6 Things People With High Anxiety Who Constantly Overthink Do Without Even Realizing It
If you do any of these things and wonder why, anxiety may be the answer.
GaudiLab | Canva Feeling anxiety from time to time is considered normal. But if you suffer from anxiety attacks too often, it could mean you are getting a more severe form of anxiety. According to the professional opinion of Jonathon Sikorski, Ph.D., an assistant professor of psychiatry at the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha, “Typically, when I hear people talk about high-functioning anxiety, it means they may have a lot of features of an anxiety disorder without the actual diagnosis.
Debra Kissen, Ph.D., co-chair of the public education committee for the Anxiety and Depression Association of America, also shares her view on high-functioning anxiety: “Many people are walking around with extremely high levels of anxiety that are near meeting the criteria for anxiety disorders, but they’re white-knuckling their way through it. They’re still waking up. They’re still getting themselves to work.”
People affected by high-functioning anxiety are not classified as patients who suffer from a real disorder. However, the symptoms and problems they have are typical of other officially acknowledged anxiety disorders.
Unfortunately, it is tough to tell what’s a reasonable amount of anxiety and when someone’s anxiety has become as dangerous as transforming into a mental disorder, especially if this person is still trying to live their ordinary life. That’s why we consulted the professional opinion of different experts and outlined 6 behavioral warning signs that might reveal you or your loved ones suffer from high-functioning anxiety.
Here are 6 things people with high anxiety who constantly overthink do without even realizing it:
1. Worry
CrizzyStudio / Shutterstock
Worry is mainly a cognitive process — the stream of repetitive, negative thoughts about what could go wrong. (What if I fail? What if they get hurt? What if this never ends?) Worrying all the time could be a sign of anxiety, and the worst part of all is that it could lead to both mental and physical draining.
According to Courtney Bradford, an L.A. psychologist: “Feeling worried all the time is emotionally exhausting and could decrease your capability of doing different tasks throughout the day. The tiredness could be so strong that you might become unable to do anything apart from lying in bed.”
2. Obsess over details
Yuri A / Shutterstock
According to psychotherapist Dr. Virginia Marie Love, Ph.D., “high-functioning anxiety individuals are often extremely detail-oriented.” That is a positive trait unless it comes to an extreme, because it could quickly grow into perfectionism, which is irritating, exhausting, and impossible to uphold.
What's interesting is that this tendency often comes from a place of caring deeply and wanting to do things well. People who overthink details usually have high standards and a genuine investment in their outcomes. They're often the ones who remember important specifics, anticipate potential issues, and bring thoroughness to their tasks.
3. Keep moving
buritora / Shutterstock
One of the symptoms of high-functioning anxiety is the inability to rest. It could lead to feeling extremely exhausted and emotionally drained. Here is what psychotherapist Kelly Bos says about this: “Your mind doesn’t shut off, and you always feel like you should be doing something.”
The difficulty with resting often stems from the same qualities that make someone effective during active hours. Your mind might resist rest because it feels like there's always something worth thinking about, some problem worth solving, or some preparation that could be done for tomorrow.
4. Struggle to fall asleep
Marcos Mesa Sam Wordley / Shutterstock
Although this is not always the case, tossing and turning in bed and not falling asleep because you feel anxious and worried could be a telltale sign of high-functioning anxiety. Here is the professional opinion of clinical psychologist Dr. Carla Marie Manly: “When you internalize anxiety and function well during the day, the anxiety may come out in the form of sleep disturbance.”
For people who think deeply, lying in bed can sometimes feel like sitting in a quiet library with a racing mind (the environment says "rest," but your thoughts are saying "now we can finally focus without distractions!") This is especially common for those who spend their days responding to external demands and find that bedtime is when their internal world finally gets attention.
5. Ignore physical pain
fizkes / Shutterstock
Anxiety is dangerous not only for mental health, but it can also affect your body and lead to persistent physical pain. According to Dr. Bella Williams, it usually involves pain in the area of the shoulders and an unpleasant and tight feeling in the stomach.
When you're used to living in your head, the body can start to feel like a separate system rather than an integrated part of your whole self. Physical sensations might register, but they don't get the same priority as mental tasks. It's almost like having two different operating systems that don't always communicate effectively.
6. Need to be in control
fizkes / Shutterstock
Feeling helpless is typical of people who suffer from anxiety — that’s why the ones who are affected by high-functioning anxiety often feel the need to be in control of whatever they are doing. Laura Peterson, a certified psychotherapist, also confirms that “a symptom that could reveal high functioning anxiety is the constant need to control what is going on.
On top of that, people suffering from it try to decrease the discomfort their condition causes by controlling activities, including simple everyday duties like tidying, for example, but also more important accomplishments like achieving different aims in life.”
Additionally, according to a study on this issue, anxiety could have a seriously negative influence on memory, reasoning, and cognition. Lastly, it is essential to remind all our readers that although this form of anxiety is not officially recognized as a disorder, if it is not treated, there is a high chance that the person suffering from it will develop other severe mental conditions.
On top of that, we shouldn’t forget that the stress caused by anxiety could have extremely negative consequences for the overall well-being of the person affected by it.
Maria Hakki is a writer and translator. She has been featured in I Heart Intelligence, Australian National Review, and more.
