#ThisIsWhatAnxietyFeelsLike: Twitter Users’ Narratives of the Interpersonal Effects of Anxiety

Abstract

Anxiety is very pertinent to systemic family therapy (SFT), however, there is little research that seeks to understand people’s experiences with anxiety symptoms and how they impact people’s lives and relationships. The aim of this study was to examine the trending hashtag #ThisIsWhatAnxietyFeelsLike—a commonly used hashtag related to anxiety—to look more closely at how users talk about their anxiety symptoms on Twitter and how these symptoms influence people’s interactions and relationships with others. We used a qualitative thematic analysis to analyze 1318 relational tweets posted with this hashtag that occurred between February 2017 and February 2018 and uncover themes related to experiences with anxiety. The analysis revealed six core themes: (a) deflated self in relation to others and their perceptions; (b) fear, worry and avoidance behaviors that influence relationships; (c) negative emotional responses leading to feeling misunderstood, lonely, and like a failure; (d) social triggers; (e) anxiety management strategies; and (f) things for others to avoid.