Essay about Generalized Anxiety Disorder

“Anxiety is the signal of danger which mobilizes the human organism’s resources at all levels of functioning in the interests of conservation, defense, and self- preservation.” (Anxiety 1) If a person suffers from anxiety there is a major loss of control and then an attempt to regain that control because of a fear that they have. Anxiety disorders are one of the most frequently occurring mental disorders in the United States. However, anxiety disorders are not only found in the United States. They are found throughout the world. They just happen to be most predominating in the United States. In this paper, I will be discussing the generalized anxiety disorder and how if effects society today.

Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) is an anxiety disorder that is characterized by excessive, uncontrollable and often irrational worry about everyday things that is disproportionate to the actual source of worry. This excessive worry often interferes with daily functioning, as individuals suffering GAD typically anticipate disaster, and are overly concerned about everyday matters such as health issues, money, death, family problems, friend problems, relationship problems or work difficulties.[1] They often exhibit a variety of physical symptoms, including fatigue, fidgeting, headaches, nausea, numbness in hands and feet, muscle tension, muscle aches, difficulty swallowing, bouts of difficulty breathing, trembling, twitching, irritability,

Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) is characterized by excessive anxiety and worry that is not limited to one subject, situation or activity (Nevid, Rathus & Greene, 2017). People with GAD are known to worry about many things in their lives; their health, their finances, their well-being and that of their children. It is a worry that can be describe as excess and one that impairs one from functioning (Nevid, Rathus & Greene, 2017).

Current epidemiological data suggest anxiety disorders are the most prevalent type of childhood psychological disorders. Generalized Anxiety Disorder or GAD is described by excessive worrying about a variety of events, including those in the past, present, and future. Children with this disorder worry excessively about a number of issues, including past conversations or actions, upcoming events, school, family health, their own health, competence in sports or academics, and world events. Typically, children experiencing such excessive worry find it difficult to control the amount of time that they worry, and the worrying interferes in their daily life. Sometimes children don’t realize their anxiety is excessive considering the situation.

Preferred treatment for GAD includes medication and cognitive behavioral therapy, but more extensive therapy may be called upon in some instances of recurrence or

Anxiety disorders are the most common psychiatric disorder in the United States. Between 15 - 19% of the population suffers from this disorder, which impairs the quality of life and functioning (Stuart 218). What is anxiety? Abnormal Psychology describes anxiety as “an adaptive emotion that helps us plan and prepare for a possible theat.” The text book further states, “worrying about many different aspects of life becomes chronic, excessive, and unreasonable.” This is also known as generalized anxiety disorder or GAD (Butcher 201). DSM IV-TR specifies that GAD is a worry that occurs more days then not for at least 6 months, and that it must be experienced as difficult to control (Butcher 201). 25% of those that suffer from this

Anxiety has both mental and physical effects, it is our internal alarm system to put our mind on a physical alert and prepares for us a "fight or flight response". This alarm can go away when we know that everything is okay and there is no danger nearby or nothing is going to happen but sometimes our alarm will not shut off and then an anxiety problem persists. There are different types of anxiety disorders and I will discuss generalized anxiety disorder

Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) is characterized by persistent, excessive, and unrealistic worry about everyday things. People with the disorder often experience exaggerated fear and expect the worst, even when there is no apparent reason for concern. They anticipate disaster and are overly concerned about money, health, family, work, or other issues. This disorder affects 6.8 million adults, or 3.1% of the U.S. population, in any given year (Van der Heiden, 2011). GAD comes on gradually and can endure across the life cycle, though the risk is highest between childhood and middle age. Women are twice as likely to be affected.

Anxiety — part of the body's natural reaction to stress — can even be helpful at times, making you more alert and ready for action. But anxiety disorders differ from normal feelings of anxiousness. When feelings of fear or nervousness become excessive, difficult to control, or interfere with daily life, it's called an anxiety disorder. (www.everydayhealth.com) . This evidence relates to the types of anxiety because it is telling how anxiety can make you feel and act.

Consequently, it is important to carefully follow diagnostic features provided in DSM-V for each type of anxiety disorder in order to avoid misdiagnose. In the United States, 18.1% of the adult population suffers from different anxiety disorders, and lifetime prevalence of GAD is among 5.7% of those adults (Kessler, 2005).

Generalized anxiety disorder(GAD) is much more than the normal anxiety people experience everyday. It is a chronic condition that is chracterized by excessive worry and anxiety, even though there aren't any reasonable explanations for the cause. It is diagnosed when a person spends a least 6 months worrying excessively about numerous everyday problems.

Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) is a disorder in which an individual may feel persistent, excessive, and worry about everyday things that may not even happen. Individuals with this disorder may feel worry, excessive anxiety, and have thoughts of the worst even when there is no need for concern. A person experiencing GAD may expect a disaster. They may worry about their finances, money, health, family, work, or any issue that may come to mind. This disorder may be present when a person worrying increases on more days than one for at least six months. GAD can interfere with work, school, family, and even social activities. GAD can be diagnosed in adults when they experience at least three of the symptoms. These symptoms include restlessness or feeling on the edge, fatigue, difficulty focusing or mind going blank, irritability, muscle tension, pain in back or headaches, and sleep disturbance (ADAA, n.d.).

     Anxiety disorders are serious medical illnesses that affect approximately 19 million American adults. These disorders fill people's lives

Anxiety disorders are the most common mental illness in the U.S., affecting 40 million adults in the United States age 18 and older, or 18% of the population; that statistic includes myself. Sophomore year of high school, I was diagnosed with GAD which stands for generalized anxiety disorder, and I was also diagnosed with social anxiety, major depression and chronic daily headache. When my therapist told me I was diagnosed with all of those disorders, I was not shocked. I knew for a very long time that something was not okay with me, now it was just a matter of how I was going to deal with what I was just diagnosed with and if I was going to let it define my life. Anxiety is something I dealt with in my past, something I am dealing with in the present, and I am going to conquer it for my future here at Saint Ben’s.

According to the Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders: DSM-5 (2013), Generalised Anxiety Disorder (GAD) is classified as having excessive anxiety and worry occurring more often than not for at least 6 months, that is difficult to control and that impairs daily functioning. At least three symptoms must be present and include restlessness, easily fatigue, difficulty concentrating, irritability, muscle tension and sleep disturbance.