Hello Kelcrow and Shellouise
Welcome to the Beyond Blue Forum, it's good to see you here.
I think Shellouise has nailed the answer, we are all different and react in different ways to anxiety. In fact we all have different anxieties, just to make it more difficult. It really is a matter of self observation. When I get a pain in my chest is it indigestion, a heart attack, anxiety, or something completely different. Many paramedics have been called out to attend someone having a panic attack because they thought it was a heart attack.
In general I think there is an unease which alerts us to feeling something is amiss. It's at this stage we need to make a mental inventory of what is happening around us. I am in a crowded room and feel I can't breathe? Maybe it's anxiety. I have stomach cramps. Was it last night's prawns or am I anxious?
I found I could distinguish between physical symptoms relating to an illness or physical reaction to something such as the prawns, and the symptoms I experience because of anxiety, even when they are similar. We need to keep this information and add to it in order to make the right diagnosis. It does get easier to spot the cause of our symptoms.
I have only been caught out once. I was waiting to see my GP and started to shake. My GP arrived in the reception area, saw what was happening and took me into the treatment room to give me oxygen because she thought it was a panic attack. Later we realised it was a reaction to medication. So you cannot always pick it. The trick is never to ignore these warning signs. Keep a mental inventory of cause and effect and act in line with your own knowledge.
The second part of that is not to allow others to tell you what is wrong with you. So comments like, "Why are you upset about that, it's nothing", are not valid. You know your own body, or you will get to know your body, and can make decisions based on that knowledge.
I hope that helps.
Mary
