There are different types of anxiety, although people often talk about anxiety as something pervasive . In psychological terms, we can speak from mild anxiety episodes to severe anxiety disorders, and each must be addressed in different ways.
Taking the above into account, we want you to know the different types of anxiety that exist and how to address them.
What is an anxiety disorder?
Anxiety disorder is a permanent feeling of anguish, intense fear, or acute stress that affects a person’s daily activities.
Currently the term “Anxiety” is used indiscriminately to refer to everyday discomforts such as impatience or even episodes of mild or moderate anxiety, such as the nerves you feel before an important exam or a job interview. However, when we talk about anxiety disorders as such, we are referring to pathological anxiety that affects a person’s mental health and quality of life.
In the same way, it is important to clarify that more than a singular anxiety, there are different types of anxiety disorders , such as phobias, post-traumatic stress disorder, or Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, among others that we will explore below.
What types of anxiety are there?
There are different anxiety disorders, and these are determined according to the levels of anxiety experienced by the person and the degree of affectation it has on their life.
There are different symptoms that can refer to anxiety as a natural response to stress, in which case we would speak of mild or moderate anxiety, and other pathological symptoms that would place the person within the spectrum of mental disorders, due to the intensity of sensations and their effects in everyday life.
Taking the above into account, among the most common types of anxiety we find:
Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD)
Generalized Anxiety Disorder is the name given to a feeling of constant anguish that interferes with a person’s day-to-day life.
Some of the most recurring symptoms are: Permanent worry, a tendency to overthink things, feeling that there are constant threats, difficulty concentrating, and even physical symptoms such as exhaustion and sleep disorders.
Phobias
Phobias are categorized within the Types of Anxiety, due to the intense fear that the person feels. A phobia is an irrational fear of things or situations that do not represent a real or imminent danger.
Phobias can arise from a traumatic event, or they can be related to the associations that the person has with the signifiers and meanings associated with what triggers the phobia.
An example would be someone who is in a car accident and awakens an irrational fear of using a car again.
There are different types of phobias , the most common are:
Social phobia
Social phobia is a type of acute anxiety in which social interactions create a state of anxiety, nervousness, or fear . Among the most important symptoms is the fear of being exposed to situations where the person may feel judged, constant worry about offending someone or fear of feeling humiliated.
Specific phobia
Specific phobias are a feeling of panic in front of particular objects or things that trigger panic attacks or panic attacks in the person . An example of this would be arachnophobia, which is the irrational fear of spiders, or claustrophobia, which is the fear of enclosed spaces.
Agoraphobia
The fear of being in open places or spaces that may represent facing situations of shame or discomfort is known as agoraphobia . When someone has agoraphobia they avoid going out, they are afraid of being in places other than their safe space and they avoid at all costs places where they might experience something that causes them shame.
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD)
This is a disorder characterized by the constant presence of thoughts, especially fatalistic ones, that force the person to develop rituals or repetitive behaviors. OCD is characterized by the constant presence of tragic thoughts, or the need to check the doors several times before going to sleep , or brushing the teeth in a specific way, things that if they don’t trigger anxiety crises in the person.
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
Post-traumatic stress disorder is characterized by a feeling of anguish or anxiety after a traumatic event such as an accident, mistreatment or abuse situation, in which the person presents a generalized fear, nightmares, sudden memories about the experience and the tendency to avoiding situations or things that remind you of the trauma.
Other anxiety disorders
In most of the disorders mentioned, people experience panic attacks with physical symptoms such as a sensation of suffocation or tachycardia.
In addition to those mentioned, we also find Panic Disorder, where people experience constant anxiety attacks , in which they feel the threat of an imminent danger that can generate a catastrophe, although there is no external stimulus that triggers the situation.
Are anxiety disorders very common?
Anxiety disorders are more common than you imagine, people of all ages can suffer from them, they are currently considered to be the most common disorders in the world, and according to the WHO, 25% of the world population can suffer from them. suffering from any of the types of anxiety at any time in your life.
Is anxiety associated with other disorders?
Anxiety disorders do not just mean being worried, but also, according to their degree or intensity, they can be related to other disorders such as depression, sleep disorders or even eating disorders.
Causes of anxiety disorder
The main causes of anxiety are constant exposure to stressful environments or situations, and the experience of a traumatic event.
They can also appear due to social factors such as the way we relate to each other, cultural factors such as religious beliefs or positions, the presence of physical illnesses or the experience of shocking social events such as a war, a pandemic or a natural catastrophe.
Anxiety disorder treatments
There are different treatments for anxiety disorders such as pharmacological treatments in which the psychiatrist treats the patient according to their symptoms, psychotherapy where they work on understanding the symptoms with a psychologist and the development of different practices such as meditation. or even the use of natural medicines.
Bearing in mind that technology is currently a great help, there is a platform, developed by Psiconnea , where people can evaluate their mental and emotional situation, in order to find the necessary tools to work on their condition.
n this platform, based on the information provided, you will be able to identify if you need to see a specialist, or if in your case you can take care of your mental health through the personalized monitoring that Psiconnea does so that you can develop practices and strategies that allow you to have a better quality of life.
In this way, if you think you have any of the types of anxiety, you can enter Psiconnea and take the first step to start taking care of your mental health.
