What is anxiety?
Anxiety is a typical response to stress. Often seen as beneficial, anxiety can keep you safe by alerting you to danger and encouraging you to pay attention.
When anxiety becomes excessive, however, you can experience an excessive response to the anticipation or fear of potential threats. When this reaction becomes extreme and uncontrolled, it can become debilitating and impact your everyday life. These are considered anxiety disorders.
Are there different types of anxiety disorders?
There are several types of anxiety disorders including:
- General anxiety disorder: worry about things like family health, job responsibilities, car repairs, and other minor stressors
- Social anxiety disorder: extreme anxiety over being humiliated, rejected, or embarrassed in social interactions
- Separation anxiety disorder: anxiety due to separation from people you’re attached to such as a parent or loved one
- Panic disorder: panic attacks because of psychological and physical distress; you may think you’re having a heart attack
- Phobias: irrational or persistent fears of situations, objects, or activities that are usually not harmful such as a fear of spiders or flying
- Agoraphobia: being unable to escape embarrassing or difficult situations, or not being able to get help if needed
Anxiety disorders are often caused by a combination of factors, including environment, genetics, psychology, and development. They can also run in families.
What are the symptoms of anxiety?
Besides experiencing extreme responses to stressors that do not match the situation and hinder your ability to function, common anxiety symptoms include:
- Panic, nervousness, and fear
- Shortness of breath
- Sleep issues
- Dry mouth
- Heart palpitations
- Nausea or dizziness
- Inability to be calm or still
- Tingling, cold, numb, or sweaty hands or feet
Symptoms of depression and anxiety often happen together.
How is anxiety diagnosed and treated?
Effectively treating anxiety depends on your diagnosis and the severity of your symptoms. Dr. Fatima provides attentive medical care that is tailored to your unique needs.
During your appointment, she will evaluate your medical and family history, recommend additional tests if necessary, and discuss your condition and treatment options. Working closely with you, she will develop a care plan for your anxiety that may include lifestyle changes, such as diet and exercise, psychotherapy — known as “talk therapy” — or medication.
If you’re suffering from anxiety, call Molani Medical Group or schedule an appointment online to learn more.
