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6 Anxiety Tattoos That Will Help You Cope

Anxiety symbol tattoos communicate a profound message rather than merely images or words. Their artistic expression is as varied and unique as their goals. In general, this skin art fulfills a variety of purposes. Continue reading to discover new tattoo ideas.

Difference Between Anxiety and Depression – Anxiety Tattoos

The fact that one term denotes a single sickness while the other denotes a collection of ailments is a significant distinction between anxiety and depression. What is the difference between anxiety and depression?

In reality, depression is one illness. There are numerous distinct symptoms (see below). And different people may experience it very differently. However, the term “depression” only refers to one illness.

The word “anxiety” can indicate a number of different things. We all experience anxiety occasionally, and the word “anxiety” can be used to simply describe that feeling. However, when we use the word anxiety in a medical context, it actually refers to anxiety disorder.

Some less frequent conditions are included under anxiety. These include panic disorders and phobias. However, generalized anxiety disorder is the most prevalent (GAD). In the US, a generalized anxiety disorder may affect four to five out of every 100 persons. In this post, we’ll concentrate on generalized anxiety.

What is Anxiety Disorder?

Periodic anxiety is a normal component of life, according to The National Institute on Mental Health. When faced with a challenge at work, before a test, or before making a crucial decision, you could experience anxiety. However, anxiety disorders involve more than just passing apprehension or terror.

Anxiety and depression difference: It’s critical to get anxiety treatment as soon as you can since, for someone with an anxiety condition, the anxiety does not go away and can actually worsen over time. The symptoms might affect daily tasks like work performance, academic progress, and interpersonal connections. Generalized anxiety disorder, panic disorder, and various phobia-related disorders are only a few of the several types of anxiety disorders.

Anxiety and depression difference: People with a generalized Anxiety disorder (GAD) display excessive Anxiety or worry, most days for at least 6 months, about many things such as personal health, work, social interactions, and everyday routine life circumstances. Fear and Anxiety can cause significant problems in areas of their life, such as social interactions, school, and work. 

What is Depression?

Depression (also known as Major Depressive Illness or Clinical Depression) is a common but significant mood disorder, according to the National Institute of Mental Health. It produces severe symptoms that interfere with your ability to function on a daily basis, including sleeping, eating, and working. The signs of depression must last for at least two weeks before a diagnosis may be made.

Depression treatment is required when depressive symptoms are chronic and do not go away since some types of depression are slightly different or may arise in unusual situations.

Types of Depression

  • Persistent depressive disorder (also called dysthymia): is a depressed mood that lasts for at least two years. A person diagnosed with persistent depressive disorder may have episodes of major Depression along with periods of less severe symptoms, but symptoms must last for two years to be considered a persistent depressive disorder.
  • Psychotic Depression: occurs when a person has severe depression plus some form of psychosis, such as having disturbing false fixed beliefs (delusions) or hearing or seeing upsetting things that others cannot hear or see (hallucinations). The psychotic symptoms typically have a depressive “theme,” such as delusions of guilt, poverty, or illness.
Depression (also known as Major Depressive Illness or Clinical Depression) is a common but significant mood disorder.
Depression (also known as Major Depressive Illness or Clinical Depression) is a common but significant mood disorder.
  • Bipolar disorder: is different from Depression, but it is included in this list because someone with bipolar disorder experiences episodes of extremely low moods that meet the criteria for major Depression (called “Bipolar Depression”). But a person with bipolar disorder also experiences extreme high – euphoric or irritable – moods called “mania” or a less severe form called “hypomania.”
  • Postpartum Depression: is much more serious than the “baby blues” (relatively mild depressive and anxiety symptoms that typically clear within two weeks after delivery) that many women experience after giving birth. Women with postpartum Depression experience full-blown major Depression during pregnancy or after delivery (postpartum depression). The feelings of extreme sadness, anxiety, and exhaustion that accompany postpartum depression may make it difficult for these new mothers to complete daily care activities for themselves and/or their babies.
  • Seasonal affective disorder: is characterized by the onset of Depression during the winter months, when there is less natural sunlight. This Depression generally lifts during spring and summer. Winter Depression, typically accompanied by social withdrawal, increased sleep, and weight gain, predictably returns every year in seasonal affective disorder.

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Anxiety Fact Sheet

Anxiety Overview

A mental health condition marked by intense feelings of worry, anxiety, or fear that interfere with daily activities. Panic attacks, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and post-traumatic stress disorder are examples of anxiety disorders.
The inability to put aside worry, restlessness, and stress that is out of proportion to the severity of the incident are among the symptoms.
Counseling or medicine, including antidepressants, are used as forms of treatment.


Anxiety Symptoms

  • Behavioral: hypervigilance, irritability, or restlessness.
  • Cognitive: lack of concentration, racing thoughts, or unwanted thoughts.
  • Whole body: fatigue or sweating
  • Also common:  anxiety, excessive worry, angor animi, fear, insomnia, nausea, palpitations, or trembling

Anxiety Treatment

  • Support group: A place where those pursuing the same disease or objective, such as weight loss or depression, can receive counseling and exchange experiences.
  • Cognitive behavioral therapy: A conversation treatment that aimed to change the negative attitudes, actions, and feelings connected to psychiatric discomfort.
  • Counseling psychology: A subfield of psychology that handles issues with the self that are connected to work, school, family, and social life.
  • Anger management: To reduce destructive emotional outbursts, practice mindfulness, coping skills, and trigger avoidance.
  • Psychoeducation: Mental health education that also helps individuals feel supported, validated, and empowered
  • Family therapy: psychological counseling that improves family communication and conflict resolution.

Anxiety and Anxiety Statistics

It’s critical to understand the distinction between anxiety and depression. Anxiety, in its most basic form, is an excessive feeling of worry, whereas depression, in its most basic form, is an excessive feeling of worthlessness and hopelessness. It is conceivable for someone to experience depression and anxiety simultaneously.


6.8 million

GAD affects 6.8 million adults or 3.1% of the U.S. population, yet only 43.2% are receiving treatment.

Source: National Institute on Mental Health

19 million

19 million adults experience specific phobias, making it the most common anxiety disorder in America.  

Source: ADAA2020

17.3 million

Major depressive disorder affects approximately 17.3 million American adults or about 7.1% of the U.S. population aged 18 and older.

Source: National Institute of Mental Health


Mental Health & Anxiety Tattoo Ideas

Anxiety semicolon tattoo meaning: anxiety feminine semicolon tattoos are a great way to represent suicide awareness and one of the simplest tattoos for mental health.
Anxiety semicolon tattoo meaning: anxiety feminine semicolon tattoos are a great way to represent suicide awareness and one of the simplest tattoos for mental health.

1. Anxiety Tattoos for Women

In the past, people used to hide their mental illnesses from the public. The subject was taboo. Children with mental health problems were sometimes sequestered in their rooms in order for the family to avoid public humiliation.

Both the younger and older generations are now combating the stigma. Post-partum depression is discussed.

People can feel less alone by calling suicide hotlines and spreading suicide awareness. It’s an admirable movement that only continues to grow in strength with time. Tattoos are one method that individuals are promoting awareness.

Tattoos that promote mental wellness are more than just another tattoo. They aid in dispelling the stigma that people and society once attached to mental health conditions.

The days of being urged to conceal mental illness are long gone, and these tattoos can help you raise awareness for yourself, your friends, or anybody else in the world.

2. Tattoos For Anxiety: Anxiety Mental Health Tattoos

Particularly in the past few years, many people have been looking for tattoos for anxiety and depression (simple anxiety tattoos) and anxiety mental health tattoo ideas to use as daily remembrances or to start dialogues that can promote awareness of mental health.

According to Milena Petrovic, co-founder of Tattoo Stylist, “in 2022 they have witnessed an increase in requests for the designs that were tied to mental health compared to 2019.” The themes included representations of self-harm, addiction, sadness, and anxiety.

Anxiety serotonin tattoo: According to Petrovic, one popular choice is mental health semicolon tattoo designs, which were inspired by Project Semicolon, a charity that supports people with mental illness.

A very personal reminder of living with anxiety, mental health anxiety tattoo designs can come in a variety of sizes and shapes with different images and symbols that tie in a person’s experience. According to Nic El, owner and tattoo artist at Gorilla Tattoo Paphos, “the designs are frequently connected with self-strength, self-empowerment, and a determination to keep going when [it’s tempting] to give up.”

Anxiety breathe tattoo: According to Petrovic, other common inscriptions include “breathe” (anxiety just breathe tattoo) or “be here now,” as well as tiny images etched as reminders that difficult times will pass. Petrovic also notes that geometric patterns and anchor or root designs have become more popular (to encourage clarity when thoughts feel overwhelming). Then there are phrases or pictures that are solely specific to a person’s experience with anxiety.

Symbolic simple anxiety tattoos: The butterfly tattoo meaning mental health often connote a romantic meaning because it can also represent young love. In Chinese culture, mental health butterfly tattoos are also emblematic of immortality, joy, grace, and summer.
Symbolic simple anxiety tattoos: The butterfly tattoo meaning mental health often connote a romantic meaning because it can also represent young love. In Chinese culture, mental health butterfly tattoos are also emblematic of immortality, joy, grace, and summer.
Ryan Zofay forming a circle and hugging friends.

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3. Anxiety Symbol Tattoos: Anxiety Over Tattoo Ideas

Anxiety tattoos for guys, anxiety disorder unique anxiety tattoos, social anxiety tattoo, and tattoos about anxiety can come in a variety of sizes and shapes with different images and symbols that tie in a person's experience.
Anxiety tattoos for guys, anxiety disorder unique anxiety tattoos, social anxiety tattoo, and tattoos about anxiety can come in a variety of sizes and shapes with different images and symbols that tie in a person’s experience.

As a society, we are well past the time when you had to cover up a tattoo on your lower back and blame it on an adolescent mistake. According to tattoo artist and owner of Kings Avenue Tattoo Mike Rubendall, “in the last twenty years, tattooing has transformed from a counterculture to mass culture.”

As a result, body art is no longer solely about being edgy, rebellious, unladylike, or purely about pushing boundaries. Instead, tattoos now have a wellness perspective: tattoos that promote self-love help you define who you are to both yourself and the people around you. They also provide you with a chance to talk about your own past.

“Body art will represent that to a greater extent the more our culture allows individuals to love themselves,” says tattoo artist Mira Mariah, whose celebrity clientele includes Ariana Grande. For her feminist, fashion-inspired artwork at Fleur Noire Tattoo Parlour in Brooklyn, New York, she receives 800 applications each month. Mariah, whose work focuses on powerful symbols, believes that women in particular can identify with the images she produces because they represent how we’re feeling right now.

Everyone interviewed believes that their tattoos are talismans of inner power and self-love. Each one has a tale to tell, from capturing the most meaningful, intentional choices to the most unplanned of events. “People frequently ask me if I’ll regret getting tattoos. I believe that maybe a little, yes. I don’t regret being that person or having those experiences, but I also see them as a kind of scrapbook that shows me at various ages and phases “says Be.come Project creator and fitness expert Bethany C. Meyers.

“Simply put, the line connecting my finger to my toe is a picture of me. I consider it to be a part of my body, similar to a birthmark I acquired later in life”, they include.

Mental health tattoos give you a sense of authority, which is a recurring theme in these conversations. According to Vinita Mehta, Ph.D., a psychologist in Washington, D.C., “a recent study from the University of the Free State in South Africa indicated that the main motivation for having a tattoo was to record an achievement, a milestone, or a loss.” Additionally, they can raise your self-esteem: Tattoos are an investment in oneself, according to Rubendall, similar to working out. You’re trying to improve your body in order to become a better version of yourself, he continues.

Rubendall adds that some clients go so far as to call the tattooing procedure therapeutic. It might even stand for self-love and self-care. According to tattoo artist Amanda Wachob, “I frequently hear from women who want to get tattoos as a way to do something good for themselves.”

However, your tattoo’s placement might have just as much significance as the tattoo itself. Choosing the location of your tattoo is quite empowering, according to Mariah. “My hands are covered in tattoos, which I can see every time I do downward dog during yoga. They serve as a reminder of my strength and value “she claims. People frequently decide on a location for one of two reasons, according to Mariah: “They want a tattoo on a region of their body that they celebrate, or they want it on a body part that they want to learn to love.”

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4. Tattoos That Represent Anxiety: Anxiety Awareness Tattoo

Depression and anxiety tattoos: Many people appear to obtain the same tattoos as others, not because they want to imitate them but rather because they have special meanings for them. For instance, two common mental health tattoo designs with secret meanings are a semicolon (anxiety mental health self love tattoos) and Medusa. A pink and blue ribbon is another, but what does it represent?

It is raising awareness of infant loss if you see someone with a pink and blue ribbon tattoo on their body. This is a tattoo that represents mental health and indicates that the owner or a close family member has lost a baby, either during or after pregnancy. This could result from a stillbirth, SIDS, neonatal death, or any other cause.

Tattoos for depression and anxiety: Baby Loss Awareness Week is held every October to increase understanding of infant loss throughout the world. It strives to assist grieving parents, remember the lives of lost infants, and advance care and support for all those impacted by infant loss. Since its inception in 2002, Baby Loss Awareness Week has been observed annually and is located in the UK. People frequently don blue and pink ribbons during the workweek to demonstrate their support.

Anxiety ribbon tattoo: It is raising awareness of infant loss if you see someone with a ribbon tattoo on their body. Is one of the anxiety depression tattoos.
Anxiety ribbon tattoo: It is raising awareness of infant loss if you see someone with a ribbon tattoo on their body. Is one of the anxiety depression tattoos.

Not only a pink and blue ribbon mental health tattoo is becoming popular on TikTok due to its deep significance. The semicolon tattoo is one of the mental illness anxiety tattoos and has been used for years to promote awareness of issues with mental health and the value of suicide prevention. When a sentence might have been ended but wasn’t, a semicolon is used in the sentence. The tattoo also illustrates the possibility of suicide but the decision to live.

Another common anxiety depression tattoo design is the anxiety breathe symbol tattoo or the panic attack anxiety tattoo, a representation of the Greek goddess Medusa, who represents strength and empowerment and demonstrates that women should not be punished or held accountable for sexual assault. The symbol was chosen because of a Greek legend that Poseidon attacked Medusa in the sacred temple of Athena.

Anxiety tattoo designs (anxiety overthinking tattoo ideas) such as anxiety quotes tattoos (anxiety breathe tattoo) can be a means for you to express yourself, and serve as a visible reminder for you to maintain your strength.
Anxiety tattoo designs (anxiety overthinking tattoo ideas) such as anxiety quotes tattoos (anxiety breathe tattoo) can be a means for you to express yourself, and serve as a visible reminder for you to maintain your strength.

5. Depression Anxiety Tattoos: Small Anxiety Tattoos & Tattoo Ideas for Anxiety

Tattoo symbol for anxiety: Many millions of Americans experience sadness and anxiety on their own. Investigating tattoo designs for anxiety is a fantastic way to spread knowledge and demonstrate support. If you’ve ever battled mental illness, you are aware of how isolating the battle can be. Additionally, because mental illness is mostly invisible, we have no idea who among us is struggling.

Tattoo symbols for anxiety can be a means for you to express yourself, serve as a visible reminder for you to maintain your strength, and serve as a sign to those around you of your values and the challenges you are going through.

If you’ve thought about having anxiety and depression tattoos, you may be wondering which design to choose. If you’re looking for a tattoo that symbolizes mental illness and despair.

The popularity of tattoos depicting depression is rising. People are utilizing their creativity, a quality that helps people succeed despite difficulties, to cope with depression in a healthy way by using their bodies as canvases. A tattoo for depression and anxiety is extremely private, often serving as messages from the wearer to themselves or as a form of social commentary. Any items with special meaning can serve as tattoos for overcoming anxiety.

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6. The Purpose and Power of Anxiety Tattoos Designs: Mental Health Tattoos Anxiety

Anxiety symbol tattoos communicate a profound message rather than merely images or words. Their artistic expression is as varied and unique as their goals. In general, this skin art fulfills a variety of purposes. Ink for depression can:

  • Be coping mechanisms, bringing people’s attention to something crucial, or offering support when necessary.
  • Be conversation openers, inspire others to comment or ask questions, and foster open dialogue.
  • Be an emblem of courage and a constant reminder that you are enduring
  • serve as your own personal vision board, reminding you of why you’re alive all the time.
  • Honor a principle or concept that is important to you.
  • Send out a discreet but forceful call for support to those who are also dealing with depression.
  • Serve as personal memories of your triumph over your sickness (some people who have thought about committing suicide portray examples of what they didn’t do)
  • Encourage you to look for yourself, like the classic “string around your finger”
  • Always be there for you as a personal coach, reminding you of your goals and the reasons you must continue through suffering.
  • Be an attractive technique to conceal mental and physical scars; do not conceal the scars in shame; rather, make them attractive.
  • You should be grounded and reminded that depression hasn’t stolen your identity.
  • symbolize the depths of your depression
  • Show off your healing
  • serve as mindfulness or focus tools to facilitate instantaneous thinking changes
  • Celebrate significant recovery accomplishments.
Tattoo social anxiety designs (tattoos for people with anxiety) and depression anxiety breathe symbol tattoo: Whether it's about anxiety, depression, or other mental disorders, mental health symbol tattoos send a clear message: mental health is health, too.
Tattoo social anxiety designs (tattoos for people with anxiety) and depression anxiety breathe symbol tattoo: Whether it’s about anxiety, depression, or other mental disorders, mental health symbol tattoos send a clear message: mental health is health, too.

Anxiety Disorder Tattoo: Inspirational Anxiety Tattoos

According to a recent study, those who have tattoos are more likely to have mental health diagnoses and sleep troubles. Additionally, researchers discovered that those with tattoos were more likely to smoke, have been in jail, and have had more sex partners in the previous year.

The survey-based study did discover, however, that tattoos did not significantly affect general health status. Researchers claim that the poll, which was carried out in July 2016, included 2,008 adult residents of the United States as a sample.

Dr. Karoline Mortensen, the study’s lead author and an associate professor at the University of Miami, stated, “Previous research has proven a relationship between having a tattoo and engaging in dangerous behaviors.” “In a time when tattoos are becoming more and more popular, even among women and working professionals, we discover that these relationships still exist but are not linked to a worsening of health condition.”

Tattoo For Anxiety: Overcoming Anxiety Tattoos

Tattooing the skin as a form of self-expression has been a ritualized practice for ages throughout numerous cultures. In light of this, tattoos’ symbolic significance has developed through time and is very individualized, both from the wearer’s internal perspective and from the standpoint of an observer. Up until the 1970s, tattoos were considered taboo in contemporary Western nations; they were typically seen as outcasts like soldiers, criminals doing time in prison, gang members, and members of other marginalized and counter-cultural groups.

Grumet studied the evolution of tattoos throughout history, much like Carmen et al., but from the perspective of psychodynamic psychology as opposed to evolution. His argument was that “tattoo analysis” should be utilized as a type of “dermal diagnosis,” with tattoos nearly universally serving as a marker of psychopathology. He noted that tattoos could express identity and group affiliation (as with military tattoos). He asserted, for instance, that “outcasts and outlaws” get tattoos to boost low self-esteem and that tattoos are associated with antisociality and exhibitionism. In his opinion, tattoos ought to be seen as “a psychic crutch meant to heal a broken self-image, inspire optimism, keep toxic emotions away, and lessen the difference between the individual and his objectives.”

Tattoo Anxiety Designs: Tattoos About Overcoming Anxiety

In a more recent analytic summary of unconscious reasons behind tattoos, Karacaoglan used a case study to demonstrate that “painful penetration of the skin in the process of tattooing… is a form of acting out” and that tattoos signify “an attempt to actively represent and recompense, as it were, an early deficiency” and a “dialectical record of the mother-father relationship.” The author views tattooing as an alternate mode of communication that patients “turn” to when unable to speak “unendurable effect” through words, highlighting the masochistic aspect of tattooing. In the end, Karacaoglan also came to the same conclusion as Grumet: tattooing is a “kind of perversion.”

Although we both believe that “dermal diagnosis” may be useful in examining unconscious reasons why people get tattoos, these universally pathogenic interpretations today appear, given the prevalence of tattoos in popular culture, to be out-of-date generalizations. Although a person’s tattoos may be utilized to inform psychodynamic psychotherapy by utilizing symbols for personal self-representation, their interpretation should not be limited to psychopathology.

We Level Up Dual Diagnosis Treatment

The exact definition of dual diagnosis (also referred to as co-occurring disorders) can differ between institutions.  However, it is generally described as the specific treatment of someone who has been diagnosed with a substance use disorder and a mental health disorder at the same time.

Treating dual-diagnosis clients is a critical aspect of our inpatient treatment experience because co-occurring disorders are strongly correlated with instances of substance abuse. Creating a treatment plan that addresses the physical aspects of withdrawal, the psychological connection with drug use, and managing underlying mental health disorders is part of setting clients up for success. 

A thorough mental health analysis identifies possibilities for treatment.  Meeting with mental health counselors and medical care providers means access to behavioral therapy and medication treatment.

At our dual diagnosis treatment center, We Level Up can implement the highest quality of care. We recognize the fragile complexities of how mental and substance abuse disorders can influence others and sometimes result in a vicious cycle of addiction.  That’s why we offer specialized treatment in dual-diagnosis cases to provide the most excellent chance of true healing and long-lasting recovery.

It can be challenging to accept that you may be living with a mental illness, but once it is properly diagnosed and treated, treating the presenting case of substance abuse can be magnitudes easier. Only a properly trained medical professional can diagnose these underlying conditions.  If you believe you are suffering from a disorder alongside addiction, we urge you to seek a qualified treatment center to begin your journey to recovery. Call We Level Up today.

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