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Top Signs Of Anxiety Resources
by Chas Oliver

Most people would probably consider anxiety to be a bad thing, but it’s really not quite so simple as that. Anxiety is actually a normal reaction to stress, and provides energy to cope under stressful conditions. Say you have a report due at work -- an important report. You’ll no doubt feel a certain amount of anxiety over having the report finished in time, and this anxiety might help fuel your efforts to get the work done. In this case, anxiety would be a productive response.

Where anxiety becomes problematic is when a person feels anxiety to excess, or is anxious in an irrational way. Going back to the example above, of a report due for work: If you felt exceptionally anxious about the report, you might become paralyzed with worry and not complete the report at all. In this case, your anxiety would obviously not be a productive response: in fact, it would be just the opposite.

There’s a tendency to think of debilitating anxiety as just one condition: anxiety. In reality, there are actually five major types of debilitating anxiety, or five major types of anxiety disorders. Generalized Anxiety Disorder, or “free floating anxiety”, is, as the name suggests, a general feeling of extreme anxiousness: nothing in particular causes the anxiety -- it’s just there. Symptoms of Generalized Anxiety Disorder may include chronic muscle aches, fatigue, sweating, and hot flashes.

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder is another major anxiety disorder. Obsessive Compulsive Disorder involves continuous, unwanted thoughts, and repetitive behaviors: excessive hand washing and counting are two behaviors that people with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder commonly engage in. Panic Disorder is a major anxiety disorder characterized by sudden, extreme fear that’s often accompanied by physical symptoms such as shortness of breath, chest pain, and dizziness.

The fourth major anxiety disorder is Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. The primary symptom of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder is the reliving of an extreme and possibly life threatening physical trauma. Post Traumatic Stress Disorder is sometimes referred to as “flashback syndrome”. The last of the five major anxiety disorders is Social Phobia, or Social Anxiety Disorder. People with Social Anxiety Disorder feel extreme discomfort and self-consciousness in social situations.

It’s absolutely possible for a person to have more than one of the five major anxiety disorders. A person with Generalized Anxiety Disorder may also have Panic Disorder for instance, while a person with Social Anxiety Disorder may also have Generalized Anxiety Disorder. Anxiety disorders can resolve on their own, but intervention is often recommended, and required, for optimal recovery from an anxiety disorder.