Anxiety disorders affect an estimated 40 million adults in the United States. Anxiety symptoms may be chronic or acute, mild or severe, and may interfere with all areas of a person's life. Several different anxiety disorders exist, each with similar symptoms but different diagnostic criteria. Treatment of anxiety disorders is focused on reducing the frequency and severity of anxiety symptoms, while attempting to uncover any underlying issues that may be causing the anxiety.
Identification
Symptoms of anxiety differ from person to person and vary depending on the specific anxiety disorder. Generally they include feelings of apprehension, feeling jumpy or tense, trouble concentrating, restlessness, irritability, sweating, pounding heart, insomnia, shortness of breath, fatigue, headaches, dizziness and tremors.
Types
Different types of anxiety disorders cause different symptoms ranging from the obsessions and compulsions of OCD, to the acute overwhelming panic of panic disorder. Some also experience chronic, low-grade feelings of insecurity, worry and stress associated with generalized anxiety disorder.
Causes
Anxiety disorders are believed to be caused by a combination of genetics, brain chemistry and personality. Anxiety symptoms resulting from these disorders are a result of the body releasing excessive amounts of certain chemicals in response to a perceived threat, also known as the "fight or flight" response.
Prevention/Solution
Prevention and treatment of anxiety symptoms involves a combination of lifestyle changes, psychotherapy and medications used to prevent or treat symptoms of acute anxiety attacks.
Considerations
Anxiety symptoms may occur along with other physical or mental disorders or may mimic the symptoms of other disorders, making misdiagnosis likely in cases where one or more disorders are present in the same person.
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