Types of Anxiety Disorders
What is anxiety? What’s the difference between anxiety and an anxiety disorder?
Anxiety is a common mental health disorder affecting millions of people worldwide. Although anxiety is a common condition, it has different types that manifest in various ways. Understanding the different types of anxiety can help people recognize the symptoms and seek appropriate treatment.
Why Does Anxiety Happens
Upper education often emphasizes that anxiety can be advantageous – that it has served an important evolutionary purpose in our history. That purpose includes kicking our nervous system into flight or fight when our safety is threatened, encouraging us to perform better on important tasks, and stimulating action.
However, most people often attach a negative connotation to anxiety. Most are reminded of the unpleasant feelings of anxiety that arose when they had a final the next day, a significant professional presentation approaching, or during relationship hardships. Yet, if we didn’t experience anxiety about these things, we might not have been motivated to study harder, better prepare, or resolve the issue, respectively. For this reason, a small doses of anxiety can be beneficial.
When Anxiety Becomes Maladaptive
It’s when anxiety becomes excessive and begins to impair our functions that it’s deemed maladaptive, and may be indicative of an anxiety disorder. The American Psychiatric Association has estimated that nearly 30% of adults are affected by one at some point in their lives. As such, this week we’ll cover some of the common types of anxiety disorders; bringing awareness to what each entails. However, before we’re able to do this, it’s important to define anxiety. Put simply, it’s an emotion characterized by feelings of tension, worried thoughts, and physical changes such as an increased heart rate.
Types of Anxiety Disorders
We’ve decided to introduce the 7 disorders grouped under anxiety in the current edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5-TR), the manual used by psychological professionals to guide their diagnosing.
Panic Disorder
Panic disorders develop due to the fear of experiencing spontaneous and intense panic attacks. A panic attack will generally entail a person to lose their ability to function normally, as reality can appear distorted.
Having a panic attack/disorder can feel like:
Having difficulty, or shortness, in breathing
Rapid heart rate
Feeling dizzy, light-headed, or faint
Chest pain
Numbness or tingling sensations
Consistently avoiding situations that induced previous panic attacks
Intense fear of having a panic attack in a situation where escape is not easy
2. Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD)
GAD entails feeling extreme and persistent apprehension and worry about nonspecific situations that are difficult to control. Regardless of how realistic the feared situation is to happen, people with GAD will still worry about it.
Having GAD can feel like:
Constantly feeling restless or on-edge
Having trouble concentrating due to worries
Having trouble sleeping due to overthinking
Thinking of unrealistic situations in their head and proceeding to get anxious about it
Feeling powerless against their worries
3. Social Anxiety Disorder (SAD)
This disorder entails feeling extreme and persistent apprehension and worry about social situations, such as public speaking, performing in front of a crowd, and social gatherings. People with SAD are afraid to be judged by strangers if they underperform in a performance or interaction. The fear commonly leads them to avoid social situations.
Having SAD can feel like:
Minimizing eye contact
Trembling or shaking leading to nervousness
Experiencing nausea when in the presence of others
Feeling as though they’re constantly being watched or evaluated by others
4. Phobia
Phobias are irrational fears of a specific situation, object, or activity. They often will cause the person to avoid the source of fear altogether, even when it is maladaptive to do so. These people may acknowledge their phobia as illogical or extreme, but are still not able to control their anxious feelings towards the trigger.
Having a phobia can feel like:
Acknowledgement that their fear is irrational
Feeling powerless when in the presence of their source of fear
Experiencing a distorted reality when in the presence of their source of fear
Trembling and shaking
Tightness, or pain, of the chest
5. Agoraphobia
Agoraphobia entails a fear of being in a situation that is difficult to escape, or where limited aid is present when experiencing panic symptoms. The feared situation is actively avoided, requires a companion, or endured with immense anxiety and fear.
Agoraphobia can be a fear of the following situations:
Using public transportation
Being in open spaces
Being in enclosed spaces
Being outside the home alone
6. Separation Anxiety Disorder
This disorder entails an excessive fear about separation from companions with whom they are attached. This attachment provides the person with feelings of security and safety. Although the fear is irrational for the person’s age, it persists.
Separation anxiety disorder can feel like:
Persistent worry about losing the person closest to them
Reluctance to leave home or sleep without their attached person
Experiencing nightmares about separation from their attached person
Physical symptoms of distress
7. Selective Mutism
Selective Mutism entails an inability to speak in certain contexts, even though the person is mentally and physically capable to produce speech, and does so in other contexts. The onset of this disorder is typically in childhood, and often associated with the transition to school. However, left untreated can certainly persist into adulthood.
Selective mutism can feel like:
An inability to produce speech in a certain situation
Excessive shyness
Fear of social embarrassment
Social anxiety
How to Cope With Anxiety
Anxiety can be an overwhelming experience that affects our daily lives. Fortunately, there are several strategies that can help manage and alleviate anxiety symptoms. Some of these strategies are deep breathing, mindfulness meditation, exercise, progressive muscle relaxation, and limiting caffeine. Another effective way to manage symptoms of anxiety is talk therapy. Consulting a mental health professional can help you develop coping strategies and learn relaxation techniques that can manage anxiety symptoms. Therapy can also provide support and guidance to help you manage difficult emotions
Overall, managing anxiety symptoms involves a combination of self-care practices, lifestyle changes, and professional support. With dedication, patience, and support, it is possible to manage anxiety and improve your quality of life.
Get Support From Better Days
If you’d like to learn more about how therapy can help you effectively cope with your anxiety and live a better, more healthy life, contact us today! We offer free consultations and would be happy to help. We encourage you to pick up the phone and call, or email our clinic – whether to set up a consultation, schedule an appointment, or simply learn about our services.
Reach us at info@betterdaystherapy.com or (289) 818-5195.
Sources:
https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/323454
