What are anxiety disorders?
Anxiety disorders are a category of mental health disorders, where anxiety makes the person's daily life difficult in various areas. Symptoms vary, with feelings of nervousness, panic and fear, sweating and rapid heart rate being the most prevalent. When someone experiences an anxiety disorder, they react with the above symptoms to everyday situations that most people face without any symptoms. It is important to clarify that the normal stress that we all experience in everyday life is one thing and the developed stress, where it falls into the spectrum of disorders, is another.
How common are anxiety disorders?
Anxiety disorders are the most common mental health conditions. They happen to almost 30% of adults at some point in their lives. Anxiety disorders most often begin in childhood, adolescence, or early adulthood.
What are the types of anxiety disorders?
Anxiety disorders often tend to coexist, but this does not preclude their clear differentiation. The main types of anxiety disorders are the following 6:
Generalized anxiety disorder
In generalized anxiety disorder, the person feels extreme and unrealistic worry and tension, even if there is nothing in the environment to cause these feelings. The person with anxiety disorder worries most days about various issues such as health, work, school and relationships. In addition, the person experiences physical symptoms such as restlessness, feeling tense or nervous, easily tiring, difficulty concentrating or blankness, irritability, muscle tension, and sleep disturbances.
Panic disorder
In panic disorder, the person experiences sudden panic attacks. These attacks are often characterized by stronger, more intense emotions than other types of anxiety disorders. Feelings of dread can start suddenly and unexpectedly, or they can come from a trigger, such as encountering a situation that causes fear in the subject. During a panic attack, there are:
• Sweating.
• Palpitation (feeling that the heart is beating fast).
• Chest pain.
• Feeling of suffocation, which may give the impression of a heart attack.
Fears
Phobias are an intense fear of certain situations or objects. Some of these fears may be rational, especially when the object of the phobia actually presents a threat to the subject, such as the fear of snakes. The difference in phobias is that, more often than not, the level of fear doesn't match the situation. As with other anxiety disorders, the subject may spend a lot of time trying to avoid situations that might trigger the phobia.
In the event that the fear is linked to a specific object or situation, we speak of a specific phobia or a simple phobia. Some specific phobias include the fear of:
• Animals (such as spiders, dogs, snakes, etc.)
• The blood
• The plane
• The heights
• The injections
Social anxiety disorder
Social anxiety disorder is also often called social phobia. The person with social anxiety disorder may worry excessively about everyday social interactions. The anxiety comes from anxiety about the way the subject is perceived by others, with a dominant fear of being judged by others, he may think that he will put himself in a difficult position or even that he will be exposed to ridicule. Consequently, people with social anxiety disorder are often seen to avoid social situations altogether.
Agoraphobia
People with agoraphobia are anxious and afraid of two or more of the following situations:
• Use of public transport
• Staying in open spaces
• Staying indoors
• Staying in a waiting area or crowd
• Staying alone outside the home in other situations
The person fears these situations because they believe it is difficult to escape or find help if panic or other distressing symptoms occur. These situations almost always cause fear or anxiety and are often avoided or require the presence of another person. In its severe form, agoraphobia can lead a person to not even leave the house at all.
Separation anxiety disorder
Separation anxiety disorder is mostly seen in children or teenagers and young adults. Although symptoms often develop in childhood, they can also occur in adults. It is a persistent fear or anxiety that something bad will happen to loved ones that is often accompanied by nightmares and physical symptoms of discomfort. Adolescents and young adults may experience separation anxiety disorder when experiencing a strong stress factor or when adapting to new environments.
What can cause anxiety disorders?
According to research, the following factors play an important role:
Chemical imbalance. Severe or long-term stress can alter the chemical balance that controls mood. Experiencing a lot of stress for a long time can lead to an anxiety disorder.
Environmental factors. Experiencing a trauma can trigger an anxiety disorder, especially in someone who has inherited a higher risk for it
Heredity. Anxiety disorders tend to run in families. You may inherit them from one or both parents, such as eye color.
What are the symptoms of an anxiety disorder?
Symptoms vary depending on the type of anxiety disorder. They generally include:
Physical symptoms:
• Cold or sweaty hands
• Dry mouth
• Heart palpitations
• Motion sickness
• Numbness or tingling in the hands or feet
• Muscle tension
• Shortness of breath
Psychological symptoms:
• Feeling of panic, fear and worry
• Nightmares
• Recurring thoughts or flashbacks to traumatic experiences
• Uncontrollable, obsessive thoughts
Behavioral symptoms:
• Inability to remain still and calm
• Ritualistic behaviors, such as repeated hand washing
• Problems sleeping
How are anxiety disorders treated?
Many anxiety disorders develop in childhood and tend to persist when left untreated. An anxiety disorder is a health problem that requires treatment. One cannot make the anxiety disorder go away by will, as it is not a matter of self-discipline. Their treatment is carried out through psychotherapy and, in cases where appropriate, medication. A psychiatrist is responsible for the diagnosis and then, depending on the case, there may be collaboration between a psychologist and a psychiatrist for optimal help. In any case, if there is intense discomfort, then contacting a mental health professional is the best option.