Characteristics of Anxiety Disorders: how do they manifest?

Anxiety disorders are a group of psychological disorders characterized by excessive and persistent anxiety and worry.. These disorders affect the way a person thinks, feels and behaves, and can have a negative impact on their daily life, interpersonal relationships and emotional well-being. These disorders can vary in their symptoms and presentations, which is why we can classify them into different types and which are the ones that we present below.

• We recommend you read: "Anxiety, emotions and somatization: how are they related?"

Types of Anxiety Disorders

Next, I am going to leave you a classification of the different types of anxiety disorders:

1. Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD)

This type of chronic and persistent anxiety disorder It is characterized by excessive worry and difficult to control about various situations and problems of everyday life.. People with GAD tend to be constantly worried and often display the following symptoms:

• Persistent and excessive worry about various issues such as health, work, money or interpersonal relationships
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• Difficulty controlling worry, despite trying everything to stop it
• Restlessness or feeling constantly on edge
• Fatigue or habitual tiredness for no apparent reason
• muscle tension in the body
• Difficulty falling asleep and/or staying asleep
• irritability as a constant
• Difficulty concentrating
• Sensation that the mind remains blocked, distracted or blank.

2. panic disorder

This type of disorder characterized by the appearance of unexpected and recurrent panic attacks, and usually present with the following symptoms:

• Palpitations, tachycardia, or increased heart rate
• excessive sweating
• Tremors both internal and external
• Feeling short of breath or suffocation
• Choking sensation, lump in the throat, or tightness in the chest
• dizziness or fainting
• Nausea, a knot in the pit of the stomach, or an upset stomach
• Feeling of unreality or disconnection from reality
• Fear of losing control or going crazy
• Affraid to die

3. social anxiety disorder

Also known as social phobia, this disorder characterized by an intense and persistent fear of social situations in which the person fears being judged, humiliated, or embarrassed by others. This disorder can lead to avoidance of social situations and also negatively affect interpersonal relationships. Some of its symptoms are these:

• Preoccupation with anticipation about social situations that will occur in the future
• Fear that others will notice signs of anxiety such as facial flushing, tremors, or sweating
• Difficulty speaking or holding a conversation in a meeting
• Feeling that others are superior and oneself is inferior or unworthy

4. separation anxiety disorder

This disorder is seen primarily in children, although it can also affect adolescents and adults, and characterized by excessive anxiety when separated from attachment figures, such as parents or caregivers. The symptoms that usually manifest in this type of anxiety are the following:

• Excessive concern for the well-being of attachment figures
• Refusal to separate from attachment figures
• Reluctance to leave home or attend school
• Nightmares and/or fear of sleeping alone
• Frequent complaints of physical pain or discomfort when separated from attachment figures
• Difficulty falling asleep without the presence of attachment figures
• Symptoms of anxiety and distress when faced with separation
• Avoidance of activities or places that imply separation, such as staying with a relative with little ties or going to school.

5. Substance-Induced Anxiety Disorder

This kind of anxiety It is experienced by the consumption of substances such as drugs or medications that can cause anxiety symptoms. The most frequent substances that cause this type of anxiety are these: stimulants (amphetamines, cocaine, heroin...), hallucinogenic substances (LSD or psilocybin), alcohol, sedative or hypnotic drugs (such as benzodiazepines or barbiturates), and substances that affect the central nervous system, such as tranquilizers and hypnotic. And its most frequent symptoms are the following:

• continuous nervousness
• Agitation
• palpitations
• sweating
• Tremors throughout the body
• Difficult to focus
• Difficulties falling asleep and/or maintaining it

6. Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

This type of disorder usually appears after a traumatic event has been experienced or witnessed, this being normally a situation in which the person was exposed to a threat of death, serious injury or extreme violence (sexual assault, serious car accidents, natural disasters, violent assaults, violence domestic...). It is characterized by the following symptoms:

• Intrusive and distressing memories of the traumatic event
• Trauma-related nightmares
• Flashbacks, that is, vivid and distressing experiences that make you relive the traumatic event as if it were happening again
• Avoidance of places, people, or activities that are reminiscent of the trauma
• Feelings of emotional numbness or disconnection from others
• Difficulty experiencing positive emotions
• Hypervigilance or constantly being on guard against possible threats
• Irritability and angry outbursts for no apparent reason
• Difficulty falling asleep and/or staying asleep
• Difficulty concentrating

7. Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)

This anxiety disorder characterized by the presence of obsessions (unwanted intrusive thoughts, images, or impulses) and compulsions (repetitive behaviors or mental acts carried out in response to obsessions). The most characteristic symptoms of OCD are the following:

• Fear of contamination or contracting diseases
• Worry about inadvertently causing harm to others
• Thoughts of a sexual or violent nature that are morally unacceptable to the person
• Excessive doubts and need to be sure about things that have already been done
• Repetitive cleaning and washing of hands or objects
• Constant checks such as if the door has been closed or the appliances have been turned off
• Repeating certain actions or words
• Order or arrange objects precisely

conclusions

To finish, I would like to convey two ideas to you. On the one hand, it should be noted that each person can experience anxiety disorders differently and that an accurate diagnosis should always be performed by a mental health professional, setting aside the search for information on the internet or in other sources of information, as well as avoiding comparing ourselves with other cases that we may know about or asking close people about their criterion.

Also, and perhaps most importantly, don't hesitate to seek professional help if you suspect an anxiety disorder; remember that adequate treatment directed by a mental health professional can significantly improve the quality of life and your emotional well-being and prevent greater ills.