What Are the Different Anxiety Disorders

Kinds of Anxiety Disorders

Anxiety disorder is a common chronic disorder, affecting women more than men. This can lead to impairment. It is long-lasting anxiety that is not specific to any object or scenario. Therefore, it is free-floating.

People suffering from this disorder often feel nervous, worried or afraid of something but they cannot articulate the reason why. They always fret and are unable to control their worries. There are constant muscle tension and fear reactions thus developing heart palpitations, dizziness, headaches and insomnia. These physical problems are combined with anxiety that makes it difficult for them to deal with normal everyday activities.

1. Panic Disorder

A person suffering from panic disorder has brief attacks that are so intense they tremble and shake. Afterwards, they feel dizzy and have difficulty breathing. A panic attack usually lasts for 10 minutes or maybe even less.

These attacks can happen anywhere anytime. More often than not, they take place after a scary experience or the person is stressed out. Sometimes this can take place when the person is exercising. People who have panic attacks believe they are having a heart attack and they are rushed to the doctor or to the emergency room.

There are changes in heartbeat and the sufferer would think that something is wrong with this heart or he is about to have another attack. Some are so worried about their illness that they quit their jobs and refuse to leave their homes to avoid embarrassment just in case another attack occurs. Panic disorder can be diagnosed when these attacks ultimately lead to a persistent one.

2. Obsessive Compulsive Disorder

The best movie example of a person suffering from this anxiety disorder is Jack Nicholson in “As Good As It Gets.” People with OCD are persistent and obsessed with their rituals in order to control the anxieties that are produced by their thoughts. In the end, these rituals control their over-all behavior.

You notice how Jack Nicholson had to switch the light on and off over and over again, just as he has to lock and relock the doors before going to bed? Performing these rituals provide them with some sort of pleasure because it relieves them from a social anxiety.

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder affects 2.2 million Americans and this can also be accompanied by eating disorders or depression. It strikes both men and women and the symptoms are prevalent in childhood, adolescence and even in early adulthood. It also runs in families.

3. Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

This anxiety disorder often develops after a frightening ordeal that involves physical harm or threats. A person who has developed PTSD may be someone who was harmed or has a loved one harmed. He may also be a witness to a harmful event.

PTSD was brought to public attention with war veterans. However, it can also result from traumatic incidents like rape, torture, kidnapping, mugging, car accidents, plane crashes, train wrecks, bombings or natural disasters like earthquakes or floods.

People diagnosed with PTSD are easily startled and emotionally numb. They lose interest in their hobbies and have trouble being affectionate. They are also irritable, aggressive and violent. They avoid the situations that remind them of the traumatizing incident. Anniversaries of the incident are also very difficult to handle.

PTSD affects around 7.7 million Americans and it can occur at any age, even childhood. Women are more likely to have PTSD than men. This disorder runs in families and is accompanied by depression or substance abuse.

4. Social Phobia

This is also known as social anxiety disorder. People who are overwhelmingly anxious or excessively self-conscious are diagnosed with social phobia. They are intense, persistent and are afraid of being watched or judged by others. They are easily embarrassed. They are anxious for days or weeks before a situation they dread.

This fear is so severe that it can interfere with school, work or other everyday activities. Therefore, it is hard for them to make and even keep friends.

People with social phobia recognize their fear of being around people and they know that it is unreasonable but it is difficult for them to overcome this. Even if they do manage to confront what they are afraid of, they are anxious in doing so and are quite uncomfortable.

Social phobia affects 15 million Americans. Women and men are likely to develop this and the symptoms show in childhood or early adolescence. It runs in the family and is often accompanied by depression or substance abuse if people self-medicate their worries.

5. Specific Phobia

This is the strong and irrational fear of a situation or an object. The person recognizes the irrationality of the fear but the anxiety still remains. It is different from panic disorder and generalized anxiety disorder because there is a specific situation or stimulus that triggers the fear response.

People with phobias have quite an imagination so they anticipate what they fear with terrifying consequences. They recognize their fear but they are also unable to control it.

6. Generalized Anxiety Disorder

People suffering from generalized anxiety disorder go through daily activities filled with tension and worry even when there is nothing to trigger it. They wait for disaster to happen and are always concerned about money, health issues, family problems and work when there really is nothing to worry about.

A person is diagnosed with GAD if his worries have prevented him from functioning properly for at least 6 months. He cannot seem to get rid of these anxieties even if he recognizes it. They cannot relax and are startled easily. They also have difficulty in concentrating, falling asleep and staying asleep.

GAD affects 6.8 million Americans and two times more women than men. This can begin at any life cycle but there is greater risk between childhood and middle age. It is accompanied with depression and substance abuse.

We will explore each disorder in depth in the upcoming chapters.