There are many kinds of anxiety disorders. However, what all of them have in common is that the affected person does not necessarily identify their experience as “fear”. Rather, an anxiety order feels more like a bodily sickness, as this is how it is expressed most of the times: Stomach aches, faintness, increased heart rates, and so on. Therefore, when trying to identify an anxiety disorder, it is especially important to check the affected person’s bodily health as much as the mental health.
Anxiety disorders are categorized into five main types that differ in their symptoms and their treatment:
There are many kinds of anxiety disorders. However, what all of them have in common is that the affected person does not necessarily identify their experience as “fear”. Rather, an anxiety order feels more like a bodily sickness, as this is how it is expressed most of the times: Stomach aches, faintness, increased heart rates, and so on. Therefore, when trying to identify an anxiety disorder, it is especially important to check the affected person’s bodily health as much as the mental health.
Anxiety disorders are categorized into five main types that differ in their symptoms and their treatment:
- The affected person has experienced a panic attack in the past and knows how it feels: breaking into sweat, faintness, increased heart rates or the feeling of not being able to breathe properly. In most cases, a panic attack comes suddenly and lasts for a few minutes. Because it came suddenly, the lack of control about it makes the possibility of future panic attacks ever more threatening and unpredictable.
- Since the affected person has already experienced a panic attack, she or he is extremely fearful of having to go through it again – whether the panic attack was related to a threatening place or situation is oftentimes irrelevant. Anything of the initial situation could be perceived as cause of the panic attack – this is why panic attacks are often quite broad and not tied to one specific fear or situation.
- The affected person becomes very sensitive to anything that might indicate a panic attack. Normal bodily reactions are misinterpreted as being signs of a new panic attack, which makes the general fear of them even more present. This could be an increased pulse after walking up stairs, the slight feeling of faintness when riding a train, or a general feeling of discomfort in an unknown situation.
- The affected person is afraid of places, from which it could be difficult to escape – like wide and crowded public places, waiting queues, closed rooms… – but also of “exitless” situations, like travelling somewhere far away from home on your own. It could also be the fear of a place where the person has once felt uncomfortable or helpless in the past.
- Also possible is a fear of a particular place where the person has felt uncomfortable or helpless in the past.
- Just in the case of finding oneself in an uncomfortable or even threatening situation, a person with agoraphobia wants to know that she or he could easily get away or at least have someone whom they trust by their side.
- Because of this just-in-case-mentality, agoraphobia is often linked to a panic disorder, where the affected person is concerned with experiencing a panic attack and not being able to escape quickly. She or he fears that it would be uncomfortable to be surrounded by staring and witnessing people or that it would even be dangerous to be exposed to their panic in the first place.
Although claustrophobia may sound similar to agoraphobia with its general idea of fear of places, but a claustrophobic person is mainly afraid of closed rooms and tight spaces – unrelated to the number of people around them at that place.
- The affected person feels a constant general fear and worry. She or he fears for her or himself and the people around them – but the fears are stronger than what most other people would feel and far from what would be a useful or adequate worry.
- These uncontrollable fears span over many different aspects of life.
- Sometimes the affected person might even be overwhelmed or sad that she or he experiences so many fears and worries.
- Other signs of a general anxiety disorder could be restlessness, problems concerning sleep or difficulties to concentrate.
- The affected person is afraid of social situations in which she or he could be judged by other people, as perhaps seeming dumb or weak, and therefore tries to avoid these situations.
- This causes the person to avoid social situations.
- People with such social phobias could have difficulties like speaking in front of people – even if it is very small number of people -, asking for directions or even eating in public.
- The affected person is disproportionately afraid of a specific thing or situation, like a specific animal, a specific action, or a very specific situation like being on a plane. This means the fear is way stronger than would be justified by the actual danger coming from that thing, and it is way bigger than most other people would feel.
- The person starts to avoid any confrontation with the item of their fear, sometimes going to extreme ends to get around it – like driving extremely long distances because of their fear of planes or avoiding any doctors for their fear of injections or shots.
- While these fears might be somewhat handleable in daily life, any hint of the item of their fear starts an incredibly strong and uncontrollable feeling of fear.
As you can see, an anxiety disorder can come in many forms and hide behind a variety of behaviours. This is why it is important to look out for any avoiding behaviour in oneself or others and see, whether it comes because of some persuasion (e.g. “I’m taking the stairs because it’s more healthy than an elevator”), or whether it is because of fear (like a disproportionate fear of elevators). It is important to take any fear seriously, even if you cannot understand them in your own experience. In truth, no one can really control what she or he is afraid of.
Talking and helping is always better than looking away! As normal and important fear is for all of us, it should never dictate what daily life looks like. No matter if the anxiety disorder is very faint or rather extreme, there is surely a way to deal with these issues.
If you observe one or more of the following symptoms in your own behaviour or in someone around you, it is important to take them seriously and try to take action.
- Avoiding social activities to the point of distancing oneself from friends and family,
- Getting through daily tasks seems very difficult or causes worry and anxiety,
- One attempts to drown out these fears through drugs, alcohol, or meds, which are not intended to be used that way,
- Self-harming behaviour, or behaviour that brings others in danger.
As you can see, an anxiety disorder can come in many forms and hide behind a variety of behaviours. This is why it is important to look out for any avoiding behaviour in oneself or others and see, whether it comes because of some persuasion (e.g. “I’m taking the stairs because it’s more healthy than an elevator”), or whether it is because of fear (like a disproportionate fear of elevators). It is important to take any fear seriously, even if you cannot understand them in your own experience. In truth, no one can really control what she or he is afraid of.
Talking and helping is always better than looking away! As normal and important fear is for all of us, it should never dictate what daily life looks like. No matter if the anxiety disorder is very faint or rather extreme, there is surely a way to deal with these issues.
If you observe one or more of the following symptoms in your own behaviour or in someone around you, it is important to take them seriously and try to take action.
- Avoiding social activities to the point of distancing oneself from friends and family,
- Getting through daily tasks seems very difficult or causes worry and anxiety,
- One attempts to drown out these fears through drugs, alcohol, or meds, which are not intended to be used that way,
- Self-harming behaviour, or behaviour that brings others in danger.
An anxiety disorder is a psychological issue which also has an effect on the body of the affected person.
There are several reasons to how an anxiety disorder can develop. Often, it is linked to the experience of a traumatic event. Sometimes the root lies at a neurological change in our brain that causes the communication within our brain to function differently than it did before – similar to a depression. In some cases, it is not really pinpointable where the disorder initially came from. In any way: as with a bodily disease, the affected person does not really have control over whether she or he will suffer from an anxiety disorder, or how well she or he will cope with the new situation. Generally open and brave people can just as easily suffer from an anxiety disorder as shy and introverted people. We can all do better when it comes to listening and to observing ourselves and the people around us, recognizing emotions and taking them serious enough to talk about them.
Fear is deeply ingrained in our bodies. It serves an important purpose of survival that has always been important for people and still is: Fear prepares us to react properly in a dangerous situation. In the end it comes down to fight or flight. Many processes in our body that are linked to fear helped our ancestors to navigate life and protected them from being eaten or hunted. Fear sharpens our senses – we are on the lookout for the danger and see, smell, and hear better. Fear puts our digestion system on hold, as well as other bodily workings that are of no advantage in the critical situation. The heart pumps quicker, our breath turns flat, and our whole body tenses up to be more efficient for a short period of time.
All these things are bodily reactions that help in fight or flight situations, but which are very exhausting too. If they help to get out of a dangerous situation, the body will recover rather quickly. But a person that suffers from an anxiety disorder keeps experiencing these extreme situations without a concrete danger and without the ability to control this reaction. Obviously, this will overwhelm the affected person, and motivate her or him to do her or his best to avoid such feelings and situations.
It can very well happen that a person with an anxiety disorder starts to draw away from the people close to her or him. The affected person might want to be left alone - or she or he fears to not be accepted any longer due to their issues and their seemingly chaotic feelings. That’s why it is important to not put any extra pressure on a person with an anxiety disorder, nor to try to make their fears seem small. What actually helps are people who listen – be it friends, family or any other close ones – who are there for them and who encourage and assist them to maybe get the help they need from a professional therapist.
Do you need help with the first step? Whether you are affected yourself and need to entrust your feelings to someone, or if you want to help a friend or a family member: here you will find tips on how to start a conversation about these difficult topics.
And then: Therapy? How a therapy looks like, how much time it needs, and what it does to help you or the person you are concerned about you will find here
You decided to seek out help for yourself or someone close to you? You ask yourself, where to get support or help? Firstly: You should know that there are many different possible contact points and professionals to talk to. It is important to first find out, which is the proper way for the individual case – this is especially the case with an anxiety disorder, seeing that there are many kinds of anxiety disorders.
This is why a good first step is to talk to your general practitioner. As with a therapist, because of the pledge of secrecy, everything you tell them remains confidential and will not leave the room you are in. Of course, you may also bring a friend of a family member.
It is also possible to turn directly to a psychotherapist. Here you get tips on how to get an appointment.
You want an impression of which contact points are the right ones for you or the person close to you? Here we explain, which professionals are best suited for which specific problem.
If you need further support on your way toward therapy, or if you want to keep anonymous while first talking to someone, here you will find links for points of contact in your area and trustworthy people to talk to.
There are many kinds of anxiety disorders. However, what all of them have in common is that the affected person does not necessarily identify their experience as “fear”. Rather, an anxiety order feels more like a bodily sickness, as this is how it is expressed most of the times: Stomach aches, faintness, increased heart rates, and so on. Therefore, when trying to identify an anxiety disorder, it is especially important to check the affected person’s bodily health as much as the mental health.
Anxiety disorders are categorized into five main types that differ in their symptoms and their treatment:
There are many kinds of anxiety disorders. However, what all of them have in common is that the affected person does not necessarily identify their experience as “fear”. Rather, an anxiety order feels more like a bodily sickness, as this is how it is expressed most of the times: Stomach aches, faintness, increased heart rates, and so on. Therefore, when trying to identify an anxiety disorder, it is especially important to check the affected person’s bodily health as much as the mental health.
Anxiety disorders are categorized into five main types that differ in their symptoms and their treatment:
- The affected person has experienced a panic attack in the past and knows how it feels: breaking into sweat, faintness, increased heart rates or the feeling of not being able to breathe properly. In most cases, a panic attack comes suddenly and lasts for a few minutes. Because it came suddenly, the lack of control about it makes the possibility of future panic attacks ever more threatening and unpredictable.
- Since the affected person has already experienced a panic attack, she or he is extremely fearful of having to go through it again – whether the panic attack was related to a threatening place or situation is oftentimes irrelevant. Anything of the initial situation could be perceived as cause of the panic attack – this is why panic attacks are often quite broad and not tied to one specific fear or situation.
- The affected person becomes very sensitive to anything that might indicate a panic attack. Normal bodily reactions are misinterpreted as being signs of a new panic attack, which makes the general fear of them even more present. This could be an increased pulse after walking up stairs, the slight feeling of faintness when riding a train, or a general feeling of discomfort in an unknown situation.
- The affected person is afraid of places, from which it could be difficult to escape – like wide and crowded public places, waiting queues, closed rooms… – but also of “exitless” situations, like travelling somewhere far away from home on your own. It could also be the fear of a place where the person has once felt uncomfortable or helpless in the past.
- Also possible is a fear of a particular place where the person has felt uncomfortable or helpless in the past.
- Just in the case of finding oneself in an uncomfortable or even threatening situation, a person with agoraphobia wants to know that she or he could easily get away or at least have someone whom they trust by their side.
- Because of this just-in-case-mentality, agoraphobia is often linked to a panic disorder, where the affected person is concerned with experiencing a panic attack and not being able to escape quickly. She or he fears that it would be uncomfortable to be surrounded by staring and witnessing people or that it would even be dangerous to be exposed to their panic in the first place.
Although claustrophobia may sound similar to agoraphobia with its general idea of fear of places, but a claustrophobic person is mainly afraid of closed rooms and tight spaces – unrelated to the number of people around them at that place.
- The affected person feels a constant general fear and worry. She or he fears for her or himself and the people around them – but the fears are stronger than what most other people would feel and far from what would be a useful or adequate worry.
- These uncontrollable fears span over many different aspects of life.
- Sometimes the affected person might even be overwhelmed or sad that she or he experiences so many fears and worries.
- Other signs of a general anxiety disorder could be restlessness, problems concerning sleep or difficulties to concentrate.
- The affected person is afraid of social situations in which she or he could be judged by other people, as perhaps seeming dumb or weak, and therefore tries to avoid these situations.
- This causes the person to avoid social situations.
- People with such social phobias could have difficulties like speaking in front of people – even if it is very small number of people -, asking for directions or even eating in public.
- The affected person is disproportionately afraid of a specific thing or situation, like a specific animal, a specific action, or a very specific situation like being on a plane. This means the fear is way stronger than would be justified by the actual danger coming from that thing, and it is way bigger than most other people would feel.
- The person starts to avoid any confrontation with the item of their fear, sometimes going to extreme ends to get around it – like driving extremely long distances because of their fear of planes or avoiding any doctors for their fear of injections or shots.
- While these fears might be somewhat handleable in daily life, any hint of the item of their fear starts an incredibly strong and uncontrollable feeling of fear.
As you can see, an anxiety disorder can come in many forms and hide behind a variety of behaviours. This is why it is important to look out for any avoiding behaviour in oneself or others and see, whether it comes because of some persuasion (e.g. “I’m taking the stairs because it’s more healthy than an elevator”), or whether it is because of fear (like a disproportionate fear of elevators). It is important to take any fear seriously, even if you cannot understand them in your own experience. In truth, no one can really control what she or he is afraid of.
Talking and helping is always better than looking away! As normal and important fear is for all of us, it should never dictate what daily life looks like. No matter if the anxiety disorder is very faint or rather extreme, there is surely a way to deal with these issues.
If you observe one or more of the following symptoms in your own behaviour or in someone around you, it is important to take them seriously and try to take action.
- Avoiding social activities to the point of distancing oneself from friends and family,
- Getting through daily tasks seems very difficult or causes worry and anxiety,
- One attempts to drown out these fears through drugs, alcohol, or meds, which are not intended to be used that way,
- Self-harming behaviour, or behaviour that brings others in danger.
As you can see, an anxiety disorder can come in many forms and hide behind a variety of behaviours. This is why it is important to look out for any avoiding behaviour in oneself or others and see, whether it comes because of some persuasion (e.g. “I’m taking the stairs because it’s more healthy than an elevator”), or whether it is because of fear (like a disproportionate fear of elevators). It is important to take any fear seriously, even if you cannot understand them in your own experience. In truth, no one can really control what she or he is afraid of.
Talking and helping is always better than looking away! As normal and important fear is for all of us, it should never dictate what daily life looks like. No matter if the anxiety disorder is very faint or rather extreme, there is surely a way to deal with these issues.
If you observe one or more of the following symptoms in your own behaviour or in someone around you, it is important to take them seriously and try to take action.
- Avoiding social activities to the point of distancing oneself from friends and family,
- Getting through daily tasks seems very difficult or causes worry and anxiety,
- One attempts to drown out these fears through drugs, alcohol, or meds, which are not intended to be used that way,
- Self-harming behaviour, or behaviour that brings others in danger.
An anxiety disorder is a psychological issue which also has an effect on the body of the affected person.
There are several reasons to how an anxiety disorder can develop. Often, it is linked to the experience of a traumatic event. Sometimes the root lies at a neurological change in our brain that causes the communication within our brain to function differently than it did before – similar to a depression. In some cases, it is not really pinpointable where the disorder initially came from. In any way: as with a bodily disease, the affected person does not really have control over whether she or he will suffer from an anxiety disorder, or how well she or he will cope with the new situation. Generally open and brave people can just as easily suffer from an anxiety disorder as shy and introverted people. We can all do better when it comes to listening and to observing ourselves and the people around us, recognizing emotions and taking them serious enough to talk about them.
Fear is deeply ingrained in our bodies. It serves an important purpose of survival that has always been important for people and still is: Fear prepares us to react properly in a dangerous situation. In the end it comes down to fight or flight. Many processes in our body that are linked to fear helped our ancestors to navigate life and protected them from being eaten or hunted. Fear sharpens our senses – we are on the lookout for the danger and see, smell, and hear better. Fear puts our digestion system on hold, as well as other bodily workings that are of no advantage in the critical situation. The heart pumps quicker, our breath turns flat, and our whole body tenses up to be more efficient for a short period of time.
All these things are bodily reactions that help in fight or flight situations, but which are very exhausting too. If they help to get out of a dangerous situation, the body will recover rather quickly. But a person that suffers from an anxiety disorder keeps experiencing these extreme situations without a concrete danger and without the ability to control this reaction. Obviously, this will overwhelm the affected person, and motivate her or him to do her or his best to avoid such feelings and situations.
It can very well happen that a person with an anxiety disorder starts to draw away from the people close to her or him. The affected person might want to be left alone - or she or he fears to not be accepted any longer due to their issues and their seemingly chaotic feelings. That’s why it is important to not put any extra pressure on a person with an anxiety disorder, nor to try to make their fears seem small. What actually helps are people who listen – be it friends, family or any other close ones – who are there for them and who encourage and assist them to maybe get the help they need from a professional therapist.
Do you need help with the first step? Whether you are affected yourself and need to entrust your feelings to someone, or if you want to help a friend or a family member: here you will find tips on how to start a conversation about these difficult topics.
And then: Therapy? How a therapy looks like, how much time it needs, and what it does to help you or the person you are concerned about you will find here
You decided to seek out help for yourself or someone close to you? You ask yourself, where to get support or help? Firstly: You should know that there are many different possible contact points and professionals to talk to. It is important to first find out, which is the proper way for the individual case – this is especially the case with an anxiety disorder, seeing that there are many kinds of anxiety disorders.
This is why a good first step is to talk to your general practitioner. As with a therapist, because of the pledge of secrecy, everything you tell them remains confidential and will not leave the room you are in. Of course, you may also bring a friend of a family member.
It is also possible to turn directly to a psychotherapist. Here you get tips on how to get an appointment.
You want an impression of which contact points are the right ones for you or the person close to you? Here we explain, which professionals are best suited for which specific problem.
If you need further support on your way toward therapy, or if you want to keep anonymous while first talking to someone, here you will find links for points of contact in your area and trustworthy people to talk to.
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DE