What Is Anxiety Disorder? Symptoms, Types and Causes

What Is Anxiety?

Anxiety is the emotional response a person gives when they evaluate a specific situation as threatening. It is an unpleasant, uncomfortable feeling. The origin of the word anxiety is related to “angina,” a term also known from heart disease, and is associated with a sense of tightness.

Anxiety has emotional, cognitive, physical and behavioral components. Emotionally, it may be experienced as fear, excitement, restlessness, tension or a feeling that something bad will happen. Physically, palpitations, shortness of breath, sweating, trembling, dizziness, numbness, tingling, headache, back and shoulder pain may occur.

Cognitively it appears as worry, and behaviorally it may appear as escape, avoidance and safety-seeking behaviors. Panic, obsessions and compulsions may also be associated with anxiety; the clinical meaning of these symptoms should be clarified by professional evaluation.

Are Anxiety and Fear the Same?

Anxiety and fear are often used interchangeably, but there are differences. Fear is experienced in response to a real and specific danger, whereas anxiety is directed toward a possible and uncertain danger. Fear is usually related to an immediate threat, while anxiety is more future-oriented. Fear is often directed toward external dangers, whereas anxiety may relate more to internal or uncertain threat perceptions.

What Is Normal Anxiety?

In daily life, we may feel anxiety in many situations such as exams, job interviews, presentations or performance-related events. Anxiety before an exam may help a person prepare and focus. Therefore, a normal level of anxiety is a natural part of human life.

What Is Pathological Anxiety?

Anxiety is considered pathological when it is excessively intense, chronic, lasts longer than expected and, most importantly, disrupts daily functioning and negatively affects life. At this point, anxiety no longer helps adaptation and may interfere with social, occupational, academic or family life.

What Is Anxiety Disorder?

Anxiety disorders are clinically significant syndromes in which anxiety is seen as a key symptom. In these disorders, anxiety may be excessive, persistent and severe enough to impair functioning.

What Are the Features of Anxiety Disorders?

Anxiety disorders are among the common mental health conditions. It has been reported that approximately one in five people may experience an anxiety disorder at some point in life. Anxiety disorders may be more common in women, may have a chronic course and may fluctuate with periods of worsening and improvement.

They may co-occur with other mental health conditions, especially other anxiety disorders, depression and alcohol-substance use disorders. The common feature of these disorders is that anxiety is excessive, persistent, distressing and impairing. People with anxiety disorders often avoid situations that trigger anxiety.

What Is Panic Disorder?

In panic disorder, sudden and unexpected panic attacks occur. During a panic attack, there is intense fear. Dizziness, feeling faint, shortness of breath, choking sensation, palpitations, sweating, trembling and other symptoms may occur. The person may fear death, going crazy or losing control.

The attack usually decreases after a period of time; however, the person may become worried about having more attacks or about the consequences of future attacks. Over time, people with panic disorder may avoid elevators, buses or airplanes, traveling alone or leaving home. This may occur with agoraphobia.

What Is Social Anxiety Disorder?

In social anxiety disorder, excessive fear and avoidance occur in situations requiring interaction or performance. The focus of fear is being criticized, negatively evaluated or doing something embarrassing in front of others.

People may be especially distressed by symptoms such as blushing, sweating or hand tremor being noticed by others. Speaking in public, giving presentations, meeting new people or being in social settings may cause significant distress and may be avoided.

What Is Generalized Anxiety Disorder?

People with generalized anxiety disorder are persistently worried about various issues. The source of anxiety is often everyday matters, such as work, health, family, school, finances or the future.

Worries may be accompanied by irritability, tension, restlessness, feeling on edge, insomnia, fatigue and difficulty concentrating. The person has difficulty controlling the worry and may eventually begin to worry about worrying.

What Are Specific Phobias?

Specific phobia involves excessive fear and avoidance of certain objects or situations. Examples include animals, insects, airplanes, elevators, enclosed spaces, heights, water, blood, injections and injury.

Fewer people may seek treatment for specific phobias alone, partly because they become used to living by avoiding the feared object or situation. However, people with blood-injection-injury phobia may avoid blood tests or going to the hospital, which can negatively affect their health. Fainting tendency may also occur in blood-injection-injury phobia.

How Do Anxiety Disorders Develop?

Anxiety disorders often develop when stressful life events interact with an existing vulnerability. Genetic factors play a role in their development. First-degree relatives of people with anxiety disorders may have higher rates of anxiety disorders than relatives of people without these disorders.

Traumatic experiences during development, such as abuse, neglect, abandonment or humiliation, may lead the child to develop beliefs that they are under threat and unable to cope. Later in life, when a stressful situation is perceived as similar to past experiences and evaluated as a threat that cannot be managed, the anxiety process may begin.

In addition to childhood traumatic experiences, the child’s relationship with parents is also thought to be important in anxiety development. Children of overprotective parents may be at increased risk. Parents’ excessive preoccupation with possible threats may also contribute to anxiety development in the child.

Neuroticism is a temperament trait considered an important risk factor for anxiety. People with lower neuroticism may be more emotionally stable and less reactive to stress, while people with higher neuroticism may be more anxious, pessimistic and emotionally reactive.

Is There a Biological Aspect of Anxiety Disorders?

From a physiological perspective, anxiety disorders are explained by changes in certain brain regions and in the levels of chemical messengers called neurotransmitters. The main chemical messengers known to play a role in anxiety disorders include GABA, norepinephrine and serotonin. Dopamine and glutamate may also be involved.

Medication treatment for anxiety disorders targets these neurochemical systems. However, treatment is not limited to medication; psychotherapy, lifestyle adjustments, sleep regulation and addressing coexisting depression or substance use may also be part of the treatment plan.

If anxiety negatively affects daily life, consulting a specialist is one of the healthiest steps.

Frequently Asked Questions

References

1. Academic Hospital. Anksiyete Bozukluğu: Belirtileri ve Nedenleri Nelerdir?
2. NIMH. Anxiety Disorders
3. NIMH. Generalized Anxiety Disorder
4. Mayo Clinic. Anxiety Disorders - Symptoms and Causes
5. Mayo Clinic. Anxiety Disorders - Diagnosis and Treatment
6. NICE. Generalised Anxiety Disorder and Panic Disorder in Adults: Management