According to the World Health Organization, 31% of Americans will suffer, at some point in their life, from anxiety; this statistic makes the U.S. the planet’s undisputed worry champion. So who hasn’t worried about family, kids, money, health, aging parents or their job? A certain level of worry is normal. However, worrying is a problem when your extreme worry has no basis and disrupts your life most days. The name for this level of worry is generalized anxiety disorder or GAD.
Here are 7 symptoms, which indicate your worry has moved from typical worry to a level of worry that is General Anxiety Disorder:
Constant Worry. You worry excessively about insignificant issues.
Difficulty Concentrating. You lack the ability to concentrate that affects normal life.
Irritability. Worrying brings out negative emotions and you are easily upset.
Restlessness. Adrenaline floods your system making it impossible to sit still.
Sleep Difficulties. Worry, anxiety and stress makes a restless night routine.
Fatigue. Can’t relax, can’t sleep, you are always tired.
Muscle Tension. Your shoulders, back, jaw, and neck muscles are tense.
For many of us, our days consist of constant worry, with little or no cause, marked with anxiety not tied to any specific threat. Do you feel you live in a state of anxiety that is largely disconnected from the reality of an otherwise normal circumstance? It is easy to find verses in the Bible that talk about not worrying. In Philippians 4:6 Paul writes, “Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be known to God.”
This begs the question, can God use your anxiety for good? Rhett Smith looks at this question in the book The Anxious Christian. Smith uses his own life story and different life experiences to draw a picture for us of the anxieties in his life. He talks about how he began to stutter after his mother died. Because of his stutter, simple things like talking to people or reading in class brought on an anxiety attack. Interestingly, Smith, called into the ministry, notes how God has used his anxiety to drive his life and ministry.
Smith writes, “When we discourage people from safely expressing their anxiety, then we are essentially saying to them that anxiety is a bad emotion …. It communicates to them that perhaps something is wrong with their Christian faith.” Smith points out that God can use anxiety to draw us closer to him, to help us recognize our need and limitations and to help us look to the One who is sufficient. Even Jesus was anxious. In the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus was so anxious about the following day he literally sweated blood. What did Jesus do? Spending time in prayer and in open communication with his Father, Jesus asked for help.
Right now you may be thinking, really, anxiety can be good? What a relief, tell me more! I never thought of my feeling anxious as a useful emotion.
Yes, your anxiety can move you towards accomplishing or overcoming something in a positive way. Examine your anxiety. Your anxiety can become the catalyst for change and growth in your life.
God is always shaping us for his use. The Lord told Jeremiah to “go down to the potter’s house,” and as he walks in Jeremiah sees the potter working at his wheel. The potter is sitting at his wheel with the clay in his hands, in the continual act of shaping the clay as seemed best to the potter. (Jeremiah18: 1-6) Whatever fears and anxieties we have, whatever things we think impair us, the good news is that God has us in His hands. The key is to be open to allowing change into our life, not to allow our anxieties to put us in a box and not to allow our anxieties to stop us from growing.
And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. Romans 8:28
About Cheryl & Dennis Gowin
Cheryl Gowin, Counselor and Dennis Gowin, Director of Discovery Counseling Center. Contact us with your feedback, comments, issues or questions at 434-808-2426 or dgowin@discoverycounseling.org.
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