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Anxiety Rash

Written by enlightened solutions on October 11, 2019. Posted in Anxiety Disorder, wellness. Leave a Comment

Our brain tends to communicate with our bodies. When we are feeling anxiety, your body will not only have mental effects but physical effects as well in the form of a rash. It is important to seek professional help for your anxiety to avoid your rash from getting worse.

The Appearance of an Anxiety Rash

Anxiety rashes often look like hives which can appear anywhere on the body. They are generally red and blotchy and can either be really small or take up space on your body. Sometimes, these blotchy spots can form to create even bigger welts. This rash will most likely itch which will make it burn when you touch it. Generally, a single rash tends to go away in 24 hours, but new rashes can form when old rashes disappear. By not getting your anxious thoughts under control, you will continue to develop new rashes.

The Emotion Effects of an Anxiety Rash

It can be embarrassing for a person to have a rash. This is especially true if this occurs suddenly and unexpectedly. It is worse enough that you are trying to deal with your anxiety, but to have others notice these blotchy marks on you can make your anxiety worse. Imagine if you are at a fancy party and a photographer is taking your picture while you have this rash or you work a job that deals with customer interaction. It is too stress-inducing to worry about this rash and trying to hide it.

The Cause of an Anxiety Rash

It is not actually the anxiety that causes the rash but the stress that causes anxiety. Stress makes your body tense and releases cortisol and adrenaline into the bloodstream which leads to skin reactions. Stress can also make your body more prone to reactions if it focuses too much on the stress than protecting your body. If anxiety rashes are not treated, these rashes could turn into worse problems like eczema, psoriasis, acne, or herpes. Stress may not create these conditions, but it definitely will not help them from getting better.

How to Tell This Rash is From Anxiety

Unfortunately, it is hard to tell if the rash you are experiencing is directly linked to anxiety. It could be the result of an allergic reaction to a medication, a lotion you are wearing, or a sweat rash. The best way to know for sure if this rash is caused by anxiety is to eliminate all of the other causes that can come from this rash. If you hardly wear lotion, have no food allergies, or have not been out in the sun in a while, you know those are not the causes. You will know that the rash was brought on by anxiety if the rash starts to go away when you manage your anxiety.

Covering Up Anxiety Rash

Not doing anything about your anxiety will make your rash worse. There are those who prefer to cover up their rash than to admit that they are struggling with a mental illness. People with anxiety will tend to wear long sleeves so that no one can see their rash, only to prevent it from breathing. They may also wash their skin too much which will lead to skin irritation. The anxiety of covering up your rash can actually make it stay with you longer. You need to understand your anxiety and know that a rash will continue to come if you do not control it.

How to Reduce Anxiety Rash

To control your rash, you need to control your anxiety. You first need to decrease your anxiety symptoms to increase your chances of any improvement. You can try treatments like cognitive behavioral therapy, deep breathing, anxiety medications, talking to a therapist, and more. Rashes can take a few days to a week to go away. It may also take some time after your anxiety symptoms go away for your skin to relax. It is important to make sure that you are not scratching these bumps or wearing clothes or lotion that can make irritation worse. There are over-the-counter antihistamines like Benadryl, Zyrtec, Allegra, and Claritin. You can also try applying a cool compress on the areas or take a cool shower.

When to See a Doctor

If your symptoms worsen or last longer than six weeks, it is best to talk to a doctor. Your doctor may prescribe prescription-strength antihistamines, Deltasone, Aczone, Xolair, or other medications that will help treat the redness and swelling. If you experience lip or face swelling, trouble breathing, or wheezing, you need to seek immediate medical attention. Having hard bumps or having them filled with pus can mean that you are suffering from an underlying condition which makes it all the more reason for you to seek a consultation.

It is important to ask yourself if not dealing with your anxiety is worth the physical effects you are experiencing. Anxiety is a treatable mental illness that you can do something about in the office of a therapist or at home. You can try going to therapy so that a therapist can tell you what to do to prevent these rashes from developing again as well as meditation, yoga, exercising regularly, or making time for personal hobbies. Once you discover techniques that work for you, your rash will start to go away. Treating your anxiety will treat your rashes for years to come.

Located on the shore of Southern New Jersey, Enlightened Solutions is a recovery center that uses evidence-based therapies and holistic healing to treat addiction and mental illness. With the opportunity to learn about therapies that are keyed in to healing the human spirit and learning about new stress-reducing techniques centered around a 12 step network, you will ensure a lasting recovery. For more information, please call us at 833-801-LIVE as we are open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Serious Physical Effects Your Body Can Have From Anxiety

Written by enlightened solutions on April 20, 2019. Posted in Mental Health, wellness. Leave a Comment

When people cannot figure out how to manage their chronic anxiety symptoms over time, they experience intense physical side effects to their body. Because they are so stressed all the time, stress hormones are constantly being released. By getting treatment as soon as you realize that you cannot handle your anxiety symptoms alone, you are protecting not only your mental health but physical health as well.

Yawning

Those with anxiety may experience uncontrollable yawning before and after anxiety episodes or could happen randomly. This can be because of having a poor night’s sleep. Anxiety has a tendency to either make us wake up in the middle of the night and not be able to fall back asleep or to hardly be able to fall asleep because of our racing thoughts. Another reason for yawning could be as a response to the stress we are feeling as a way to help us relax. Having a panic attack can make us hyperventilate where we are not getting a full breath. By yawning, you are expanding the rib cage and sending a signal to your brain that you got a full breath. You can prevent this constant yawning by breathing in for four seconds and breathing out for another four seconds.

Muscle Aches

You may also experience random muscle pain that seems to come out of nowhere like muscle tension, soreness, back pain, and headaches. When a person’s fight or flight response is activated, the muscles will naturally contract. The longer you are constantly in that fight or flight response, the longer your muscles will contract as well. How we feel mentally will make us hurt even more physically. We constantly dwell on the pain that we are in that we do not do enough to make it better. We may feel that if our back hurts or we are getting headaches, it is best not to exercise or do any high intensity movement, which will make our muscles hurt more if we do not move them. You can treat this by taking a hot shower to provide instant relief to muscle tension as well as a massage for someone to push out those tense muscles.

Pins and Needles

The feeling of pins and needles is like when your foot falls asleep when you leave it in the same position for a long period of time. The same can happen to you if you experience chronic anxiety. The nerve stops sending signals when we feel stress which causes us to feel numb. Shock waves are sent to the nerves to wake them up. Our body tenses up so much that our body feels like it is in constant terror. You can stop this from happening by breathing in slowly for five to seven seconds and breathing out for the same length of time. Try clenching your fists when you feel this tingling or walk around the room to get the blood flowing in these areas and remind your body to wake up.

Losing Your Voice

You may find that feeling so tense all the time can make you feel like you are losing your voice. This can be because anxiety tends to make acid reflux symptoms worse which can give us a sore throat or loss of voice. When your fight or flight response is activated, we are also produced less saliva in our mouth. It may help for you to try speaking more loudly and more confidently when you enter a room so that you do not have to be so quick to mutter when you speak. It is also more important for you to drink more water to keep your throat hydrated. This will help you from adding further stress to yourself by using water as a source of treatment.

Rashes

Anxiety can also lead to us developing rashes in which we are put in a state of tension, releasing a lot of cortisol and adrenaline into the bloodstream. This can lead to your skin being more sensitive and developing reactions much more easily like acne, psoriasis, herpes, eczema, etc. It is best to try to control your anxiety through medications, deep breathing, cognitive behavioral therapy, etc. If the rash is not too bad, you are wait it out as it should last a few days to a week. You can take medications for rashes like Benadryl or rash reducing medications like hydrocortisone cream. Make sure not to scratch your rash or wear clothes that can irritate your rash worse.

Vertigo

Anxiety has a tendency to make you feel dizzy because of hyperventilation. Our breathing starts to occur unevenly where we eliminate too much carbon dioxide while making you feel like you are not getting enough oxygen. Your blood vessels begin to tighten, develop a rapid heartbeat, and blood flow is reduced towards your brain which leads to dizziness as well as being lightheaded or having trouble thinking. To avoid feeling like you are on a rollercoaster, you should try your best to breathe slowly at all times to avoid hyperventilating.

Having a Cold

When stress hormones are released, your immune system starts to weaken as a result. This can lead to constantly developing the common cold or high blood pressure problems in the long-term. By listening to what a therapist tells you and being in control of your anxiety, you will be able to control your physical health as well.

Located on the shore of Southern New Jersey, Enlightened Solutions is a recovery center that uses evidence-based therapies and holistic healing to treat addiction and mental illness. With the opportunity to learn about therapies that are keyed in to healing the human spirit and learning about new stress reducing techniques centered around a 12 step network, you will be ensure a lasting recovery. For more information, please call us at 833-801-LIVE as we are open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.