Detroit Central City

Feeling nervous is a normal and beneficial reaction to a variety of challenging situations. Maybe it's a first date, an important job interview, a critical test, public speaking. It's not unusual to experience uneasiness and apprehension, clammy hands, or butterflies in the stomach under some of these circumstances.

Feeling anxious temporarily is one thing; but when anxiety is so serious that it interferes with life and work, leads us to avoid certain situations or keeps us from enjoying life, then we may have a medical condition known as anxiety disorder. These disorders differ greatly from temporary nervousness and can include overwhelming feelings of panic, fear, and apprehension; uncontrollable obsessive thoughts; painful, intrusive memories and nightmares; and a variety of physical symptoms such as heart palpitations, numbness, and muscular tension.

Anxiety disorders may be caused by heredity, brain chemistry, personality, or traumatic life experiences.

Common anxiety disorders include:

• Generalized anxiety disorder which includes constant worrying about all sort of things and expecting the worst. Distress can be about any number of things including job performance, relationships, school grades, and possible misfortune even though there is no real threat in any of these areas.

• Panic disorder causes repeated feelings of intense, sudden terror or impending doom. These panic attacks can happen several times a week or even within the same day. While brief, they can leave the individual emotionally drained and frightened.

• People with agoraphobia suffer anxiety about being in places or situations from which it might be difficult or embarrassing to escape. In extreme cases persons with agoraphobia may be afraid to leave their house.

• Other phobias include fear of specific things (like spiders) or situations (flying) or social phobias–anxiety about social or performance situations. People with obsessive-compulsive disorder become trapped in a pattern of distressing thoughts or impulses and repetitive actions that are difficult to overcome. An example might be repeated thoughts about being contaminated with germs and therefore repetitive, ritualistic hand washing.

• In posttraumatic stress disorder persons re-experience an extremely traumatic event that involved actual or threatened death or serious injury to themselves or another person. Symptoms may include continued flashbacks and reliving of the event, nightmares and intense distress when exposed to an object or situation related to the event.

How are anxiety disorders treated? Researchers have found that both medication and psychotherapy (counseling) are effective for relieving symptoms of anxiety. Often the two treatments are combined for best results. Many people, including celebrities and public leaders, have been successful in working with mental health professionals to help deal with crippling anxiety disorders. Other steps to take to help relieve anxiety include:

• Contact your doctor, local mental health clinic or hospital to ask about treatment programs for anxiety.
• Keep a positive attitude, knowing that others have learned to deal with similar fears.
• Seek the support of a trusted family member, friend, clergy, or a local support group so that you don't feel you are struggling alone with anxiety.
• Learn as much as possible about anxiety disorders and their treatment.
• Faithfully follow your prescribed plan of treatment.