January 25, 2023

Experiencing Occasional Anxiety

By Jessica Cantrell

General Description

Occasional anxiety is a normal part of life. However, people with anxiety disorders often have intense, excessive, and persistent worries and fears about everyday situations. Often in anxiety disorders there are repeated episodes of sudden feelings of intense anxiety and fear or terror that peak within minutes (panic attacks).

These feelings of anxiety and panic interfere with daily activities, are difficult to control, are disproportionate to the actual danger, and can last for a long time. In order to prevent these feelings, it may happen that you avoid certain places or situations. Symptoms may begin in childhood or adolescence and continue into adulthood.

Some examples of anxiety disorder are generalized anxiety disorder, social anxiety disorder (social phobia), specific phobias, and separation anxiety disorder. You can have more than one anxiety disorder. Sometimes anxiety arises from an illness that requires treatment.

Symptoms

The most common signs and symptoms of anxiety include the following:

  • Feeling of nervousness, agitation, or tension.
  • The feeling of impending danger, panic, or catastrophe
  • Increased heart rate
  • Rapid breathing (hyperventilation)
  • Sweating
  • Tremors
  • Feeling weak or tired
  • Trouble concentrating or thinking about anything other than the current worry
  • Having trouble falling asleep
  • Having gastrointestinal (GI) problems
  • Having difficulty controlling worries
  • Having the need to avoid anxiety-provoking situations

There are several types of anxiety disorders:

Agoraphobia is a type of anxiety disorder in which you fear places and situations that may cause you to panic or make you feel trapped, helpless, or embarrassed, and often try to avoid them.

Anxiety disorder due to illness includes intense anxiety or panic symptoms that are directly caused by a physical health problem.

Generalized anxiety disorder is characterized by persistent, excessive anxiety and worries about activities or events, including common, routine matters. The worry is out of proportion to the current situation, is difficult to control, and affects the way you feel physically. It often occurs along with other anxiety disorders or depression.

Panic disorder involves repeated episodes of sudden feelings of intense anxiety and fear or terror that peak within minutes (panic attacks). You may have feelings of impending doom, shortness of breath, chest pain, or rapid, pounding, or fluttering heartbeats (heart palpitations). These panic attacks may cause the person to worry that they will happen again or to avoid situations in which they have happened.

Professional female psychotherapist during therapy session with crying little girl with emotional problems, suffering from child depression

Selective mutism is a consistent inability of children to speak in certain situations, such as at school, even when they can speak in other situations, such as at home with close family members. This can affect performance in school, at work, or in society.

Separation anxiety disorder is a childhood disorder characterized by anxiety that is excessive for the child’s developmental level and is related to separation from parents or others who serve a parental role.

Social anxiety disorder (social phobia) involves high levels of anxiety, fear, or rejection of social situations due to feelings of embarrassment, insecurity, and concern about being judged or perceived negatively by others. To get more information, info-packed articles, current news, tools, and resources, you may check out the best cbd for anxiety uk for more tips and ideas.

Specific phobias are characterized by marked anxiety when the person is exposed to a specific object or situation, and a desire to avoid it. In some people, phobias provoke panic attacks.

Substance-induced anxiety disorder is characterized by intense anxiety or panic symptoms that are the direct result of drug abuse, such as taking medication, exposure to a toxic substance, or drug withdrawal.

Another specific and nonspecific anxiety disorder is a term for anxiety and phobias that do not meet the exact criteria for some other anxiety disorders but are relevant enough to be alarming and disturbing.