ANXIETY DISORDERS

ANXIETY is the central bond in the chain that links Fears and Phobias.

Anxiety is the emotion which you feel when your body is preparing itself to respond to some form of perceived threat. Threat may come in many forms. If the source of anxiety is within you and your thought processes then these are Fears.   If the ‘threat’ comes from a specific external object or a specific situation then these are Phobias .

Whatever prompts the emotion, the body’s response to these perceived threats uses more or less the same mechanism, differing only in its degree of intensity and the timescale in which it’s produced.

Anxiety disorders are conditions where your feelings of anxiety are so severe or happen so often that they interfere with your everyday life.

The body’s response uses elements of the ‘flight or fight response’ rooted in evolution and the primitive need to survive life-threatening dangers in the environment.

In response to messages from your brain, internal chemicals, adrenaline and cortisol, are produced in a gland atop your kidneys, the Adrenal glands. They are swept into the bloodstream and then around the whole body. As they reach each organ, such as your heart or brain or muscle, then special receptors in those organs cause particular physical effects.  Details of how the  body responds to perceived threat is in the Neuro-biology of Anxiety section.

It is these physical effects we recognise, as well as the psychological. The experience of those physical effects gives rise to that feeling  which for most of us is very unpleasant. However short-lived, mild anxiety is a common response to situations perceived as  potentially difficult, e.g. examinations and may even enhance performance.

If experienced with an instant onset then we call this ACUTE ANXIETY and it may be extreme enough to be experienced as a Panic Attack. If experienced as very, intense fear for up to 30 minutes, often without a specific reason, then it is known as Acute Anxiety  or ‘PANIC  Disorder’ (Panic Attacks).

If prolonged and/or recurrent then we call this CHRONIC ANXIETY  and if the anxiety you experience is relatively constantly present and persistent, called ‘Generalised Anxiety’ .If this is primarily work-related and repetitive then it may lead to BURNOUT.

Alternatively, the anxiety, even panic, may be linked to repetitive all-consuming thoughts – obsessions, and actions or rituals you may feel compelled to carry out, often to relieve the anxiety. This is Obsessive-Compulsive disorder.

If the panic attack is linked to earlier traumatic episodes in one’s life, then it may be known ‘Post-traumatic stress disorder’.

ANXIETY DISORDERS (Fears) SUMMARY:

Generalised Anxiety disorder: Feelings of worry or unease for much of the time and significantly affecting your life and relationships. Symptoms may last for months or longer, and as you feel unable to exert little control over them, adds to feelings of vulnerability and powerlessness.

Panic Disorder: Discrete periods of intense fear leading to panic or panic attack.

Obsessive-compulsive disorder: Anxiety linked to repetitive thoughts and actions.

Post-traumatic Stress Disorder: Anxiety linked to traumatic episodes (which may or may not be remembered). There are multiple effects on behaviour and sleep patterns.