Is anxiety and anxiety disorder the same?

Anxiety, the feeling we have all come to experience more times than we’d care for. The sweaty palms, racing heart, butterflies in your stomach – it’s like being on a rollercoaster you didn’t sign up for. As common as anxiety may be, not everyone experiences or reacts to an anxious situation in the same way.

This leads us to question whether anxiety and anxiety disorder are one and the same? In this article, we’re going to take an interesting look at what exactly sets these two apart.

Understanding Anxiety

Anxiety is a feeling of uneasiness that can result from stressful situations such as exams or public speaking events. This type of anxiety usually subsides once the event has passed but some individuals continue experiencing symptoms beyond normal levels.

Normal Levels?

Now hold onto your horses! Before we get down with dissecting what constitutes as normal levels of discomfort when it comes to our favorite emotion- anxiety, let’s first establish where scientists got their baseline!

According to researchers at John Hopkins University Medical Centre (JHUMC), “normal” anxiety is defined by worry about something specific that could potentially happen in the future. While everyone can relate–ahem football game nerves!–for somebody suffering from generalised-anxiety-disorder(GAD) this level of angst occurs frequently without obvious reason(s).

People who encounter illness, financial difficulty or even relationship woes among countless other life circumstances may experience occasional fleeting moments similar to GAD patients but not frequent enough nor intense enough(times bomb intensity rate!)to require clinical attention(really now?!).

Symptoms Of Anxiety

So far so good. But how would you know if you’re dealing with “normal”/general everyday anxiety rather than taking things too far?

Some common signs include:

  • Panic attacks
  • Insomnia
  • Constant worrying
  • Phobias

Uncomfortable? Yep! These are the usual suspects but what strikes me is that panic attacks and insomnia sound like entire moods on their own!

Understanding Anxiety Disorder

Anxiety Disorder, on the other hand, goes beyond a normal reaction to stress. It’s characterized by excessive worries or fears which can negatively impact our relationships, job performance and daily lives.

The Types of Anxiety Disorders

There isn’t just one type of anxiety disorder; rather it comprises of several different types with varying symptoms that present differently in each individual.

Here are some common examples:

  • Generalised anxiety disorder
  • Social Anxiety disorder
  • Phobias

So yes! (laughs manically) A specific phobia could technically be an anxiety disord…Hold on! Don’t leave just yet!

Symptoms Of Anxiety Disorder

As we’ve mentioned before where feelings exceedbunny ears emphasis “normal” levels your body gets triggered into being always prepared for eventualities (if only it spent more time preparing snacks!). Some persons may experience physical reactions such as sweating excessively or feeling like they might pass out while others torment themselves internally questioning if their thoughts reflect factual realities. Here are a few other symptoms you might observe in people with this condition –

  • Restlessness
  • Irritability
    • Difficulty concentrating
    • Insomnia

These guys don’t play around huh?

What sets them Apart?

Duration vs Intensity

The major difference between everyday anxious feelings and clinical conditions lies in duration versus intensity.(I’m about to blow your mind!). Everyday situations like delivering presentations can make us feel anxious–but this feeling vanishes after the event is over right? On the flip side when dealing with an actual disorder these intense feelings persist beyond any reasonable length-we’re talking weeks, months-and long term therapy may be necessary too(I’m not crying-you ar…).

“The threshold from useful adaptive function to clinical dysfunction is defined by DSM-V diagnostic criteria based on qualitative parameters of intensity and duration, ICD-10 longitudinal GAD categories or anxiety severity scores,” says Dr. Kissen a Licensed Clinical Psychologist in San Diego who heads the group therapy program at the Light On Anxiety Treatment Center.

Simply put, if said discomfort lingers about well after it was welcomed…you might wanna call a doctor!(they’ll be happy to help)

Frequency

Anxiety becomes classified as a disorder when it completely overshadows someone’s ability to effectively function day in day out, leading to THE compromised quality of life (cue sad music). “A diagnosis of an anxiety disorder occurs when your symptoms interfere with your normal daily activities such as attending work/school/outings/the grocery store,” explains licensed clinical psychologist Kimberly Hershenson.

For most people dealing with non-clinical type emotions therapy can lead them back into healthy functioning but for those combating actual disorders what they need might be both psychological AND medication-based treatment.(life’s all about balance)

It goes without saying that folks battling any form of emotional disarray would do themselves a lot more favors embracing mindfulness practices too; deep breathing techniques, meditation and yoga are proven complementary aids in physical + mental health management. Plus this stuff just sounds cool so why not?

Conclusion

In conclusion we’d like you to remember these important takeaways from La Penseur:

1) Everyday situational anxiety has duration while serious ANXIETY DISORDERS have INTENSITY!

2) Symptoms typically persist long-term and are consistent across numerous scenarios –this suggests therapeutic intervention is necessary (remember-doctors aren’t scary…okay mostly).

3) Therapy may come alone or together with medication depending on case evaluation findings.

4) Practicing mindfulness methods can serve to support healthy living even when dealing with everyday emotions.

Stressful situations arise all around us every day(Don’t worry-be happy!) but it’s always great to have a better idea of what we’re dealing with or in some cases disrupting IYYYYY-sunnnnity order!!

Let’s embrace all our quirks and eccentricities and as they say…”C’est la Vie!”

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