Most people experience feelings of anxiety before an important event, such as a big exam, business presentation, or first date.
Anxiety disorders, however, are illnesses that load people's lives with overwhelming anxiety and fear that are chronic and unremitting, and that can grow progressively worse. Tormented by
panic attacks, obsessive thoughts, flashbacks of traumatic events, nightmares, or countless frightening physical symptoms, some people with
anxiety disorders even become housebound.
Anxiety disorders, as a group, are the most common mental illness in America. More than 19 million adults in America are affected by these debilitating illnesses each year. Children and adolescents can also develop anxiety disorders
(see Anxiety in Children).
There are several types of anxiety disorders. These anxiety disorders include:
Each anxiety disorder has its own distinct features, but they are all bound together by the common theme of excessive, irrational fear and dread.
Panic Disorder
Panic disorder includes repeated episodes of intense fear that strike often and without warning. Physical symptoms include:
- Chest pain
- Heart palpitations
- Shortness of breath
- Dizziness
- Abdominal distress
- Feelings of unreality
- Fear of dying.
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
- Rape or other criminal assault
- War
- Child abuse
- Natural or human-caused disasters
- Crashes.
Nightmares; flashbacks; numbing of emotions;
depression; and feeling angry, irritable, or distracted are common. It is also common for people with PTSD to be easily startled. Family members of victims can also develop this disorder.
Phobias
The three types of
phobias are
social phobia,
specific phobias and
agoraphobia. People with social
phobia have an overwhelming and disabling fear of scrutiny, embarrassment, or humiliation in social situations, which leads to avoidance of many potentially pleasurable and meaningful activities. People with a specific phobia experience extreme, disabling, and irrational fear of something that poses little or no actual danger. The fear leads to avoidance of objects or situations, and can cause people to limit their lives unnecessarily. Agoraphobia involves intense fear and avoidance of any place or situation where escape might be difficult or help unavailable in the event of developing sudden panic-like symptoms. Agoraphobia rarely occurs in the absense of panic disorder.
Generalized Anxiety Disorder
Generalized anxiety disorder is defined as constant, exaggerated worrisome thoughts and tension about everyday, routine life events and activities. These thoughts must last at least six months to be classified as generalized
anxiety disorder. People with this condition almost always anticipate the worst, even though there is little reason to expect it. These feelings are accompanied by physical symptoms, such as:
- Fatigue
- Trembling
- Muscle tension
- Headache
- Nausea.
Scientists aren't quite sure why some people get
anxiety disorders. Different people exposed to the same situation can react in very different ways. Part of this difference may be in the genes they have inherited.
Anxiety disorders run in families, so if a parent has an anxiety disorder, the children have a higher chance of developing one of these conditions. This may be due to the genes they've inherited, but the environment a child is raised in may be important, too. Ultimately, it's probably an interaction between a person's genetic predisposition and environment.
Scientists have recently been gaining insights into the development of anxiety disorders. Children of parents with
panic disorders have a higher incidence of behavioral disorders very early in life, before you would think major environmental impacts would occur.
A growing body of evidence shows that infants who tend to be shy, timid, and constrained in social situations -- even in the first few weeks of life -- have higher rates of anxiety disorders when they get older.
Symptoms of anxiety can differ based on the specific anxiety disorder a person has. However, all anxiety disorders are linked together by common symptoms that include excessive, irrational fear and dread. Because these are also possible symptoms of other conditions, people who believe they have
anxiety symptoms are encourage to see a doctor for proper diagnosis.
Scientists have found that adolescence is an important period for the diagnosis and treatment of an
anxiety disorder. Of adolescents who have any one of the mood or
anxiety disorders, 42 percent still have an anxiety or depressive disorder in adulthood. In contrast, only 5 percent of adolescents who were healthy go on to develop one of the disorders. It is likely that if we aggressively treat adolescents who suffer from mood and anxiety disorders, we can prevent many of these disorders from becoming chronic.
Treatment Options for Anxiety
Anxiety treatment can be effective at any age. If you think you may have an anxiety disorder, don't hesitate to discuss it with your healthcare provider. There are many different types of treatments available, and these can be tailored to specific problems. In some cases, psychotherapy, or counseling, is sufficient. In other cases, medication alone can be effective. Some people may need both.
A number of medications that were originally approved for treating
depression have been found to be effective for anxiety disorders as well. Some of the newest of these
antidepressants are called selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (
SSRIs). Other antianxiety medications include groups of drugs called benzodiazepines and beta-blockers. If one medication is not effective, others can be tried. New medications are currently under development to treat
anxiety symptoms.
Two clinically proven effective forms of psychotherapy used to treat anxiety disorders are behavioral therapy and
cognitive-behavioral therapy. Behavioral therapy focuses on changing specific actions, and uses several techniques to stop unwanted behaviors. In addition to the behavioral therapy techniques, cognitive-behavioral therapy teaches patients to understand and change their thinking patterns so that they can react differently to the situations that cause them anxiety.
Anxiety and Other Conditions
It is common for an
anxiety disorder to accompany
depression,
eating disorders, substance abuse, or another
anxiety disorder. Anxiety disorders can also co-exist with illnesses such as cancer or
heart disease. In such instances, the accompanying disorders will also need to be treated. Before beginning any treatment, however, it is important to have a thorough medical examination to rule out other possible causes of symptoms.
Each year, approximately 19.1 million American adults ages 18 to 54 (about 13.3 percent of people in this age group) have an anxiety disorder.
Anxiety disorders frequently co-occur with depressive disorders,
eating disorders, or substance abuse. Many people have more than one anxiety disorder.
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