Anxiety Disorder Explained
What is anxiety disorder?
Anxiety Question:
What is anxiety disorder?
Anxiety Answer:
Anxiety disorder is a complex combination of negative emotions that includes fear, apprehension and worry, and is often accompanied by physical sensations such as palpitations, nausea, chest pain and/or shortness of breath.
Anxiety disorder is often described as having cognitive, somatic, emotional, and behavioral components (Seligman, Walker & Rosenhan, 2001).
The cognitive component entails expectation of a diffuse and uncertain danger.
Somatically the body prepares the organism to deal with threat (known as an emergency reaction); blood pressure and heart rate are increased, sweating is increased, blood flow to the major muscle groups is increased, and immune and digestive system functions are inhibited. Externally, somatic signs of anxiety may include pale skin, sweating, trembling, and pupil dilation.
Emotionally, anxiety causes a sense of dread or panic and physically causes nausea, and chills.
Behaviorally, both voluntary and involuntary behaviors may arise directed at escaping or avoiding the source of anxiety. These behaviors are frequent and often maladaptive, being most extreme in anxiety disorders.
However, anxiety is not always pathological or maladaptive: it is a common emotion along with fear, anger, sadness, and happiness, and it has a very important function in relation to survival.
A chronically recurring case of anxiety that has a serious effect on a person's life may be clinically diagnosed as an anxiety disorder. The most common are generalized anxiety disorder, panic disorder, social anxiety disorder, phobias, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
More about what is anxiety and anxiety definition:
- What is the definition of anxiety disorder?
- Please define anxiety disorder.
- What is an anxiety disorder or panic attack?
- What is it anxiety disorder?
Back from Anxiety Answer
to Anxiety Questions