Patterns of Anxiety and Stress Symptoms - Escaping the Grip

The specific symptoms of anxiety (or depression) that present and the situations that trigger those symptoms, no matter what the job occupation, will vary among individuals. However, certain anxiety symptoms that a given personality type will show and the situations that trigger them are predictable.

A person may, for example, feel negative and talk from a very negative “dogged on detail” perspective, seeing a certain issue as worse than the situation merits. This would tend to be the out-of-balance behavior pattern for that person. Whereas another experiencing anxiety may, instead, withdraw, shutdown and avoid people contact; a pattern of behavior for that person when out-of-balance or “out of sorts”.

A person I’ll call Rachel has been struggling with her own over critical attitude and continued complaining, to the point where others close to her have been pointing it out. She is not one I would think of as having a problem with anxiety attacks, or panic attacks, but her struggle is just with managing a global pessimism that sometimes sets in.

Recognize anxiety symptoms particular to the personality type

However, recently she realized this behavior is normally the way anxiety presents for her personality type when out-of-balance from worry or stress. Realizing this has empowered her to, first, better recognize when her anxiety bubbles up, because she would see her negativity and cloak of pessimism start to take hold, and then know what to do to counter it so she can escape its grip and return to a better balance.

Escape route for return to balance – also particular to the personality type

What did Rachel learn she can do to better manage her anxiety and stress? She learned that her type of personality can best return to balance by, first, getting some time alone in pleasant surroundings. Then, she could do something else she enjoys, like some small projects that fit her natural interests and that she can easily accomplish. Those things that really must be done but she’s finding hard to get done, she would best find others who can give support and concrete help to accomplish them, so that her balance can return sooner.

Anxiety symptoms by personality type

The personality type framework I am most familiar with and is most widely known is the Myers-Briggs Personality Type. Following are 8 patterns of anxiety symptoms that most people of each type say are the common behaviors they see in themselves.

Can you tell which type (or row) is most like you by how you behave and respond to stress and anxiety triggers? Determine your signs and symptoms of anxiety by considering the above 8 patterns of Myers-Briggs^® personality type behaviors, looking at

• what triggers your anxiety,
• your behavior when stressed,
• your behavior when gripped by anxiety,
• situations and responses that re-balance you, or bring you back into balance; and,
• the new knowledge that you learn or gain from the experience.

Realizing what triggers anxiety for you, in particular, is a way to grasp what it is that you can do to bring yourself back into balance. You just might find, over time, you can learn to better re-balance yourself, and better manage life’s anxieties and stresses. Nipped in the bud you may even find depression can be avoided more often than not. I encourage you to give this a think, and a try!

^© Ms_Dee all rights reserved

I have collected this information from these sources:

Bourke and Associates, 1900 Preston Rd. 267, PMB-80, Plano, TX 75093, jbourkel@ix.netcom.com, a summary chart compiled from the book In The Grip, by Naomi Quenk, 2000, CPP. Inc.

How Being “In The Grip” Plays Out in Our Behavior, at this site, and Resources and Remedies that Can Help Us Escape "The Grip" at a companion site.