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The Difference Between Anxiety and Intuition: Learning to Tell Them Apart
- Jessicah Walker Herche, PhD, HSPP
- 5 days ago
- 3 min read
Have you ever had a gut feeling about something—but couldn’t tell whether it was intuition or anxiety talking? Maybe you felt a pull to say no to something that looked good on paper, or a wave of dread that made you question if you were just overreacting.
It’s a common experience—especially for emotionally attuned, thoughtful women. Both anxiety and intuition are forms of knowing. They’re the body’s way of communicating safety, threat, alignment, or disconnection. The challenge lies in learning which voice is speaking, and when to listen to each.
Anxiety: The Voice of Protection
Anxiety isn’t the enemy. In fact, it’s one of your oldest and most loyal protectors. It scans for danger, helps you prepare, and keeps you from walking blindly into harm. The trouble begins when anxiety becomes overactive—interpreting uncertainty or vulnerability as danger itself.
When anxiety leads, it tends to sound fast, urgent, and convincing:
“You’ll regret this.”
“Something bad will happen.”
“You’re not ready.”
You might feel it as racing thoughts, a tight chest, or the inability to rest until you find certainty. Anxiety wants control and closure—it’s a survival strategy, not a character flaw.
The goal isn’t to silence anxiety but to help it soften—to remind your body it doesn’t have to be on high alert all the time.
As you learn to work with anxiety instead of against it, you might explore how it can sometimes serve as both a messenger and a mirror. We unpack that more in Ally or Adversary? Shifting Your Relationship with Anxiety.
Intuition: The Voice of Inner Wisdom
Intuition often lives beneath the noise. It doesn’t shout or analyze; it speaks in calm, grounded knowing. You might feel it as an inner yes or no, a quiet sense of alignment or misalignment, or a subtle release when something feels right.
Intuition carries no panic. It’s patient, gentle, and steady—even when pointing you toward hard truths.
It says, “This matters.” “This doesn’t feel right.” “You can wait.”
Where anxiety seeks control, intuition seeks coherence. Where anxiety constricts, intuition expands. One protects you from danger; the other guides you toward truth.
How to Tell the Difference
Notice the pace and tone.
Anxiety feels fast and demanding. Intuition feels spacious and clear.
Check your body.
Anxiety tightens and activates. Intuition settles and grounds, even if what it’s saying is difficult.
Ask about intention.
Anxiety says, “I need to be safe.” Intuition says, “I want to be whole.”
Observe what follows.
When you act from anxiety, confusion or second-guessing often grows. When you follow intuition, even challenging decisions carry quiet conviction.
Soothe first, decide later.
It’s nearly impossible to discern truth when your nervous system is flooded. Slow down—breathe, step outside, journal, or talk it through. Once you’re grounded, ask again: What feels true now?
When They Work Together
A healthy relationship with anxiety doesn’t mean getting rid of it—it means listening wisely.
Sometimes, anxiety is the spark that draws your attention to something real. Intuition then helps you interpret what that signal means.
For example, anxiety might alert you that something feels off in a conversation. Intuition helps you name why—perhaps a boundary was crossed or something didn’t align with your values. When these two work together, anxiety protects, and intuition clarifies.
Rebuilding Self-Trust
For many high-achieving men and women, anxiety has long been mistaken for intuition. It’s guided decisions, relationships, even success. But over time, living from anxiety alone can lead to exhaustion, self-doubt, and disconnection from one’s inner compass.
Therapy can help you relearn the language of your body—calming the parts that protect and reconnecting with the parts that know. Through grounding, reflection, and nervous system work, you can begin to sense the difference between fear and truth, control and clarity, survival and alignment.
A Gentle Invitation
If anxiety often runs the show, it doesn’t mean you’re broken—it means your nervous system has been working overtime to keep you safe. With care and guidance, you can learn to partner with anxiety rather than be ruled by it—and to hear your intuition again beneath the noise.
At Cadence Psychology Studio, we offer anxiety therapy in Carmel and Fishers, IN helping high achievers develop calm, self-trust, and confidence in their own inner wisdom.
Reach out to schedule a free consultation.
Disclaimer: The information provided on this blog is for educational purposes only and is not intended to replace professional psychological care, professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment.
