As a boy I had a family that was always 'nervous'. We used that word to cover most feelings of tension or anything really that involved something that took us away from the rare (for us) feeling of being relaxed. In fact I was never relaxed, I was “bored”.
As I grew older in my twenties I used to describe myself to others as a nervous character. That word nervous never left my self description until I was in my 40’s. I’m now 60yo. In the last 15 years I’ve realised I needed to divide up my nervous world into categories of the other feelings- to correct the error of everything being under the nervous umbrella.
Buying a new car in my twenties and I’d mistake my excitement for nerves. You get the picture. This is likely the programming from my family. So I’m wondering how many people out there, members like you, have described anxiety for something else? I’m wondering, if some of us are labelling anxiety when it could be worry or excess concern or excitement maybe but if it isn’t anxiety then what could it be?.
Mental health professionals of course are the ones for a correct diagnosis. I’m concerned here for the readers that haven’t had a diagnosis and are curious. Or those that have had diagnosis and if they think its anxiety and some of it isnt so, it might be worth conveying this to your therapist. Could you be feeling something other than bad nerves or anxiety.
For me there is only a fine line between all of these feelings but that just could be me and my upbringing.
Can you separate them? Do you get them mixed up? Or is there a definite line between all of these feelings in your opinion?
Tony WK
