It is perfectly normal to feel anxious from time to time especially in instances when faced with intense situations like when you are addressing a large number of people, being interviewed for a job, before making an important decision etc. Anxiety increases your breathing and heart rate, concentrating blood flow to your brain, where you need it.
If you are going through stressful life experiences, your risk of getting an anxiety disorder increases.
Common symptoms of anxiety include;
- Panic, fear, and uneasiness
- Sleep problems
- Not being able to stay calm and still
- Cold, sweaty, numb or tingling hands or feet
- Shortness of breath
- Heart palpitations
- Dry mouth
- Nausea
- Tense muscles
Types of anxiety disorders
1. Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD)
It is characterized by persistent and excessive worry about a number of different things. People with GAD may anticipate disaster and may be overly concerned about money, health, family, work, or other issues. Individuals with GAD find it difficult to control their worry. They may worry more than seems warranted about actual events or may expect the worst even when there is no apparent reason for concern.
2. Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD)
This is an anxiety disorder in which a person has recurring, unwanted thoughts, ideas or sensations (obsessions) that make them feel driven to do something repetitively (compulsions). Symptoms usually begin gradually and vary throughout life. Common obsessive thoughts in OCD include:
- Fear of being contaminated by germs or dirt or contaminating others
- Fear of losing control and harming yourself or others
- Intrusive sexually explicit or violent thoughts and images
- Excessive focus on religious or moral ideas
- Fear of losing or not having things you might need
3. Panic Disorder
Panic disorder is an anxiety disorder characterized by reoccurring unexpected panic attacks. Panic attacks are sudden periods of intense fear that may include palpitations, sweating, shaking, shortness of breath, numbness, or a feeling that something terrible is going to happen. It should be noted that there is a difference between anxiety attack and panic attack. In anxiety attack, you may feel fearful, apprehensive, may feel your heart racing or feel short of breath, but it’s very short lived, and when the stressor goes away, so does the anxiety attack. Panic attack on the other hand doesn’t come in reaction to a stressor. It’s unprovoked and unpredictable.
4. Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
This is a disorder characterized by failure to recover after witnessing or experiencing a terrifying, shocking, scary, or dangerous event such as sexual assault, warfare, road accident, or other threats on a person’s life. Symptoms may include disturbing thoughts, feelings, or dreams related to the events which last for more than a month after the event. Young children are less likely to show distress, but instead may express their memories through play. A person with PTSD is at a higher risk for suicide and intentional self-harm.
5. Social Phobia (or Social Anxiety Disorder)
This is a mental health condition which causes an intense, persistent fear of being watched and judged by others. For people with social anxiety disorder, everyday social interactions cause irrational anxiety, fear, self-consciousness and embarrassment.
In contrast to everyday nervousness, social anxiety disorder includes fear, anxiety and avoidance that interfere with daily routine, work, school or other activities. Social anxiety disorder typically begins in the early to mid-teens, though it can sometimes start in younger children or in adults.
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