Anxiety can involve a whole bunch of confusing and overwhelming symptoms. For some people, all of the symptoms are thought based - overthinking, catastrophizing, constant worrying etc. For others, physical symptoms are associated with the anxiety like heart palpitations, diarrhea, irregular periods, sweating, nausea and so on.
Whether or not you need testing depends on your signs and symptoms. The type of testing you need will be completely individualized to you. Testing can help us figure out potential root causes that could be contributing to your anxiety.
Here are some tests that can be run for certain cases of anxiety:
Thyroid testing - this is sometimes tested when heart palpitations, jitters, constipation or diarrhea, cold or hot flashes, irregular periods, hair issues or skin changes occur.
Iron deficiency testing - this can be considered when symptoms like weakness, fatigue, shortness of breath and heart palpitations are present.
Blood sugar testing - this is sometimes done when symptoms like lightheadedness, weakness and shaking are present.
Other tests like liver testing, triglycerides, reproductive hormones, vitamin d, B12 and many more may also be considered on a case by case basis.
I often get asked if I offer testing as a naturopathic doctor. I have access to many common tests and I often run tests for my anxiety patients when we feel it’s necessary. If you want to talk more about how I can help you with testing, please book a free 15 minute consultation.