Abnormal Psychology: Anxiety

Abnormal Psychology: Anxiety

Anxiety is an unpleasant feeling of fear and apprehension. Anxiety disorders are the most common psychological disorders in the United States. Everyone experiences anxiety at some point in their life. However, when that feeling of anxiety starts to take over a persons life, or is persistent beyond a certain time in your lives its possible that person may have an anxiety disorder.
There are many different types of anxiety disorders. Phobias, Social anxiety, Generalized anxiety, Obsessive-Compulsive disorder, are just to name a few.
Phobias are irrational fears of an object or a situation that is not likely to be dangerous. Phobias cause disruption in one’s ability to carry out many day to day functions. Most people who suffer from phobias are afraid of specific things. For example; Social Anxiety Disorder or (social phobia) is the third largest mental health care problem in the world. Social anxiety disorder is the fear of social situations that involve interaction with other people. People with social anxiety are many times seen by others as being shy, quiet, backward, withdrawn, inhibited, unfriendly, nervous, aloof, and disinterested. Panic disorder is characterized by sudden attacks of severe anxiety that can incapacitate a person for about ten minutes. Symptoms are sweating, heart palpitations, insomnia and shortness of breath People who have panic disorders feel that they are always in bad health and go to the doctor often. Twenty percent of people suffering from panic disorders have attempted suicide.
Generalized anxiety disorder is a continuous anxiety lasting a month or more. People with this disorder feel anxious, worried and are preoccupied with feelings of doom. A person suffering from generalized anxiety disorder tends to worry about everything. They have a great deal of stress and have a difficult time relaxing.
Obsessive-Compulsive disorder is persistent, unwanted thoughts, which lead to repetitive actions. A...

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