Anxiety is a normal human sensation – we all feel it at times. 

Sometimes, your body causes you to feel anxious to make you aware of a possible danger or a nerve-wracking situation. This is part of the natural fight-flight response. 

Unfortunately, too much anxiety in your life can also make it difficult for you to function as normal. When you’re constantly worried about the symptoms of fear and anxiety getting in the way of your daily activities, it’s time to seek help. 

Today, we’re going to discuss the basics of anxiety, from what an anxiety attack feels like, to the different kinds of anxiety disorders that an expert can help you to overcome. 

What are anxiety disorders?

Anxiety disorders are what happen when your stress and anxiety levels are so high, it’s difficult for you to live your life. While it’s normal to have anxious feelings when you’re starting a new job, or moving to a new place, severe anxiety shouldn’t form the backdrop of your day-to-day activities. 

If you have an anxiety disorder, this indicates that your anxiety symptoms are around almost all of the time, in various situations. You might find that your symptoms spike in social situations, or that you get physical symptoms whenever you’re reminded of a traumatic event. 

Anxiety disorders often feel debilitating, and may prevent you from leaving your home, or even doing things that you enjoy. That’s why it’s so important to find the right treatment to reduce your anxiety levels. 

The good news is that you’re not alone in dealing with these symptoms. 

There are hundreds of anxiety memes and quotes out there that demonstrate how many people share your concerns. What’s more, the American Psychiatric Association notes that anxiety is one of the most common emotional disorders in the world. 

What are the types of anxiety disorder?

People with anxiety disorders can fall into a lot of different categories, from those with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), to people with social phobia, generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), separation anxiety disorder and more. Some people even experience co-occurring disorders, which means that they have anxious feelings in many situations and circumstances. 

Some of the better known types of anxiety include:

• Social anxiety: This is when symptoms of fear or a panic disorder emerge in social situations. Social anxiety disorder can be quite common. 
• Panic disorder: This refers to a condition where you might have frequent panic attacks and physical symptoms like feelings of shortness of breath or sweating caused by the fight-or-flight response. 
• Post-traumatic stress disorder: This is when your fear and anxiety is often triggered by specific situations or memories. You might get panic attack symptoms when reminded of an issue from your past. 
• Postpartum depression: This condition centers around a specific phobia and causes feelings of anxiety or depression related to motherhood. 
• Obsessive-compulsive disorder: With this kind of disorder, your anxiety levels will be heightened by recurring irrational thoughts that lead you to performing certain behaviors. 

Everything from social anxiety, to depression and anxiety can fall under the umbrella of an “anxiety disorder”. Speaking to a doctor or therapist about the kind of mental illness that might be affecting you ensures that you get the right treatment to improve your mental health. 

The Symptoms and Causes of Anxiety

There isn’t a one-size-fits-all cause of anxiety disorders that applies to everyone. 

Most experts believe that a variety of factors play a role in your mental health, and risk of things like generalized anxiety disorder, or social anxiety disorder. For instance, if you once had a bad time in a social situation, or dealt with bullying at school, then your body might have begun to produce the fight-or-flight reaction when you’re in similar environments. 

In addition, some researchers believe that brain chemistry and the areas of the brain responsible for controlling fear have an impact on your risk of panic attacks, and anxiety disorders. 

To further inform the anxiety disorders DSM 5, researchers are currently exploring our human feelings of apprehension, and how certain things can influence our feelings. For instance, there are studies out there into adjustment disorder with anxiety ICD 10, unspecified anxiety disorder, generalized anxiety disorder (ICD 10) and more. 

The more research we do, the easier it is to find anxiety medication and treatments that are effective for patients. In the meantime, it helps for people to be aware of the common symptoms of anxiety, so they know when to seek help. For instance, symptoms of an anxiety disorder might include:

• Panic attacks with increased heart rate and rapid breathing
• Other physical symptoms like feelings of breathlessness
• Sweaty palms or excess sweating
• Restlessness, or inability to stay still
• Trouble with falling asleep or staying asleep
• Irrational fear or worry
• Trouble concentrating

What are The Treatments for Anxiety?

If you are ever diagnosed with a mental health condition like panic disorder, anxiety, or depression, a doctor will be able to guide you into getting the best possible treatment. The kind of treatment you get will depend on the feelings that you have. For instance, if you have both anxiety and depression, or post-traumatic stress conditions, your doctor might recommend talking therapies, combined with the right anti-anxiety medications. 

A common treatment for anxiety includes combining behavioural therapy for anxiety or depression anti-anxiety drugs like:

• Lamictal for anxiety
• Depakote for anxiety
• Wellbutrin for anxiety
• Lexapro for anxiety
• Mirtazapine anxiety medications

Finding the right item on an anti-anxiety drugs list for you will help you to manage your feelings and reduce the physical symptoms of anxiety. In the meantime, tools like cognitive-behavioral therapy can work alongside the best SSRI for anxiety to help you understand how you feel in certain situations and improve your mental health. 

An anxiety or depression therapist can also provide guidance during your anxiety disorder treatment, on how you can reduce your risk of symptoms. For instance, this could include finding the source of your fear or avoiding things that might worsen your condition. For example, nicotine and anxiety often make for a bad pair, as do alcohol and anxiety. 

As with most conditions, the path to success starts with finding the right treatment from the right expert. You can overcome anxiety with the right help.