24/7 anxiety symptoms, but not anxious anymore

I just registered here, so hello everyone!
Just a quick summary of me; 20 year old boy from Denmark, erm.. Yeah I guess that's about it.
Anyways, I've been wondering about something for a while.
I couple of months ago I had a pretty dark period including depression, stress, panic/anxiety attacks and general anxiety.. Alot.
But all that's gone now, pretty much. Ofcourse I still get some anxiety once in a while, I know that'll never go away.
And ofcourse I feel the other things just waiting to drag me back in again the second I let them, but that's not going to happen.
Oh yeah, back on topic. As I said, I very rarely feel anxious anymore but I still have the symptoms, and it seems to be getting worse.
If I'm awake, I have a lump in my throat. Not the "about to cry lump" more like "I just swallowed a golf ball" lump.
No matter what I do it won't go away. Well, unless I'm doing something I'm really focused on, or if I'm drunk.
It's always there, I've almost gotten used to that, but sometimes it feels like it's growing or something, so I get really focused on it,
and then from the physical symptoms, actual anxiety comes.

Another thing is that ever since the lump in the throat showed up, I'm having a hard time swallowing properly.
Like, I can eat and drink etc. but if it's just saliva, some of it will stay in the back of my throat so I have to hack it up again etc. - Yeah I know, pretty yummy.
Last thing now, ever since the lump came, there has been a clicking sound when I swallow.
I have to kinda look up and stretch my throat to do so it doesn't click. Works mostly.
It doesn't hurt but it's really uncomfortable to feel and hear. It also feels like my throat is constantly "tired" from focusing so much on swallowing properly.

My question here ofcourse being if it is normal to have anxiety symptoms even though you're not anxious in any way.

If you actually read through it all, thank you. I know it's quite a lot, but there's no short way there ^^
Hope you guys have some answers!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by abrikos

I just registered here, so hello everyone!
Just a quick summary of me; 20 year old boy from Denmark, erm.. Yeah I guess that's about it.
Anyways, I've been wondering about something for a while.
I couple of months ago I had a pretty dark period including depression, stress, panic/anxiety attacks and general anxiety.. Alot.
But all that's gone now, pretty much. Ofcourse I still get some anxiety once in a while, I know that'll never go away.
And ofcourse I feel the other things just waiting to drag me back in again the second I let them, but that's not going to happen.
Oh yeah, back on topic. As I said, I very rarely feel anxious anymore but I still have the symptoms, and it seems to be getting worse.
If I'm awake, I have a lump in my throat. Not the "about to cry lump" more like "I just swallowed a golf ball" lump.
No matter what I do it won't go away. Well, unless I'm doing something I'm really focused on, or if I'm drunk.
It's always there, I've almost gotten used to that, but sometimes it feels like it's growing or something, so I get really focused on it,
and then from the physical symptoms, actual anxiety comes.

Another thing is that ever since the lump in the throat showed up, I'm having a hard time swallowing properly.
Like, I can eat and drink etc. but if it's just saliva, some of it will stay in the back of my throat so I have to hack it up again etc. - Yeah I know, pretty yummy.
Last thing now, ever since the lump came, there has been a clicking sound when I swallow.
I have to kinda look up and stretch my throat to do so it doesn't click. Works mostly.
It doesn't hurt but it's really uncomfortable to feel and hear. It also feels like my throat is constantly "tired" from focusing so much on swallowing properly.

My question here ofcourse being if it is normal to have anxiety symptoms even though you're not anxious in any way.

If you actually read through it all, thank you. I know it's quite a lot, but there's no short way there ^^
Hope you guys have some answers!

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Welcome to the forum!

Denmark, huh? We have a guy here, Professer DeReal, that lives in Sweeden

You two should have a debate about who lives in the country with the most beautiful people.

But back to things. You don't need me to tell you what you already know

Symptoms without anxiety. Yes. Because you are anxious.

Even though you may not feel all jacked up, your mind has been doing it long enough that it believes that is how it wants to work.

I had a pit in my stomach for so long. Even when I didn't feel anxious, it was there. Turning and twisting and making life just grand.

And like you, if I was ally focused on something, or drank a bit, it would go away. That should tell you a lot.

Alcohol works on the same part of your brain as a benzo so who can blame people that self medicate. Not a good idea but people will do anything to feel normal for a while.

I know I did it for quite a while and it was my sanity until I got on a AD and that helped immensely

Someone wrote yesterday about that damn lump in the throat. Very normal anxiety symptom.

If you have a concern and since its been so long since you first noticed it, a trip to the GP couldn't hurt and it would give you some piece of mind.

They will tell you it's anxiety related or they can't find anything wrong. Then it will probably stop.

The great news is that Anxiety is diverse! That son of a bitch will create a new symptom for you to worry about unless you stop treating your anxiety symptoms as a real danger

Where you are with this, it will be short lived if you ch age your thought habits

I've never had the lump in my throat symptom, but I've definitely still had other anxiety symptoms even when I feel completely relaxed. The most common one of these for me is depersonalisation/derealisation - I just feel spaced out and not with it. Yet am very calm inside.

My take on it is that eventually you get used to the anxiety feeling and therefor not so on edge, but the other symptoms it triggers still appear. This can then lead to health anxiety because you don't really feel anxious but don't feel quite right and you start to think something is wrong.

Anxiety is very good at tricking you and getting you to think negative and unrealistic things, you then believe they must be true.

It's not easy, but you must just let it be and carry on with your day. When you stop drawing your attention to it and stop caring if it is there it does go. There more you dwell on it the more it will be there. There is nothing wrong, just general anxiety.

If you need to work out what is causing you too feel anxious without knowing it writing down your thoughts and feeling often helps pinpoint the underlying cause. I always used to keep a note pad and pen with me at all times. I'd stop what I was doing, get it out, then replace the negative thinking with positive thoughts, believe 100% this was the truth and not my anxious ones.

It helped me no end.

Hugo