Dealing with anxiety is something that isn’t talked about as often as it should. People are incredulous as to how people can be anxious about something as simple as popping out to the store to buy a birthday present for someone. But between leaving the house and getting back, there’s a world of questions and fear that someone with anxiety needs to conquer.
While suffering from anxiety has its obvious downsides, there is a silver lining – or rather five. Often, people who are constantly dealing with anxiety have a heightened sense of perception than those that don’t. That means they can see things that most people can’t.
Living With Anxiety
Here are five positive things that your anxiety does for you.
1. Sensing Other People’s Energy
People who are anxious often have a gut feeling about people that can determine whether they have a positive energy or a negative energy. If they find that they are comfortable with someone, it’s because they carry positive energy. On the other hand, if they get ‘bad vibes’ from someone, chances are they’re harboring some negative energy of some kind.
2. Increased Empathy
Struggling with anxiety also means struggling with emotions. This gives people with anxiety a better understanding of their feelings, and more importantly the feelings of others. This level of empathy isn’t very common in those who don’t have to confront their emotions on a day to day basis, and it can help those with anxiety better connect with others.
When you spend a large portion of your time thinking about the worst outcomes of decisions, you’re better able to recognize potential dangers. A study published in the European Journal of Psychology found that people who suffer from anxiety are better able to detect danger and respond to it [2].
4. Increased IQ
As we just mentioned, people with anxiety spend a lot of time over analyzing situations and every possible outcome. Researchers from SUNY Downstate Medical Centre in New York found that people with anxiety tend to have higher IQs than other people, on average [3].
5. Lie Detectors
Those dealing with high levels of anxiety are extremely cautious as a result. More often than not, they can see right through a lie. If something doesn’t make sense to them, or it doesn’t add up, they’ll be one of the first people to call it out.
Still not sure what anxiety is or what it means to deal with it? Here’s a short video you can watch that illustrates what it’s like living with anxiety.
