Anxiety: one-to-one intervention

Anxiety Disorders

Anxiety disorders are mental health conditions that involve excessive amounts of anxiety, fear, nervousness, worry, or dread. Anxiety that is too constant or too intense can cause a person to feel preoccupied, distracted, tense, & always on alert.

Anxiety disorders are among the most common mental health conditions. They affect people of all ages — adults, children, & teens. There are many different types of anxiety disorders, with different symptoms. They all have one thing in common, though: Anxiety occurs too often, is too strong, is out of proportion to the present situation, & affects a person's daily life & happiness.

Symptoms of an anxiety disorder can come on suddenly, or they can build gradually & linger until a person begins to realize that something is wrong. Sometimes anxiety creates a sense of doom & foreboding that seems to come out of nowhere. It's common for those with an anxiety disorder to not know what's causing the emotions, worries, & sensations they have.

Different anxiety disorders are named to reflect their specific symptoms.

Generalized anxiety. 

With this common anxiety disorder, a person worries excessively about many things. Someone with generalized anxiety may worry excessively about school, the health or safety of family members, & the future. They may always think of the worst that could happen.

Along with the worry & dread, people with generalized anxiety have physical symptoms, such as chest pain, headache, tiredness, tight muscles, stomachaches, or vomiting. Generalized anxiety can lead a person to miss school or avoid social activities. With generalized anxiety, worries can feel like a burden, making life feel overwhelming or out of control.

Obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD). 

For a person with OCD, anxiety takes the form of obsessions (bad thoughts) & compulsions (actions that try to relieve anxiety).

Phobias. 

These are intense fears of specific situations or things that are not actually dangerous, such as heights, dogs, or flying in an airplane. Phobias usually cause people to avoid the things they are afraid of.

Social phobia (social anxiety). 

This intense anxiety is triggered by social situations or speaking in front of others. An extreme form called selective mutism causes some kids and teens to be too fearful to talk at all in certain situations.

Panic attacks.

These episodes of anxiety can occur for no apparent reason. With a panic attack, a person has sudden & intense physical symptoms that can include a pounding heart, shortness of breath, dizziness, numbness, or tingling feelings causes by overactivity of the body's normal fear response. 

Agoraphobia is an intense fear of panic attacks that causes a person to avoid going anywhere a panic attack could possibly occur.

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). This type of anxiety disorder results from a traumatic or terrifying past experience. Symptoms include flashbacks, nightmares, or constant fear after the fact.