Existential crises are phases of deep reflection, marked mainly by personal conflict and that can arise at any time in life.
In other words, the existential crisis is natural to human beings and, when well lived or accompanied, it can represent a moment of transformation for the individual, such as reaching self-knowledge, moral and emotional maturity, personal growth, etc.
However, if the symptoms are not properly "worked", the person facing an existential crisis can suffer a lot, drowning in a series of disorders, phobias and depressions.
According to psychologists, there are five main symptoms that characterize most existential crises. Know if you have any of them:
1. Anxiety and mental fatigue
This is considered one of the most common signs of existential crisis, mental fatigue.
Even if the person appears to be introspective and "calm", total chaos reigns inside his head. A constant flurry of thoughts, usually pessimistic, that makes the individual feel extremely anxious and exhausted.
Like the other muscles of the body, the human mind also needs moments of rest, otherwise the
stress increases and with it other symptoms will appear...2. Doesn't want to be with anyone
As their mind is already in constant turmoil, the person with existential crisis seeks to isolate himself in order to try to find a point of balance in his thoughts.
In addition, mental fatigue also eliminates any kind of desire for social programs, such as going out with friends or being with family members.
Playing in bed, listening to music or watching movies is one of people's favorite shows during this phase.
3. Pessimism and discouragement
Defeating ideas and thoughts also prevail in the minds of those who are going through this crisis. Usually, the existential crisis develops from an impactful event, such as the death of someone, the loss of a job, reaching certain years of life, among others.
In these situations, the person tends to reflect on their life, questioning the values and decisions they followed until that moment. For this reason, faced with the many unanswered questions, a latent feeling of impotence begins to grow, as if nothing would ever be resolved and the anguish would never disappear.
4. feel lost in the world
It is perhaps one of the most striking features of the existential crisis. As our whole existence is put into reflection, the feeling of uncertainty, bewilderment and insecurity is quite intense.
We don't know how to act and what we want for the future. Impotence and passivity is agonizing and, if not correctly directed, these emotions will eventually lead to a depressive condition.
5. Appetite changes
Constant anxiety and nervousness also trigger physical consequences, such as mood swings, sleep and appetite. There are people who eat wildly when they feel anxious, while others completely lose their hunger.
Thus, those who face an existential crisis may also experience insomnia and loss of appetite, causing immunity to drop, making room for disease to appear.
See also:meaning of anxiety.
How to handle an existential crisis?
As said, existential crises can be beneficial to our maturation and self-knowledge. But, for this, this phase must be lived carefully, otherwise the consequences will be disastrous for the person's future.
As the existential crisis consists of a reflective conflict about individual nature, a good exercise to help overcome this moment is to question yourself. Why am I feeling this way? Why do I think I can't? Why am I not motivated?
In almost every aspect of life, the first step in finding a solution is to correctly identify the problem. That is why it is very important to reflect to try to understand the triggering source of your feelings.
Try to distract your mind from pessimistic ideas. Fill your mind with activities that are productive, relaxing and free from the anguish of this crisis. Take charge of your life and understand that it's okay not to have all the answers we're looking for.
But be careful, if you feel that no matter how hard you try to understand the reasons for your introspection, the symptoms don't go away or you just can't handle it yourself, so get help from somebody.
Find the follow-up by a psychologist should be your first attitude if you are not knowing how to overcome an existential crisis.
Learn more about Depression.