Anxiety Disorder     

Anxiety disorders are the most common of all mental disorders. They are illnesses that cause an individual to feel anxious, without any apparent reason. It can prevent coping and often disrupts daily life. There are several types of anxiety disorders, each with it’s own distinct features. These include generalized anxiety disorder, panic disorder, phobias, obsessive-compulsive disorder and posttraumatic stress disorder.

Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD)
When persistent and unrealistic worry becomes a normal way of approaching situations, an individual may be suffering from generalized anxiety disorder (GAD). Many individuals with this disorder constantly anticipate disaster and often worry excessively about health, money, family or work. Experts believe GAD is caused by a combination of biological factors and life events.

Symptoms of GAD 

Panic Disorder
Panic disorder strikes between three and six million Americans. Individuals with panic disorder have sudden and repeated feelings of terror known as panic attacks. These attacks can occur at any time and usually last a few minutes. Not everyone who experiences panic attacks will develop panic disorder — for example, many people have one attack but never have another. It is important for those who do have panic disorder to seek treatment.

Panic Attack Symptoms

Phobias
Phobias are unreasonable and involuntary fears. Individuals with phobias experience extreme anxiety and panic when exposed to certain objects or situations that they logically know are not dangerous. Phobias are thought to be caused by a combination of biological factors and life events. There are three types of phobias:

Specific Phobia – Specific phobias are intense fears of certain things or situations such as dogs, heights, elevators, water, driving, flying, etc. One in ten adults suffer from a specific phobia.

Social Phobia – Social phobia is an intense fear of becoming humiliated in social situations, specifically of embarrassing yourself in front of other people. The most common social phobia is a fear of public speaking. Social phobias may be accompanied by depression or alcoholism.

Agoraphobia – Agoraphobia, which often accompanies panic disorder, is a fear of being in any situation that might provoke a panic attack, or from which escape might be difficult if one occurred.

Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD)
Anxious thoughts or rituals a person feels they can’t control characterize obsessive-compulsive disorder. If you have OCD, you may be plagued by persistent images or by the urgent need to engage in certain rituals. The disturbing thoughts or images are called obsessions, and the rituals that are performed to try to prevent or dispel them are called compulsions. The disorder is diagnosed only when such activities consume at least an hour a day, are very distressing and interfere with daily life.

Typical obsessions include the following:

• Fear of contamination by germs or radiation

• Fear of hitting someone with a car

• Fear of burning the house down

• Fear a family member will die

• Fear of harming others or of violating social norms by swearing or other unacceptable behavior

Some common compulsions are as follows:

• Excessive personal or house cleaning

• Developing a time-consuming ritual of making sure, over and over, that something has been done

• Compulsively repeating a phrase or the name of a loved one as if to protect the person from harm

• Going through an exacting series of maneuvers until they are done perfectly

Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is a debilitating condition that follows a terrifying event. People with PTSD have persistent frightening thoughts and memories of their ordeal and feel emotionally numb, especially with people they were once close to. This disorder can result from any number of traumatic incidents (kidnapping, serious accidents, natural disasters, rape).

People with Posttraumatic Stress Disorder repeatedly relive the trauma in the form of nightmares and disturbing recollections during the day. They may experience sleep problems, depression, feeling detached or numb, or being easily startled. They may lose interest in things they used to enjoy, have trouble feeling affectionate or may feel irritable or more aggressive than before. PTSD can be accompanied by depression, substance abuse or anxiety.

Getting Help for Anxiety Disorder
If you, or someone you know, have symptoms of anxiety, a visit to the family physician is usually the best place to start. A physician can help you determine if the symptoms are due to an anxiety disorder, some other medical condition or both. Most often, the next step to getting treatment for an anxiety disorder is referral to a mental health professional.