unhelpful, automatic negative thought patterns that can contribute to chronic stress and other challenges. Its goal is normally to adjust thought patterns in order to then adjust feelings and behaviors in a positive and healthy way that may relieve your anxiety symptoms.
Medications can sometimes help with anxiety, although they may not be the right solution for every situation and are generally considered if therapy has not made any significant improvements in your symptoms. A licensed mental healthcare provider can help you find the best course of treatment for your condition. Depending on your situation, it may include anti-anxiety medication, talk therapy, or a combination of both.
Therapy for free-floating anxiety
There can be several ways to start cognitive-behavioral therapy. Visiting your doctor or primary care provider and asking for a referral to a CBT therapist can be a good resource. Another option may be to contact a therapist directly and schedule a consultation.
Online CBT anxiety treatment with a licensed mental health professional can be another excellent option. Online therapy can provide you with the professional expertise to manage your anxiety and other mental health concerns. You can work with a therapist without leaving your home (or from anywhere you have a stable internet connection). Your life and thoughts can become more peaceful and manageable, so please don’t hesitate to get the help you deserve.
According to this study, online CBT can be as effective as traditional in-office CBT, and it can help with a variety of common mental health disorders, including generalized anxiety disorder.
Here are several ways you may manage and decrease free-floating anxiety:
- Recognize your symptoms as they’re happening
- Learn about the causes of anxiety
- Check your self-talk
- Put a positive spin on negative thought patterns
- Don’t read too much into your symptoms
- Take care of your body
- Talk to a friend or loved one
- Get help from a licensed therapist
Takeaway
Free-floating anxiety can be a common symptom of generalized anxiety disorder, and it typically refers to a chronic sense of nervousness and non-specific feelings of tension. Online therapy can be an easy and convenient way to get the help you deserve to tackle your free-floating anxiety. Take the first step toward relief from free-floating anxiety and contact BetterHelp today.What is an example of free-floating anxiety?
“Free-floating anxiety” refers to a general sense of dread without a pinnable source. People often experience free-floating anxiety as a mental health symptom of generalized anxiety (GAD) or other anxiety disorders.
How do I know if my free-floating anxiety is a disorder?
The best way to determine if you should seek professional treatment for your anxiety is to evaluate its impact on your daily life. Do you experience persistent nervousness, muscle tightness, or dread that you can’t get rid of—sometimes even with relaxation techniques? The intrusiveness and length of anxiety levels is one of the key differences between a healthy level of short-term anxiety and a full-blown anxiety condition.
While many anxiety conditions involve unique triggers for their symptoms, generalized anxiety disorder can create an ever-looming sense of unease. Current research suggests that brain chemistry, genetic predisposition, preexisting conditions like depression, and childhood experiences (such as past trauma) may lead to increased risk of GAD. A traumatic experience in childhood can have a rippling effect on a child’s well-being, but there are treatments available from therapists who have experience helping people overcome anxiety.
How do you relieve free-floating anxiety?
Meditation, exercise, nutrition, supplements, and psychotherapy are all potentially effective ways to tackle an anxiety disorder. In particular, mindfulness meditation may help you stay in the present moment, which may lower anxiety levels. In addition, a mental health professional may prescribe psychiatric medication—such as antidepressant and antianxiety medications—if they feel it would be a beneficial add-on.
Can you overcome anxiety?
Yes! With the right mindset and support—including professional support and loved one’s care—many people with lifelong anxiety live prosperous, even symptom-free lives.
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