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Fact Sheets
Fact Sheet
Anxiety disorders: types, causes, and symptoms
Photo by: Rima Xaros
Anxiety versus anxiety disorders
Everyone gets anxious from time to time. Anxiety can help you stay safe. For example, it brings about physiological symptoms that warn you to fight, flee or freeze in dangerous situations. Anxiety also helps you perform better. For example, feeling anxious before an exam can assist you to stay alert, which helps you to do your best. It’s not uncommon to feel anxious before exams or when there are stressful events in your life. For more info, check out the Anxiety fact sheet.
If this anxiety is interfering with many areas of your day-to-day life like schoolwork or relationships, it’s possible that you have an anxiety disorder. Anxiety disorders can make you feel nervous a lot of the time, for long periods of time, and in a lot of different situations.
Anxiety disorders affect about 40 million Americans, so if you have an anxiety disorder you are definitely not alone.
What causes anxiety and anxiety disorders?
Anxiety can be part your genetic and biochemical make up, as well as part of your personality. There are many things that can trigger anxiety, such as your environment, stressful situations like school exams, problems within the family, or a traumatic event.
Some the causes of an anxiety disorder might be:
- Genetics. A history of anxiety within your family;
- Biochemical. An imbalance of the chemicals in the brain that regulate feelings and physical reactions, which can alter your thoughts, emotions or behavior;
- A stressful event. A single event or chain of events such as divorce, abuse, ongoing bullying at school, sexual abuse, a death, a relationship break-up, or family conflict;
- Personality. Certain personality types are more at risk of anxiety than others.
Symptoms
Symptoms can vary depending on each different anxiety disorder. For more information, follow the relevant link next to the anxiety disorder you want to know more about.
Types of anxiety disorders
There are many different types of anxiety disorders, each with their own symptoms and treatments. Here is a list of examples:
General anxiety is an extreme and uncontrollable worry that is not specific to any one thing.
Social anxiety or social phobia involves a fear of social or performance situations (such as meeting new people) in which an individual may be embarrassed. People with social anxiety commonly avoid social situations. Check out the Social anxiety fact sheet for more info.
Agoraphobia is anxiety about being in places or situations from which escape might be difficult or embarrassing if an individual has a panic attack. It usually leads to avoidance of certain places and situations.
Claustrophobia is the fear of enclosed or confined spaces. People with claustrophobia may experience panic attacks, or fear of having a panic attack, in situations such as being in elevators or trains.
Panic disorder occurs when you have regular panic attacks. Some people may develop agoraphobia as a result of the panic attacks. Check out the Panic Attacks fact sheet for more info.
Specific phobias involve intense and ongoing fear of particular objects or situations. Seeing the object you’re afraid of might trigger a panic attack. Usually the object or situation is avoided.
Hypochondria refers to an extreme concern or worry about having a serious illness. People with hypochondria have a constant fixation with their body, self-examining and self-diagnosing.
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) involves unwanted thoughts and impulses or obsessions and repetitive, routine behaviors, also called compulsions. Check out the OCD fact sheet for more info.
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is an anxiety disorder sparked by a major traumatic event, such as rape or accident. It is marked by upsetting memories, “blunting” of emotions, and difficulties sleeping. Check out the PTSD fact sheet for more info.
Treatments
There are a number of treatments for the different anxiety disorders. It might be a good idea to research the disorder relevant to you and arrange to see your doctor. They should be able to tell you about the different treatment options available and let you know what the best approach is for you.
Try to remember that managing your anxiety disorder may take time and there may be good days and not so good days. Dealing with your anxiety disorder is possible.
Getting help for an anxiety disorder
There are a number of things you can do to help you manage an anxiety disorder. Follow the link related to the specific anxiety disorder to get more information on specific treatments.
You can also look at the Anxiety Disorders of America for more information.
The following source provided information for this fact sheet:
Statistics provided by the National Institute of Mental Health.
Comments
Responses
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windwalker98I’m not sure if I have anxiety. I think I do. I have to stay home alone for 35 minutes when I get home from school. What I usually do in that time is run for about 15 minutes. I listen to my ipod and try to make the time pass faster and when I listen to the music, my brain will start thinking all these weird thoughts, like someones watching me and then my body will get all prepared to fight the “something” that’s watching me. I’ll get off my running machine thingy and I’ll go to check all of the hiding places in my house, but as I go to get off my machine, the same thought usually comes to me. “If they see you looking for them, they’ll kill you right then”. Then I will try not to make a sound until someone comes home. Then, at night, I have to asemble my blankets in a way that will make it look like I’m not in them, so then I think to myself “Oh, it’s okay, if someone comes in, they’ll think I’m at a friends house, or something” and I always get these kind of thoughts about how something bad has to happen to me. I want this to go away, but I’ve tried talking to my mom and she just says it’s all in my head. What do I do?
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ReachOut StaffHi there,
So sorry to hear about your worries. Even when we know something is highly unlikely it can still create a worry for us. This seems to be the case for you. When people feel this way sometimes getting some short term professional help can be reassuring. This might be something you would like to talk to your school counselor about. Some other things that might be helpful could include checking out the Challenging Negative Self Talk fact sheet on ReachOut.com. This fact sheet may give you some hints for challenging some of your irrational thinking that contributes to your worries. Another idea might be to give the Boys Town National Hotline (1-800-448-3000) a call during that time that you’re alone after school. You could give them a call every day and that would be perfectly fine with the hotline. They are available (and not for boys only) 24/7 just to listen. And we don’t know if this is a possibility for you, but your local library might be a spot to its end sometime after school so that 35 minutes is and spent at home. We are thinking about you. The Reach Out Crew
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xpaganprincessxim 19 and i think i have GAD but i dont know if anyone will take me seriously because i always think there is something wrong with me. struggling with body image for years, and do have poor health. i am married to a navy corpsman who works a lot. i always feel terrible and i am pretty sure he is sick of it. i am for sure. i cry all the time for no reason. i feel so alone and i dont know what to do. i have so much to say but it hurts to think of it.
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ReachOut StaffHi there -
Thanks for writing to ReachOut. You might find some relief in sharing your feelings with a mental health professional who will listen and help. Can you find out if there are mental health supports that you can access at the base where your husband is assigned? for more ideas on types of mental health professionals and how to find someone in your community, check out the Get Help, Finding People to Help and Support You tab in the ReachOut.com homepage.
and if you want to speak with someone right now -give the boys Town National Hotline a call at 1-800-448-3000. They are available 24/7 to listen and help you think through how to get help!
We are thinking of you.
the ReachOut Crew
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lcandy5541i think i may or may not have an anxiety disorder, sometime last year we had a storm that produced a microburst and it blew the window in as i was telling my mom and my instant reaction was to grab this bean bag and throw it on top of me to protect myself from flying glass, ever since then, i have been terrified of sever weather so on nights when i hear there is a chance of a storm, i sit up all through the night making sure it won’t be bad and if it is I tell my mom and she usually won’t react and then my brain panics, because i can flee away and i get upset and mad… i hate it
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ReachOut StaffHi there -
It can be very normal to have this type of response after the type of scare you had. However if your fears persist, the best way to confirm if indeed you have an anxiety disorder is to meet with a mental health professional. You may want to check out the Get Help, People Who Can Help and Support You section of ReachOut.com. A mental health professional can also help you learn some coping skills for staying calm when confronted by a “stressor”.
We hope this helps!
The ReachOut Crew
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ChocolatechickHi there,
I’m a 16 year old girl who has anxiety and OCD. When people think of anxiety they usually think of stomach aches or just being anxious..but whenever I’m doing something out of my usual every day schedule I get this horrible pain in my stomach and throw up. Two years ago I threw up every morning as soon as I woke up. I would wake up, throw up and then go to school. In school I would just be sad and feel lonely.. I did and do have friends but something inside of me just pushed me down. One time I even got such bad anxiety and stomach ache that I passed out and was taken to the emergency! But luckily my parents realized that I needed help, and today I take medicine and see a psychiatrist every month. There are still times when I feel sad or depressed, but I haven’t vomited much since I saw the psychiatrist and I’m definitely feeling much better today than I did two years ago! I’m also able to try new things without getting really bad anxiety. However, I haven’t heard of anyone else having similar symptoms though…any ideas of what type of anxiety I had/have? Or where I can read more about it? I’m so happy I found this website, I’m sure it’s a big help to many people!
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ReachOut StaffThanks for writing to ReachOut and we are glad to hear that our site has been helpful. Your psychiatrist would be a good source for additional information about your diagnosis since he or she will be most familiar with your symptoms. Do you feel comfortable asking for more information? How anxiety manifests itself from one person to another can have some differences. So good to hear you are doing better and that getting help, did indeed help. Keep up the good work!
The ReachOut Crew
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kid_1233i just started high school and im at least a month into it. i have a ton of honors classes and my parents dont want me to drop out of them, so i have to study as hard as i really can…ive noticed that some kids snicker at me as i go by them or when i say something in class or am trying to answer a question…i dont know if its the way i normally act, but most times i have to stay in my room after school and not bother doing my homework for 10-20 minutes, sometimes i cry when i do this…i dont know if i should ask my parents to take me to a doctor because they might think im being obnoxious…how do you think i should handle this situation?
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ReachOut StaffHi there -
It sounds like you are under a lot of stress with your honors classes and homework, and then having some kids not treat you very well has just added to those feelings. It’s never a good idea to keep things bottled up inside, so we encourage you to let your parents know how you feel and what’s been happening. You might also think about reaching out to your school counselor or a teacher you feel you can trust. And remember, you can always call the Boys Town National hotline (1-800-448-3000) if you would like to have someone listen right now. We are thinking of you.
the ReachOut Crew
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tiaraIs there a type of anxiety where you feel like everything is going to tear apart? Because none of these fit me but people constantly ask if I have anxiety and I know I have some type of mental issue. But I’m not afraid of people or illness, just failing, regreting, and when stuff like the Earth quake from Japan happens, I flip out for a few days. Help?
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ReachOut StaffHi tiara. We can’t diagnose your anxiety, but it does sound like it would help you to see a professional who can and to get some help so you can cope with your feelings around failure/regret and scary world events. See our section on getting help for mental health issues for more. Take care,
The ReachOut Crew
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AlexxFetielSo i get really bad anxiety when it comes to public speaking..almost to the point where i pass out from it..and i might have to go back to a normal high school instead of the one i’m currently at because i when i get inf ront of people i freeze up or just walk out.. and i dont know what to do..
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ReachOut StaffThat must be really uncomfortable for you. Anxiety is something you can learn to manage. Many people who have similar experiences find it helpful to meet with a mental health professional who can help you develop skills and strategies. You might want to check out the Finding People to Help and Support You section on ReachOut http://us.reachout.com/get-help/finding-people-to-help-and-support-you We ar.e thinking of you.
The ReachOut Crew