Do I have Anxiety Disorder?

Most people tend to worry.

They worry about their plans for the future, their tests and exams, their preparations for holidays (‘check-and-recheck’) and so on.

by Elia Strange

The worrying bit is not pleasant but it is very useful, as we make sure that everything is well and as planned. But what if your worry is endless and you feel you can’t stop it?
Then you might have what psychologists call Generalised Anxiety Disorder (GAD).


Some types of anxiety disorders might include: panic disorder, phobia, obsessive compulsive disorder and so on.
If your anxiety symptoms are not connected to a specific event or situation, then you might have Generalised Anxiety Disorder (GAD) instead.

People with GAD worry about many little things – day in and day out. If you worry excessively about many minor things in your everyday life, then you might have GAD.

People with other types of anxiety disorders would usually have several specific situations, places and/or events where they feel excessive or extreme feelings of anxiety.

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Physiological symptoms of anxiety disorders:


The main feature of GAD is persistent anxiety, which cannot be identified with a specific object, situation or activity.

Physiological symptoms usually include: shakiness, inability to relax, furrowed brow, fidgeting, sweatiness, dry mouth, racing heart, light-headiness, frequent urinating, diarrhea, feelings of dread, excessive vigilance, irritability, insomnia, and tendency to be easily distracted.




So, do you have an anxiety disorder?


Psychologists would diagnose generalised anxiety disorder (GAD) if the person has the following:


- Excessive anxiety and worry for 6 months or more about a number of events and activities


- Difficulty in controlling the worry


- At least three of these symptoms:

1) restlessness or feeling all keyed up;
2) becoming fatigued easily,
3) difficulty concentrating,
4) irritability,
5) muscle tension,
6) sleep disturbance


- Significant distress or impairment,


- Anxiety is not limited to one specific issue.




So if you have any of the symptoms such as described above for 6 months or more, and you can describe how they are disrupting your daily life, then you can be diagnosed with anxiety disorder.

If you want to know more about it (and about its treatment), then read my other article on this subject (if you haven’t done it already): What is anxiety?

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Other articles you might be interested in:

What is OCD

What is Bipolar Disorder

What to do when I'm stressed

...or go to:

Archives of all Articles

Coping with Stress (HOME PAGE)

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