Introduction to anxiety

Generalized anxiety disorder or GAD is characterized by excessive, exaggerated anxiety and worry about everyday life events. People with symptoms of generalized anxiety disorder tend to always expect disaster and can't stop worrying about health, money, family, work or school. In people with GAD, the worry often is unrealistic or out of proportion for the situation. Daily life becomes a constant state of worry, fear and dread. Eventually, the anxiety so dominates the person's thinking that it interferes with daily functioning, including work, school, social activities and relationships.

What Are the Symptoms of GAD?

GAD affects the way a person thinks, but the anxiety can lead to physical symptoms, as well. Symptoms of GAD include:

Excessive, ongoing worry and tension

An unrealistic view of problems

Restlessness or a feeling of being "edgy"

Irritability

Muscle tension

Headaches

Sweating

Difficulty concentrating

Nausea

The need to go to the bathroom frequently

Tiredness

Trouble falling or staying asleep

Trembling

Being easily startled

In addition, people with GAD often have other anxiety disorders

(such as panic disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder and phobias),

suffer from depression, and/or abuse drugs or alcohol.

What Causes Generalized Anxiety Disorder?

The exact cause of GAD is not fully known, but a number of factors—including genetics, brain chemistry and environmental stresses—appear to contribute to its development.

• Genetics: Some research suggests that family history plays a part in increasing the likelihood that a person will develop GAD. This means that the tendency to develop GAD may be passed on in families.
  
  
• Brain chemistry: GAD has been associated with abnormal levels of certain neurotransmitters in the brain. Neurotransmitters are special chemical messengers that help move information from nerve cell to nerve cell. If the neurotransmitters are out of balance, messages cannot get through the brain properly. This can alter the way the brain reacts in certain situations, leading to anxiety.
  
  
• Environmental factors: Trauma and stressful events, such as abuse, the death of a loved one, divorce, changing jobs or schools, may lead to GAD. GAD also may become worse during periods of stress. The use of and withdrawal from addictive substances, including alcohol, caffeine and nicotine, can also worsen anxiety.

How Common Is Generalized Anxiety Disorder?

About 4 million adult Americans suffer from GAD during the course of a year. It most often begins in childhood or adolescence, but can begin in adulthood. It is more common in women than in men.

http://www.medicinenet.com/anxiety/article.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anxiety

http://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/anxiety-disorders/index.shtml

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/anxiety.html

http://www.helpguide.org/mental/anxiety_types_symptoms_treatment.htm

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