Columbia University Health Services

Am I suffering from an anxiety disorder?
A certain amount of anxiety is expected for most people.  In some cases, however, anxiety can become overwhelming and incapacitating.  Whether or not you are suffering from an anxiety disorder is something that a professional can help you determine.  Some common anxiety disorders are listed below, as described in the DSM-IV (the manual mental health professionals use for diagnoses). 

• Panic Disorder : People with panic disorder experience panic attacks, which are intense periods of extreme anxiety that are often accompanied by chest pain, shortness of breath, heart palpitations, and dizziness.  The anxiety that a person experiences with a panic attack is so extreme that people sometimes believe they are having a heart attack or may be dying, or that they are going “crazy.”  Often times, the fear of having another panic attack can become debilitating in and of itself, and can lead to agoraphobia, or a fear of being in places where escape may be difficult.

• Obsessive Compulsive Disorde r: The essential features involve recurrent obsessions or compulsions that are severe enough to be time consuming or cause marked distress and impairment in functioning.  Obsessions are persistent ideas, thoughts, or impulses that are experienced as inappropriate and intrusive.  Compulsions are repetitive behaviors (e.g., hand washing, ordering, checking) or mental acts (e.g., praying, counting, repeating words silently) which are completed to reduce anxiety or distress, even though they provide no pleasure or gratification.

• Posttraumatic Stress Disorder can occur after an individual has experienced or witnessed an extreme traumatic stressor.  Individuals suffering from this disorder can re-experience the traumatic event through flashbacks or nightmares and can become extremely sensitive and vigilant for reminders of the trauma.  They often avoid anything that might remind them of the trauma, and describe feeling “numb” to the external world. 

• Social Phobia or Social Anxiety Disorder involves a persistent fear of social or performance situations in which embarrassment might occur.  Exposure to social situations almost always provokes anxiety, and people with social phobia end up avoiding social situations in order to avoid feeling anxious.  People with social phobia are afraid that others will judge them to be anxious, weak, “crazy,” or stupid, and can sometimes get panic attacks when put in social situations.

• Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) involves excessive worry and anxiety occurring more days than not for at least 6 months about a number of events or activities.  People with GAD do not worry about any one specific thing, but instead tend to worry about a lot of things, and find it difficult to control their worry.

Treatments
If you suspect that you may have an anxiety disorder, the good news is that effective treatments for anxiety disorders exist.  The first step is to meet with a professional to discuss the kinds of symptoms you have and to evaluate potential treatment options.  Anxiety disorders are commonly treated with psychotherapy or medication or some combination of both.  Psychotherapy  can be used to help you examine the sources of your anxiety and to develop strategies for dealing with and managing it.  Medications  can also be extremely effective in decreasing symptoms of anxiety.  You can investigate both forms of treatment at Counseling & Psychological Services.

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