Stress and anxiety are normal parts of our lives, and are often helpful to let us know when something is happening around us. It’s common to feel stress and some anxiety before tests, presentations, social situations, and many other life events. This often helps to motivate us, but at times the stress and anxiety can feel overwhelming and actually impair our ability to perform.

For example, the night before an exam you might feel stressed and anxious, may not sleep as well as typical for you, and may think a lot about the exam. When you start the test you may feel nervous and stressed, and often a little anxiety will keep you on your toes to perform. If you find, however, that you are unable to focus, you ‘blank-out’, or you experience several physical symptoms of stress or anxiety, you may want to assess your coping strategies. It is likely that you could benefit from improving your coping skills if your stress or anxiety are interfering with your work, academic successes, or social lives. There are many ways to address problematic stress and anxiety, always keeping in mind that the goal is never to eliminate them.

A person experiencing normal anxiety will likely feel a vague, unpleasant sense of apprehension. This is usually accompanied by physical symptoms, such as headache, perspiration, heart palpitations, chest tightness, or stomachache. Restlessness is also common.

Excessive anxiety is evident when the anxiety is out of proportion with the real threat involved. The excessive anxiety is purposeless and does not go away once the situation is over.  Anxiety disorders are even more serious and arise without an obvious irritant. They can be extremely debilitating and have a very negative impact on daily functioning.