Do I Have an Anxiety Disorder?“I started with eating disorders, depression, anxiety, depression, anxiety, PTSD, depression,anxiety. It's this rollercoaster.”Anxiety disorders are the most common mental health concern in the United States, affecting nearly 1in 5 adults.The most common types of anxiety disorders include: generalized anxiety disorder, social anxietydisorder, panic disorder, and phobias.It’s not uncommon for people like Sarah, who have an anxiety disorder, to also suffer from othermental health conditions including depression and PTSD, post-traumatic stress disorder…“You know it's not you have one, and that's it. It's your good days, bad days, good months, badmonths. Some for me have been easier to cope with than others.”“Stress does tend to be a bit of a fueling source for anxiety disorders. But then there are otherthings that kind of predispose people and many people, many thought leaders in the anxietyworld believe that there's probably some sort of biological predisposition that make peoplemore vulnerable to anxiety disorders.”While the risk factors vary from person to person, you may be at risk for an anxiety disorder if:You were very shy as a child.You have a history of anxiety or other mental health issues in your family.You’ve been exposed to stress or trauma as a child.You have certain health conditions such as thyroid problems or an irregular heartbeat.“It's really a lot of different factors that are kind of interacting with one another, kind of cooccurring at the same time to create a perfect storm that contributes to a person developinggeneralized anxiety disorder. Some of those factors are completely outside of an individual'scontrol.”With generalized anxiety disorder, a person’s life is filled with worry, sometimes for hours each day,making it hard to concentrate on school or work or everyday living.Sarah, who happens to be a mental health counselor, says she’s lucky to have an understandingboss…“So when I first started doing trainings or going to conferences, talking in front of large groups,particularly about things on a personal level, sometimes I would make excuses. Lie, tell whiteThis program is for informational purposes only. Publisher disclaims all guarantees regarding the accuracy, completeness,or suitability of this video for medical decision making. For all health related issues please contact your healthcare provider.VER54616B EN DoIHaveAnAnxietyDisorder.pdf© The Wellness NetworkPage 1 of 2Do I Have an Anxiety Disorder?lies even. Maybe exaggerate the extent to which I wasn't feeling all that well. Fortunately, I'm ina job here where they're very accommodating. They recognize people have mental healthchallenges and so they work around them.”Each anxiety disorder has its own unique symptoms, but all include excessive, persistent worry orfear in situations that are not threatening.Other emotional symptoms may include: feeling tense or jumpy; restlessness;irritability; or anticipating the worst result that can happen; avoidance.There are physical symptoms, too: a racing heart or shortness of breath; sweating, tremors andtwitches; headaches, fatigue or trouble sleeping; and an upset stomach, frequent urination ordiarrhea.Claudine Jackson lives with anxiety disorder, complicated by depression and obsessive compulsivedisorder, or OCD…“I have a thing with dirt and dust and I only sleep on white towels, white sheets. I mean whitesheets and pillowcases.”With Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, Claudine has uncontrollable thoughts and behaviors that sherepeats over and over. OCD can make her anxiety even worse.“I have it more under control now, but I had gotten to the point which, if I didn't have everythingperfectly neat and in order, my anxiety would just, I would get real nervous and start havingproblems breathing.”In most cases, anxiety disorder and related illnesses, will improve with talk therapy or medications.“There's also all sorts of different ways to treat anxiety disorders. Thankfully there aremedications that are helpful. And for some people they get significant relief.”“And sometimes it takes maybe one or two different types of meds for them to get yourcombination right. But when they get it right, it's going to be an amazing life for you.”Adopting a healthy lifestyle, learning coping skills and using relaxation techniques can also help. Thebottom line is to seek professional help if you think you are feeling overly anxious.This program is for informational purposes only. Publisher disclaims all guarantees regarding the accuracy, completeness,or suitability of this video for medical decision making. For all health related issues please contact your healthcare provider.VER54616B EN DoIHaveAnAnxietyDisorder.pdf© The Wellness NetworkPage 2 of 2
