Things that can worsen anxiety

I can’t speak for everyone on this topic, but I will be sticking to what I know and have experienced. For a long time, I didn’t realize how much my everyday choices and habits were feeding into my anxiety. I thought it was just “random” or that it appeared out of nowhere. But once I started paying attention, doing a little research, and talked to people who have similar issues, I started noticing patterns. Little things that, on their own, seemed harmless, but together made my anxiety way worse.

Let’s start with an obvious one: Sleep. Or in my case, the lack of it. I use to brag about how little sleep I needed, late nights, early mornings, and lots of “I’ll catch up later.” But there is no “later.” Running on empty made everything harder. When I was exhausted, my patience disappeared, my body felt on edge, and even simple things like answering texts felt overwhelming. I’ve had days where I thought I was “ having a really bad anxiety day,” when in reality, I just hadn’t slept properly in three nights. It’s like walking through life without armor, every little thing hits you harder.

Then there’s caffeine. Coffee is comforting to me, it’s a hug in a cup. But the problem is, the hug sometimes turns into a chokehold. One cup? Fine. Two cups? Borderline okay. Three cups? Suddenly I’m sitting there questioning my entire existence while my heart tries to run a marathon. The worst part is, caffeine tricks me into thinking I’m being productive, when really, I’m just jittery and wired, scrolling endlessly, and not actually doing anything. For me, too much caffeine is like handing my anxiety a mega phone. And this also applies to energy drinks.

Social media is a sneaky one. I’ve had days where I open my phone “just to check one thing” and, an hour later, I’m knee-deep in comparing my life to people I barely know. Even when I know it’s just highlight reels or a tiktok, my brain doesn’t care. It tells me things like, “Why don’t you have your life together like they do?” or “You’re falling behind.” or “ Why does that outfit look good on them but not on myself?” And even when I close the apps, the uneasiness lingers. It’s not just the time wasted, it’s the mental energy spent battling invisible comparisons. And it leaves me stuck in that mindset for the rest of the day.

Another big trigger for me has been food, or rather, not eating right. Anxiety already messes with appetite, so sometimes I don’t feel like eating. But when I skip meals, I end up shaky, cranky, and foggy, which makes my anxiety flare up. Other times, I go the opposite route and just eat junk to get it over with, but then I feel sluggish and guilty afterward. It’s such a simple thing, feeding your body, but it plays a huge role in how your mind feels.

Now lets talk about avoiding things. Avoidance feels like relief in the moment. You put off that hard conversation, that email, that appointment, the hangout you planned a week ago. And for a second, it feels good, like you dodged a bullet. But then it comes back, stronger. I’ve spent weeks replaying scenarios in my head because I didn’t want to face something. What’s funny (well, not really funny) is that when I finally do the thing I’ve been avoiding, it’s rarely as bad as I imagined. The dread is always worse than the reality, but that dread builds my anxiety brick by brick.

And then there’s isolation. This one is tricky, because alone time can be good and even necessary. But too much of it turns into a spiral. When I isolate, it’s like I trap myself in a room with my own thoughts, and they just bounce off the walls endlessly. There’s no outside voice to break the cycle, no grounding presence to remind me that maybe things aren’t as bad as they feel. Sometimes, just being around another person, even if we’re not talking about what’s on my mind, helps my anxiety calm down. But when I cut myself off, everything grows louder.

Overcommitting. Saying yes to everything might make people happy in the short term, but it leaves me drowning in obligations. I’ve agreed to plans, projects, and favors when I was already at my limit, because I didn’t want to disappoint anyone. And then I’d lie awake at night, panicking about how in the world I was going to manage it all. Overcommitting doesn’t just add stress, it steals the time I need to actually recharge, which makes my anxiety worse.

Even clutter and mess can play a role. I never use to connect the state of my space with the state of my mind, but when my living space is chaotic, my thoughts feel the same. I’ll sit and try to relax, but I can’t stop noticing the laundry pile, the dishes, the random clutter on my desk, the dust building on my bookshelf, the little messes on the stove from cooking dinner. It’s like my brain is trying to process everything it sees at once, and it just adds to the overwhelm. Cleaning doesn’t “fix” anxiety, but it removes some of the background noise that makes it worse.

And finally, negative self-talk. This one might be the most powerful. The way I speak to myself in my head often fuels my anxiety more than anything else. I’ll catch myself saying things like, “You’re not doing enough” or “Everyone’s judging you, they’re talking about you…behind your back.” Even when nobody else is putting pressure on me, I’m doing it all by myself. It’s exhausting. And when you’re already anxious, you’re brain is quick to believe the harsh things you tell yourself. The point of all of this isn’t to say, “Avoid these things and you’ll never be anxious again.” Anxiety doesn’t work that way unfortunately. But being knowledgeable of what what makes it worse gives me a chance to step in earlier, before it snowballs. It’s about noticing the little habits that pile up. For me, paying attention to sleep, what I consume, social media, clutter, connection, and how I talk to myself has made a huge difference.

If you’re someone who struggles with anxiety, maybe some of these examples sound familiar. And if they do, you’re not alone in it. Sometimes, the smallest changes in daily life can ease at least a little of the weight, and even a little relief can feel like a huge win when you’re dealing with constant anxiety.