Are You Too Anxious?

Everybody feels a bit of anxiety from time to time, but a clinical anxiety disorder is a different matter. If you suspect you may be suffering from one, you should consult a professional for a diagnosis. The psychological diagnostic manual lists 12 anxiety conditions. Here are the signs of five of the most common ones:

PANIC DISORDER

WHAT IT IS: Recurrent, unexpected attacks of acute anxiety, peaking within 10 minutes. Such panic may occur in a familiar situation, such as a crowded elevator

WHAT IT ISN’T: Occasional episodes of extreme anxiety in response to a real threat

WHAT TO LOOK FOR: Palpitations; chest pains; sweating, chills or hot flushes; trembling; shortness of breath or choking; nausea; light-headedness or feeling of unreality; fear of losing control or dying

BOTTOM LINE: Four or more of these symptoms in at least two discrete episodes could spell trouble

SPECIFIC PHOBIA

WHAT IT IS: Consuming fear of a specific object or situation, often accompanied by extreme anxiety symptoms

WHAT IT ISN’T: Powerful aversion to certain places or things

WHAT TO LOOK FOR: –Do you come up with elaborate ways to avoid the object or situation?

–Do you dread the next possible encounter?

–Are you aware that the fear is excessive but you are unable to control it?

–Does merely thinking about the thing you fear make you anxious?

BOTTOM LINE: Don’t worry if you just plain hate, say, snakes or crowds or heights. The key is how powerful your feelings are–and how you handle them

OBSESSIVE-COMPULSIVE DISORDER

WHAT IT IS: A preoccupation with specific thoughts, images or impulses, accompanied by elaborate and sometimes bizarre rituals

WHAT IT ISN’T: Fastidious–even idiosyncratic–behavior that does not significantly interfere with your quality of life

WHAT TO LOOK FOR: Are the obsessive thoughts persistent and intrusive?

–Do you expend a lot of energy suppressing the thoughts, usually unsuccessfully?

–Are you generally aware that the thoughts are irrational?

–Is the anxiety temporarily eased by a repetitive ritual such as hand washing or a thought ritual such as praying?

–Are the rituals time consuming?

BOTTOM LINE: Some researchers question whether OCD is a genuine anxiety disorder. Whatever it is, it does respond to treatment–provided you seek help

POST-TRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER

WHAT IT IS: Repeated, anxious reliving of a horrifying event over an extended period of time

WHAT IT ISN’T: Anxiety following a trauma that fades steadily over the course of a month or so

WHAT TO LOOK FOR: After witnessing, experiencing or hearing about an event that caused or threatened to cause serious injury, do you:

–Have recurrent recollections or dreams about the experience?

–Feel emotionally or physically as if the event were still occurring?

–Experience intense anxiety when something reminds you of the event?

–Try to avoid thoughts, feelings, activities or places associated with the event?

–Have difficulty recalling details of the event?

–Experience anxiety symptoms such as irritability, jumpiness, difficulty sleeping, feelings of detachment from others, diminished interest in things, feelings that your future is in some way limited?

BOTTOM LINE: Sometimes, PTSD will not appear until six months after the event. Seek help whenever symptoms occur

GENERALIZED ANXIETY DISORDER

WHAT IT IS: Excessive anxiety or worry, occurring more days than not for six months

WHAT IT ISN’T: Occasional serious worry that doesn’t markedly diminish quality of life

WHAT TO LOOK FOR: Restlessness; difficulty concentrating or sleeping; irritability; fatigue; muscle tension

BOTTOM LINE: If you have three or more symptoms for the required six months, the diagnosis may fit

–By Jeffrey Kluger