Anxiety Disorders

Anxiety is a physiological state that creates emotional, cognitive, physical, and behavioral responses. It is characterized as feelings of worry, nervousness, fear, anticipation, apprehension, and is sometimes described as having “butterflies in my stomach." 

While anxiety is a normal and common reaction that all people experience at some point in their life, the feelings it creates can be overwhelming at times.  Normal anxiety is generally mild, brief, manageable, and is often triggered by a stressful event.  For some individuals, however, anxiety is significantly more severe and impairs their ability to conduct normal life functions.  This type of anxiety represents an Anxiety Disorder* and affects about 40 million American adults age 18 years and older (about 18%) each year (NIHM).

Anxiety Disorders* Include: 

Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder

Characterized by obsessions causing anxiety or distress leading to compulsions that serve to neutralize the distress.

  Posttraumatic Stress Disorder

The reexperiencing of an extrelemly traumatic event accompanined by symptoms of increased arousal and avoidance of stimuli associated with the event.

 Generalized Anxiety Disorder

At least 6 months of persistant and excessive anxiety and worry.

 Panic Attack

Discrete period in which there is the sudden onset of intense apprehension, fearfulness, or terror, often associated with feelings of impending doom.

Agoraphobia

Anxiety about, or avoidance of, places or situations from which escape might be difficult (or embarrasing) or in which help may not be available in the event of having a panic attack or panic-like symptoms.

Specific Phobia

Characterized by clinically significant anxiety provoked by exposure to a specific feared object or situation, often leading to avoidance behavior.

Social Phobia

Characterized by clinically significant anxiety provoked by exposure to certain types of social or performance situations, often leading to avaoidance behavior.

Acute Stress Disorder

Symptoms simialr to those of PTSD that occur immediately in the aftermath of an extremely traumatic event.

Anxiety Disorder Due to General Medical Condition

Prominent symptoms of anxiety that are judged to be a direct physiological consequence of a general medical condition

Substance -Induced Anxiety Disorder

Prominent symptoms of anxiety that are judged to be a direct physiclogical consequence of a drug of abuse, medication, or toxin.

RELATED LINKS

1. Anxiety Disorders - National Institute of Mental Health
2. Children and Adolescents with Anxiety Disorders - SAHMSA
3. Cochrane Collaboration Review: Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Anxiety Disorders in Children and Adolescents

* - As defined by the DSM-IV,  the National Institute of Mental Health, and the National

     Alliance on Mental Health.