There are different types of anxiety disorders that are important to understand. They vary depending on the specific situations or objects that cause anxiety or fear. Anxiety disorders are highly comorbid with each other, which means that one individual can have more than one type of anxiety disorder at the same time. Most anxiety disorders develop during childhood and may persist into adulthood if left untreated. Having a general idea of which situations cause you anxiety, based on the distinctions below, can be helpful when seeking treatment. Like anxiety disorders, not all clinicians are the same. Therefore, if you have a specific anxiety disorder, then it is important to find a licensed mental health clinician that specializes in the treatment of that disorder.
This brief guide to anxiety disorders is intended to be informative. It is not meant to diagnose you or replace a formal evaluation by a psychologist or other mental health clinician.
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Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD): Someone with GAD will experience frequent, excessive, and uncontrollable worries about a number of things, such as work or school performance, health concerns, finances, etc. This is the kind of person others may refer to as a “worry wart.” An individual with GAD often experiences physical symptoms of anxiety, such as restlessness or being “on edge,” irritability, muscle tension, being easily fatigued, difficulty concentrating, or sleep disruption.
Social Anxiety Disorder (Social Phobia): The key feature of social anxiety disorder is the heightened fear or anxiety an individual feels in social situations, such as attending parties, talking on the phone, meeting new people, or making a speech or presentation. During these situations, the person worries about being neagitvely evaluated by others. This is not just mere shyness. For individuals with social anxiety disorder, the thought of being perceived by others as stupid, boring, weak, anxious, or unlikeable is intolerable, so they try to avoid such social situations or they endure them with intense anxiety or fear. Sufferers of social anxiety are easily embarrassed. They worry that they will exhibit signs of nervousness (e.g., blushing, trembling, stumbling over their words, etc.) that may be apparent to others. It’s easy to see how this disorder can interfere with one’s social life. Impairments can also be seen in their school or work performance if they consistently avoid engaging in tasks in which they could be evaluated by others.
Panic Disorder: If you have ever had a panic attack, you know that it feels like a sudden and intense fear that lasts anywhere from about 5 minutes to 30 minutes. This abrupt surge of fear is accompanied by some of the following symptoms: heart palpitations, sweating, trembling, shortness of breath, discomfort or pain in the chest, dizziness, nausea, feeling of being detached from oneself, fear of losing control or “going crazy,” or fear of dying. It is worth noting that you can experience attacks without meeting criteria for a diagnosis of panic disorder. In fact, anyone can have a panic attack in response to stressful situations, and an individual with any of the other anxiety disorders can also develop a panic attack. However, when someone is diagnosed with a panic disorder, that means he or she has panic attacks repeatedly and unexpectedly. Those with a panic disorder may also have constant worries about having another panic attack in the future. As a result of their panic attacks, they may drastically change their behaviors or routines. For example, these people may avoid exercising since this activity produces perspiration or increased heart rate, which are also symptoms of a panic attack—and which they erroneously interpret as signs that a panic attack will ensue. They may further avoid places where they have had a panic attack for fear that those places will trigger another panic attack.
Agoraphobia: The main feature of agoraphobia is the persistent fear or avoidance of situations where escaping is difficult or where it would be hard to find help if panic-like symptoms were to develop. An individual with agoraphobia may be afraid of using public transportation, being in open spaces (e.g., parking lot, field, etc.), being in closed spaces (e.g., movie theaters, elevators, etc.), standing on a line, being in crowd, or being alone outside of the home.
Specific Phobia: Most of us are afraid of something; however, our fear does not usually disrupt our lives in major ways. For someone who has a specific phobia though, there is a constant fear or avoidance of a particular object or situation. This phobic repsonse causes the person to feel significant distress, and it negatively impacts his/her ability to function in some important aspect of life. Common objects or situations that are often feared or avoided may include heights, flying, animals or insects, seeing blood, etc.
Illness Anxiety Disorder: Someone with illness anxiety disorder worries excessively about having or getting some serious illness, even though they do not have any physical symptoms of the illness, or if they do, they are only mild in intensity. These individuals feel intense fear or anxiety about their health and are frequently alarmed if they experience mild or benign physical symptoms, such as heart palpitations or minor body aches. Illness anxiety disorder used to be referred to as hypochondriasis. Sufferers of illness anxiety disorder excessively engage in health-related behaviors. For example, they may repeatedly check their body for signs of an illness, seek reassurance from others to confirm that they do not have an illness, research or read about the details of ailment that they think they may have or are afraid of getting, or schedule frequent medical appointments. Sometimes, their anxiety about being diagnosed with an illness also makes them avoid important doctor’s appointments or going to the hospital.
Separation Anxiety Disorder: This disorder is more commonly diagnosed in children than in adults. Those with separation anxiety feel tremendous and persistent fear or anxiety when they are separated or anticipate being separated from major attachment figures, such as their parents or caregivers, or even from their home. Other symptoms of separation anxiety disorder include recurrent worries about losing loved ones through illness or death, unreasonable fear of an event that may cause separation (e.g., getting lost or kidnapped), reluctance or refusal to leave home, avoidance of being alone or without one’s attachment figure, or frequent nightmares about separation.
Selective Mutism: This disorder is also more commonly diagnosed in children than in adults. Individuals with selective mutism experience significant anxiety or fear of speaking in specific settings. This difficulty goes well beyond typical shyness and is not due to an impairment in language skills. Those with selective mutism are often paralyzed by their anxiety and are therefore unable to speak in situations where speaking is expected, such as at school or with adults or other kids. These children may not start conversations nor respond to specific individuals when spoken to. Sometimes they communicate nonverbally (e.g., pointing, writing, etc.) or by whispering in those feared situations. Children with selective mutism are able to speak in other places where there is a greater comfort level, such as at home or with their parents. Their difficulty speaking often leads to academic or social impairments.
