Anxiety Disorder (Generalized)
What is generalized anxiety disorder (GAD)?
Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) involves anxiety and worry that is excessive and unrelenting. This high-level anxiety makes normal life difficult and relaxation impossible.
If you have generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) you may worry about the same things that other people do: health issues, money, family problems, or difficulties at work. But you take these worries to a new level.
A co-worker’s careless comment about the economy becomes a vision of an imminent pink slip; a phone call to a friend that isn’t immediately returned becomes anxiety that the relationship is in trouble. Sometimes just the thought of getting through the day produces anxiety.
Whether you realize that your anxiety is more intense than the situation calls for or believe that your worrying is protective in some way, the end result is the same. You can’t turn off your anxious thoughts. They keep running through your head, on endless repeat.
The difference between “normal” worry and GAD
Worries, doubts, and fears are a normal part of life. It’s natural to be anxious about your upcoming SAT test or your finances after being hit by unexpected bills. The difference between “normal” worrying and generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) is that the worrying involved in GAD is much more frequent and disruptive.
For example, after watching a news report about a terrorist bombing in the Middle East, the average person might feel a temporary sense of unease and worry. A person with generalized anxiety disorder, however, might be up all night afterwards, then continue worrying for days about a worst-case scenario in which his or her small hometown is attacked.
Most people with GAD don’t avoid workplace or social situations, but they go about their activities filled with exaggerated worry and tension, even though there is little or nothing to provoke them. For others, the anxiety and physical symptoms of generalized anxiety disorder interfere with everyday functioning.
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Signs and symptoms of generalized anxiety disorder (GAD)
The symptoms of generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) fluctuate. You may notice better and worse times of the day, or better and worse days in general. And while stress doesn’t cause generalized anxiety disorder, it can make the symptoms worse.
Not everyone with generalized anxiety disorder has the same symptoms. But most people with GAD experience a combination of a number of the following physical and psychological symptoms:
Physical symptoms of generalized anxiety disorder (GAD)
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Psychological symptoms of generalized anxiety disorder (GAD)
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Children and generalized anxiety disorder (GAD)
In children, excessive worrying centers on future events, past behaviors, social acceptance, family matters, their personal abilities, and school performance. Unlike adults with GAD, children and teens with generalized anxiety disorder often don’t realize that their anxiety is disproportionate to the situation, so adults need to recognize their symptoms. Along with many of the symptoms that appear in adults with generalized anxiety disorder, some red flags for GAD in children are:
- “What if” fears about situations far in the future
- Perfectionism, excessive self-criticism, and fear of making mistakes
- Feeling that they’re to blame for any disaster, and their worry will keep tragedy from occurring
- The conviction that misfortune is contagious and will happen to them
- Need for frequent reassurance and approval
