Original source overview
What is anxiety?Anxiety is a feeling of fear, dread, and uneasiness. It might cause you to sweat, feel restless and tense, and have a rapid heartbeat. It can be a normal reaction to stress. For example, you might feel anxious when faced with a difficult problem at work, before taking a test, or before making an important decision. It can help you to cope. The anxiety may give you a boost of energy or help you focus. But for people with anxiety disorders, the fear is not temporary and can be overwhelming.
What are anxiety disorders?Anxiety disorders are conditions in which you have anxiety that does not go away and can get worse over time. The symptoms can interfere with daily activities such as job performance, schoolwork, and relationships.
What are the types of anxiety disorders?There are several types of anxiety disorders, including:
• Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD). People with GAD worry about ordinary issues such as health, money, work, and family. But their worries are excessive, and they have them almost every day for at least 6 months. • Panic disorder. People with panic disorder have panic attacks. These are sudden, repeated periods of intense fear when there is no danger. The attacks come on quickly and can last several minutes or more. • Phobias. People with phobias have an intense fear of something that poses little or no actual danger. Their fear may be about spiders, flying, going to crowded places, or being in social situations (known as social anxiety).
What causes anxiety disorders?The cause of anxiety is unknown. Factors such as genetics, brain biology and chemistry, stress, and your environment may play a role.
Who is at risk for anxiety disorders?The risk factors for the different types of anxiety disorders can vary. For example, GAD and phobias are more common in women, but social anxiety affects men and women equally. There are some general risk factors for all types of anxiety disorders, including:
• Certain personality traits, such as being shy or withdrawn when you are in new situations or meeting new people • Traumatic events in early childhood or adulthood • Family history of anxiety or other mental disorders • Some physical health conditions, such as thyroid problems or arrhythmia
What are the symptoms of anxiety disorders?The different types of anxiety disorders can have different symptoms. But they all have a combination of:
• Anxious thoughts or beliefs that are hard to control. They make you feel restless and tense and interfere with your daily life. They do not go away and can get worse over time. • Physical symptoms, such as a pounding or rapid heartbeat, unexplained aches and pains, dizziness, and shortness of breath • Changes in behavior, such as avoiding everyday activities you used to do
Using caffeine, other substances, and certain medicines can make your symptoms worse.
How are anxiety disorders diagnosed?To diagnose anxiety disorders, your health care provider will ask about your symptoms and medical history. You may also have a physical exam and lab tests to make sure that a different health problem is not the cause of your symptoms.
If you don't have another health problem, you will get a psychological evaluation. Your provider may do it, or you may be referred to a mental health professional to get one.
What are the treatments for anxiety disorders?The main treatments for anxiety disorders are psychotherapy (talk therapy), medicines, or both:
• Psychotherapy can help you recognize and change troubling emotions, thoughts, and behaviors. To be effective, it should focus on your specific anxieties and needs. There are many types; some of the types used for anxiety disorders include:
• Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), which teaches you different ways of thinking and behaving. It can help you change how you react to the things that cause you to feel fear and anxiety. It may include exposure therapy. This therapy focuses on having you confront your fears so that you will be able to do the things that you had been avoiding. • Acceptance and commitment therapy may help with some anxiety disorders. It uses strategies such as mindfulness and goal setting to reduce discomfort and anxiety.
• Medicines to treat anxiety disorders include anti-anxiety medicines and certain antidepressants. Some types of medicines may work better for specific types of anxiety disorders. You should work closely with your provider to identify which medicine is best for you. You may need to try more than one medicine before you can find the right one.
Support groups and stress management techniques may also be helpful.
NIH: National Institute of Mental Health
Encyclopedic background — Wikipedia
The following selected excerpts provide background on “Anxiety disorder”. This related background source does not cover every aspect of the specific topic “Anxiety”; population-specific details and decisions should be checked in the original topic source. They are not a substitute for the source overview or current local clinical guidance. Each excerpt below comes from the fixed Wikipedia revision [W1].
Definition and overview [W1]
Anxiety disorders are a group of mental disorders characterized by significant and uncontrollable feelings of anxiety and fear such that a person's social, occupational, and personal functions are significantly impaired. Anxiety may cause physical and cognitive symptoms, such as a sense of impending doom, restlessness, irritability, easy fatigue, difficulty concentrating, increased heart rate, chest pain, abdominal pain, and a variety of other symptoms that vary based on the individual.
In casual discourse, the words anxiety and fear are often used interchangeably. In clinical usage, they have distinct meanings; anxiety is clinically defined as an unpleasant emotional state for which the cause is either not readily identified or perceived to be uncontrollable or unavoidable, whereas fear is clinically defined as an emotional and physiological response to a recognized external threat. The umbrella term 'anxiety disorder' refers to a number of specific disorders that include fears (phobias) and/or anxiety symptoms.
There are several types of anxiety disorders, including generalized anxiety disorder, hypochondriasis, specific phobia, social anxiety disorder, separation anxiety disorder, agoraphobia, panic disorder, and selective mutism. Individual disorders can be diagnosed using the specific and unique symptoms, triggering events, and timing. A medical professional must evaluate a person before diagnosing them with an anxiety disorder to ensure that their anxiety cannot be attributed to another medical illness or mental disorder. It is possible for an individual to have more than one anxiety disorder during their life or to have more than one anxiety disorder at the same time. Comorbid mental disorders or substance use disorders are common in those with anxiety. Comorbid depression (lifetime prevalence) is seen in 20–70% of those with social anxiety disorder, 50% of those with panic disorder and 43% of those with general anxiety disorder. The 12 month prevalence of alcohol or substance use disorders in those with anxiety disorders is 16.5%.
Classification [W1]
In children, GAD may be associated with headaches, restlessness, abdominal pain, and heart palpitations. Typically, it begins around eight to nine years of age.
Causes [W1]
Evolutionary psychiatry interprets anxiety as part of an evolved defensive system calibrated to potential threat. According to the "smoke-alarm principle," anxiety mechanisms are expected to err on the side of false alarms because the cost of unnecessary fear is typically lower than the cost of failing to detect genuine danger. This framework has been extended to modern settings, where mismatch between ancestral and contemporary threat profiles may contribute to chronic or generalised anxiety.
Reading this topic in context
Use “Anxiety” as a starting point for a focused discussion, rather than treating every statement in the broader encyclopedia article as applying to you. The original source overview and the background excerpts answer different questions: the overview explains the health topic for readers, while the encyclopedia supplies terminology and general context. Keep a record of which questions concern symptoms, a confirmed diagnosis, prevention, or an existing treatment. This helps a healthcare professional address the relevant issue without relying on an internet label.
Questions to take to a professional
1. How are these anxiety symptoms assessed, including possible physical or medicine-related causes?
2. Which support and treatment options fit my situation and preferences?
Evidence, scope and next steps
The health-topic overview is attributed to MedlinePlus / the National Library of Medicine at the original topic link below. Wikipedia [W1] is a secondary background source; its references can support further reading, but their presence is not evidence that WellPrimer has independently reviewed every study. No clinical review, guideline certification or NLM endorsement is claimed. For screening intervals, diagnostic thresholds, pregnancy or child-specific advice and treatment choices, check current guidance in your country with a qualified professional. Do not start, stop or change a prescribed medicine based on encyclopedia excerpts. New or worsening symptoms need appropriate clinical assessment rather than more reading alone.
Attribution and reuse
[W1] Wikipedia contributors, “Anxiety disorder”. Version 1379966672, edited 2026-10-13. Retrieved 2026-10-16. Fixed revision: https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Anxiety_disorder&oldid=1379966672. Contributor history: https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Anxiety_disorder&action=history. License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/ .
The MedlinePlus health-topic summary retains its original attribution. Wikipedia excerpts and the added compilation/commentary are shared under CC BY-SA 4.0; selections, section ordering and editorial reading prompts have been added. No images are reused. This is an educational compilation, not a clinician-reviewed guideline.