Anxiety disorders in successful people

Over 10 years of establishing his own company, Mr. Hoang has experienced many ups and downs. When the business grew and opened more branches, he had to leave his family and travel more for work, which was when he felt lonely and suffered silently. “You must always appear strong and prove your worth, every day you have to fight with work,” the man explained, but in reality every night he cannot sleep well, living in a feeling of fatigue. .

Over time, he starved himself, locked himself in the dark, and finally got drunk before feeling better. “I felt empty, wanted to give up everything,” Hoang said, but he never confided in anyone. This prolonged condition negatively affected his health. He often suffered from palpitations, forgetfulness, digestive disorders, and frequent illness.

Meanwhile, Huyen Trang, 37 years old, is a KOL (key opinion leader), who did not leave her room for 6 days and always asked herself: “Do I want to live anymore?”. She believes that darkness is part of her living space because it makes her feel comfortable and not alone. There are days when Trang just sits all day, using a chair as a bed, turning on the TV but not watching.

“People always see me as happy and cheerful, but inside I’m actually gloomy,” Trang said. The single woman tried to work to ease her loneliness, but her mental state became worse and worse. She gradually had negative thoughts like wanting to give up, avoid, and not want to work.

Both were diagnosed with anxiety disorders by a psychologist. Dr. Tran Thi Hong Thu, Deputy Director of Mai Huong Daytime Psychiatric Hospital, said that successful people or those in high positions have very little time to take care of themselves, their families or have quiet moments – which leads to burnout. The stress of a successful person can actually cause mental illness episodes.

The hallmark signs of anxiety disorders include feeling nervous and having difficulty concentrating. They are constantly concerned about what others say and obsess about what others think of them. They then try to please others, fearing that they will upset them. This state may not be obvious, and can easily be hidden behind their neat appearance.

“For many different reasons, some people may continue to appear ‘fine’ while in reality they still feel like they are ‘drowning’ inside,” Ms. Thu said.

Other symptoms include overthinking and overanalyzing, self-doubt, comparative thinking, racing thoughts, inability to relax, and being overly detail-oriented. From there, you may experience health problems such as diarrhea, constipation, nausea, and vomiting; frequent headaches, body aches, brain fog, excessive sweating, muscle tension, heart palpitations, difficulty sleeping, and numbness in the limbs.

In fact, successful people often face a lot of pressure. They have to brace themselves to cope with the feeling of loneliness in their own world, which is the main cause of anxiety disorders. In addition, anxiety disorders can originate from childhood experiences, untreated psychological trauma affecting health, according to Master of Psychology Nguyen Thi Huong Lan, Vietnam Happiness Academy.

The danger is that these people have difficulty asking for mental health support. The group of people who appear to be excellent have to work harder, and are under more pressure, as those behind them constantly push them forward. “Many people suffer from extreme anxiety in silence because they fear that people will see them as failures if they are not strong or do not achieve,” Lan said.

Experts see stress as an inevitable part of modern life. It is important to recognize that you have a problem and evaluate this situation in a positive light. Everyone should learn and practice coping skills to help balance their psychology, avoid chronic stress, which is a high risk for other serious diseases.

The skills recommended by doctors are meditation, exercise such as jogging, eating healthy, finding hobbies, meeting friends, and volunteering. In severe cases, you should see a psychiatrist for treatment with medication and behavioral therapy (CBT).

“Being listened to, shared and understood will help people with hidden depression get rid of their psychological burden, thereby finding many positive solutions for themselves,” said Dr. Thu.