AP Psychology Anxiety Disorders

Disorders

Panic Disorder
Obsessive compulsive disorder
Post-traumatic stress disorder
Social phobia (social anxiety disorder)
Specific phobias

Generalized anxiety disorder
Symptoms
-During attacks of terror, flush or chill feeling, numb/tingly hands
-Nausea, chest pain, smothering sensations
-Sense of unreality, fear of impending doom, fear of losing control
-Fear of one’s own unexplained physical symptoms

-Persistent, upsetting thoughts (obsessions)
-Using common rituals (compulsions) to control the anxiety these thoughts produce -Preoccupied with order and symmetry
-Difficulty throwing things out, or hoard unneeded items
-May startle easily, become emotionally numb
(especially in relation to people with whom they used to be close), lose interest in things they used to enjoy, have trouble feeling affectionate, be irritable, become more aggressive, violent -Avoid situations that remind them of the original incident -Flashbacks
-Intense, persistent, and chronic fear of being watched and judged by others and of doing things that will embarrass them
-Blushing, profuse sweating, trembling, nausea, and difficulty talking
-Feared object or situation brings on a panic attack or severe anxiety
-Anticipate disaster and are overly concerned about health issues ,money, family prob­ lems, or difficulties at work
-Anxiety
-Trouble falling or staying asleep
-Can’t relax, startle easily, and have difficulty concentrating -Fatigue, headaches, muscle tension, muscle aches, difficulty swallowing, trembling, twitching, irritability, sweating, nausea, lightheadedness, having to go to the bathroom frequently, feeling out of breath, hot flashes
Causes
-Genetics
-May run in families
Person may have been harmed, the harm may have happened to a loved one, or the person may have witnessed a harmful event that happened to loved ones or strangers
-Genetic factors
-Not well understood, believed to run in families
Genes