It occurred to me the other day that young people rarely get described as 'shy' anymore. 'Anxious' is more common now.
Interestingly it was common to hear "they're shy, but they'll grow out of it". I don't think the same is ever said about anxious people (and I say this as someone who was very shy/socially anxious as a teen and 'grew out of it').
I'm thankful I struggled with this at a time when medications were not easily available or readily prescribed.
Not everyone "grew out of being shy". I know quite shy adults and shy old people. I also know anxious adults and old people. I kind of wish they had treatment back then, because some aspects of my life would be better if they would get therapy. Not having names for issues does not help at all. It just makes it hard to impossible to describe to others what is going on and get reasonable advice. And in the first place, it makes it hard to impossible to know it does not have to be that way.
Literally from the article:
> researchers found that the prevalence rate of neurological diseases and disorders has remained stable over time, with only a 0.2% decrease between 1990 and 2021. Over the same period, deaths from neurological diseases and disorders declined by 15%, meaning more people are living longer with these conditions. As a result, the number of years lived with disability increased by 10%.
I think the point is people embody or create anxiety, whether or not it is a choice. As an emotion the anxiety is inseparable from the person, a dead person cannot be anxious etc.
Then you do not have an anxiety disorder, you just experience the emotion of anxiety.
Similarly, you can be sad, and not have depression. The thing that makes it depression is not being able to trivially drop it. If you 'have anxiety', and can flip it on and off at will, then by the clinical definition you do not have generalized anxiety disorder. That's very nice property of the DSM.
That comment had no advice in it, medical or otherwise. It just described definitions.
However, I would really like to know why would anyone "turned on" own anxiety if they have possibility to not turn it on. What are you gaining from that? Sounds like hitting own leg with a hammer. Even if you can do it ... why?
Interestingly it was common to hear "they're shy, but they'll grow out of it". I don't think the same is ever said about anxious people (and I say this as someone who was very shy/socially anxious as a teen and 'grew out of it').
I'm thankful I struggled with this at a time when medications were not easily available or readily prescribed.