What Anxiety Feels Like (From Someone Who Lives with It)

Inside the Mind of Someone Who Overthinks Everything

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Introduction: The Unseen Conflict Anxiety isn’t just worrying too much.

It’s not just overthinking. It’s a constant battle happening inside my mind — a war between logic and fear, between reality and the worst-case scenarios I can’t stop playing on repeat.
Until I started living with anxiety every day, I thought it was something I could just ignore. I now understand that anxiety can be unpredictable. On occasion, it only whispers in the background. On other days, a storm completely consumes my thoughts. If you’ve never experienced it, you might wonder: What does anxiety really feel like? Let me take you inside my world.

1. Anxiety Is Like Being Submerged in Water

Imagine you’re swimming, and suddenly, you start sinking. You know you should be able to float, but the water pulls you down no matter how hard you try. Your heart races, your breathing becomes shallow, and panic spreads through your body.
However, you are not in the water. You are present at a meeting. or curled up in bed. Or walking down the street. Although your brain tells you otherwise, there is actually nothing wrong…