What is the most common type of anxiety disorder?

We all react to stressful situations differently. Most of us, at some point, will have signs of anxiety, such as stress, nervousness, worry, or fear, until the situation or stressor passes. It’s a normal biological reaction.

Table of Contents Show

Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD)
Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
Panic disorder
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
Social anxiety disorder (social phobia)
Separation anxiety disorder
Agoraphobia
Other types of anxiety
Psychotherapy
Medications
Lifestyle modifications and alternative options

But if your symptoms become persistent and excessive or interfere with daily life, you may have an anxiety disorder.

In this case, you’ll likely experience an overwhelming feeling of anxiousness that can be excessive and persistent, even when a stressor isn’t present. The symptoms are chronic and can interrupt daily life.

About 31.1 percent of U.S. adults will experience an anxiety disorder in their lifetime. Anxiety disorders are the most common mental health condition in the United States, according to the Anxiety & Depression Association of America.

Anxiety disorders include:

generalized anxiety disorder (GAD)
obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
panic disorder
post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
social anxiety disorder
phobias
separation anxiety disorder
agoraphobia

Read on to learn about the different types of anxiety disorders, how they’re diagnosed, and which treatment methods are available.

There are several types of anxiety or anxiety disorders. Here are some of the more common types according to the National Institute of Mental Health.

Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD)

If you have GAD, you’ll likely experience excessive worry that’s difficult to manage. This worry often takes the form of rumination, or spending a lot of time overthinking or mulling over different events in the future — how they may play out and how you may deal with them.

It’s not uncommon to have symptoms and not be able to explain why. For people with GAD, symptoms like those listed above are present most days and for at least the past 6 months.

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)

A person with OCD has thoughts that are difficult to control. They may find themselves repeating actions over and over.

If you have OCD, you might be extremely concerned about germs or having things in order. You may worry about feelings of aggression that you have toward others or that someone feels toward you.

You may also find it hard to manage thoughts of taboo subjects, such as sex, religion, or violence. Some people repeatedly do an action, such as checking that a door is locked or counting things.

A doctor might diagnose OCD if you:

spend an hour or more each day having these thoughts or carrying out these types of actions
the thoughts and actions bring no pleasure
the thoughts and actions have a significant impact on your daily life

Panic disorder

Panic disorder is characterized by recurring, unexpected panic attacks.

They often happen without warning and result in physical symptoms like:

chest pain
shortness of breath
sweating
shaking
dizziness

Symptoms may also involve feeling dissociated from reality or having a sense of impending doom.

In general, a panic attack lasts less than 20 minutes.

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)

People with PTSD experience anxiety related to a traumatic experience that has occurred in the past. It is a long-term condition that can cause symptoms for many years after the event, especially when not treated.

Symptoms of PTSD usually start within 3 months of the incident. In some cases, they don’t appear until months or years later.

If you have PTSD, you may experience:

flashbacks
bad dreams
frightening thoughts
feelings of tension and anxiety
trouble sleeping
anger for no apparent reason

Some people change their routine to avoid triggers that remind them of the event.

Social anxiety disorder, also referred to as social phobia, is a fear of being embarrassed, humiliated, or criticized in a public setting, like school or work.

You may have trouble talking with people or being in a large group. It’s not uncommon to avoid the places and situations that trigger this phobia.

Phobias

Phobias and specific phobias involve an irrational, overwhelming, and excessive fear of a place, situation, or object. Some of the more common phobias include:

Separation anxiety disorder

Separation anxiety disorder is most commonly diagnosed in kids, especially young children. However, adults can also experience this type of anxiety if they have extreme fear about something bad happening to a person in their life.

In children, the symptoms of fear, panic, worry, and anxiety surface when they’re separated from a parent or loved one.

Adults may have extreme fear and worry about something tragic happening to a family member or loved one, even when they’re together.

Agoraphobia

Agoraphobia often occurs in response to panic attacks. If you have agoraphobia, you feel extreme fear or anxiety about having a panic attack, or fear that something bad may happen in a specific place — usually outside the home.

You may avoid that place, usually confining yourself to the home, to stave off the possibility of something bad happening where you can’t access support or help.

You’ll often avoid feared places and situations at all costs.

Other types of anxiety

The “Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th edition (DSM-5)” also lists other, less common types of anxiety, including:

selective mutism
substance- or medication-induced anxiety disorder
anxiety disorder due to another medical condition

Some mental health conditions are commonly referred to as anxiety disorders and may have once been classified as one, but now have a separate diagnostic category in the DSM-5. They include OCD and PTSD.

A mental health expert or medical doctor can diagnose anxiety. They’ll use different criteria based on the guidance of the DSM-5 to determine a diagnosis and recommend a treatment plan.

In addition to a lengthy physical examination and family history interview, your doctor will likely recommend a diagnostic test to assess your level of anxiety.

Some of the more common diagnostic tests include:

Zung Self-Rating Anxiety Scale
Hamilton Anxiety Scale
Beck Anxiety Inventory
Social Phobia Inventory
Penn State Worry Questionnaire
Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale
Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale

This article can help you learn more about how anxiety is diagnosed.

Anxiety may feel overwhelming and all-consuming, but there are ways to treat the symptoms so you can feel better. The most common treatment methods for anxiety include:

Psychotherapy

Psychotherapy, or talk therapy, is a form of treatment for mental health conditions like anxiety, depression, and other emotional difficulties or issues.

It typically involves a mental health professional and client working together to reduce or eliminate troubling symptoms that may be interfering with daily life. This professional can be a:

therapist
counselor
social worker
psychologist
psychiatrist

Mental health professionals have several types of psychotherapy to choose from, but some are better suited for specific issues like anxiety.

While each professional uses their own treatment methods, here are some that are recommended to treat anxiety:

Medications

Antidepressants and anti-anxiety medications are both first-line pharmacological treatments for anxiety. Examples include:

Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs). This class of drugs includes sertraline (Zoloft), citalopram (Celexa), escitalopram (Lexapro), and fluoxetine (Prozac).
Tricyclics. Tricyclics include clomipramine (Anafranil) and imipramine (Tofranil).
Benzodiazepines. Benzodiazepines include alprazolam (Xanax), diazepam (Valium), and lorazepam (Ativan).
Monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs). MAOIs include isocarboxazid (Marplan), phenelzine (Nardil), selegiline (Emsam), and tranylcypromine (Parnate).
Beta-blockers. Beta-blockers include propranolol and metoprolol tartrate (Lopressor).

Here’s more information about medications that may be prescribed to treat anxiety.

Lifestyle modifications and alternative options

Complementary approaches and lifestyle modifications for managing anxiety symptoms include:

Read this for more information about treatment options for anxiety.

There’s no “cure” for anxiety. Rather, with the right treatment and interventions, you can learn to manage anxiety symptoms.

Treatment may require a combination of approaches. The most common forms of treatment include psychotherapy such as CBT, medications like SSRIs and benzodiazepines, and lifestyle modifications like deep breathing, exercise, and meditation.

Speak with a healthcare professional if anxiety is interfering with your everyday life.

Anxiety is a normal emotion. It’s your brain’s way of reacting to stress and alerting you of potential danger ahead.

Everyone feels anxious now and then. For example, you may worry when faced with a problem at work, before taking a test, or before making an important decision.

Occasional anxiety is OK. But anxiety disorders are different. They’re a group of mental illnesses that cause constant and overwhelming anxiety and fear. The excessive anxiety can make you avoid work, school, family get-togethers, and other social situations that might trigger or worsen your symptoms.

With treatment, many people with anxiety disorders can manage their feelings.

There are several types of anxiety disorders:

Generalized anxiety disorder. You feel excessive, unrealistic worry and tension with little or no reason.
Panic disorder. You feel sudden, intense fear that brings on a panic attack. During a panic attack you may break out in a sweat, have chest pain, and have a pounding heartbeat (palpitations). Sometimes you may feel like you’re choking or having a heart attack.
Social anxiety disorder. Also called social phobia, this is when you feel overwhelming worry and self-consciousness about everyday social situations. You obsessively worry about others judging you or being embarrassed or ridiculed.
Specific phobias. You feel intense fear of a specific object or situation, such as heights or flying. The fear goes beyond what’s appropriate and may cause you to avoid ordinary situations.
Agoraphobia.You have an intense fear of being in a place where it seems hard to escape or get help if an emergency occurs. For example, you may panic or feel anxious when on an airplane, public transportation, or standing in line with a crowd.
Separation anxiety. Little kids aren’t the only ones who feel scared or anxious when a loved one leaves. Anyone can get separation anxiety disorder. If you do, you’ll feel very anxious or fearful when a person you’re close with leaves your sight. You’ll always worry that something bad may happen to your loved one.
Selective mutism. This is a type of social anxiety in which young kids who talk normally with their family don’t speak in public, like at school.
Medication-induced anxiety disorder. Use of certain medications or illegal drugs, or withdrawal from certain drugs, can trigger some symptoms of anxiety disorder.

The main symptom of anxiety disorders is excessive fear or worry. Anxiety disorders can also make it hard to breathe, sleep, stay still, and concentrate. Your specific symptoms depend on the type of anxiety disorder you have.

Common symptoms are:

Panic, fear, and uneasiness
Feelings of panic, doom, or danger
Sleep problems
Not being able to stay calm and still
Cold, sweaty, numb, or tingling hands or feet
Shortness of breath
Breathing faster and more quickly than normal (hyperventilation)
Heart palpitations
Dry mouth
Nausea
Tense muscles
Dizziness
Thinking about a problem over and over again and unable to stop (rumination)
Inability to concentrate
Intensely or obsessively avoiding feared objects or places

Researchers don’t know exactly what brings on anxiety disorders. A complex mix of things play a role in who does and doesn’t get one.

Some causes of anxiety disorders are:

Genetics. Anxiety disorders can run in families.
Brain chemistry. Some research suggests anxiety disorders may be linked to faulty circuits in the brain that control fear and emotions.
Environmental stress. This refers to stressful events you have seen or lived through. Life events often linked to anxiety disorders include childhood abuse and neglect, a death of a loved one, or being attacked or seeing violence.
Drug withdrawal or misuse. Certain drugs may be used to hide or decrease certain anxiety symptoms. Anxiety disorder often goes hand in hand with alcohol and substance use.
Medical conditions. Some heart, lung, and thyroid conditions can cause symptoms similar to anxiety disorders or make anxiety symptoms worse. It’s important to get a full physical exam to rule out other medical conditions when talking to your doctor about anxiety.

Some things also make you more likely to develop an anxiety disorder. These are called risk factors. Some risk factors you can’t change, but others you can.

Risk factors for anxiety disorders include:

History of mental health disorder. Having another mental health disorder, like depression, raises your risk for anxiety disorder.
Childhood sexual abuse. Emotional, physical, and sexual abuse or neglect during childhood is linked to anxiety disorders later in life.
Trauma. Living through a traumatic event increases the risk of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), which can cause panic attacks.
Negative life events. Stressful or negative life events, like losing a parent in early childhood, increase your risk for anxiety disorder.
Severe illness or chronic health condition. Constant worry about your health or the health of a loved one, or caring for someone who is sick, can cause you to feel overwhelmed and anxious.
Substance abuse. The use of alcohol and illegal drugs makes you more likely to get an anxiety disorder. Some people also use these substances to hide or ease anxiety symptoms.
Being shy as a child. Shyness and withdrawal from unfamiliar people and places during childhood is linked to social anxiety in teens and adults.
Low self-esteem. Negative perceptions about yourself may lead to social anxiety disorder.

If you have symptoms, your doctor will examine you and ask questions about your medical history. They may run tests to rule out other health conditions that might be causing your symptoms. No lab tests can specifically diagnose anxiety disorders.

If your doctor doesn’t find any physical reason for how you’re feeling, they may send you to a psychiatrist, psychologist, or another mental health specialist. Those doctors will ask you questions and use tools and testing to find out if you may have an anxiety disorder.

Your doctors will consider how long you’ve had symptoms and how intense they are when diagnosing you. It’s important to let your doctors or counselors know if your anxiety makes it hard to enjoy or complete everyday tasks at home, work, or school.

The United States Preventive Service Task Force recommends screening for anxiety in children and adolescents ages 8 to 18 years and screening for major depressive disorder (MDD) in adolescents ages 12 to 18 years.

There are many treatments to reduce and manage symptoms of anxiety disorder. Usually, people with anxiety disorder take medicine and go to counseling.

Treatments for anxiety disorder include:

Medication. Several types of drugs are used to treat anxiety disorders. Talk to your doctor or psychiatrist about the pros and cons of each medicine to decide which one is best for you.

Antidepressants. Modern antidepressants (SSRIs and SNRIs) are typically the first drugs prescribed to someone with an anxiety disorder. Examples of SSRIs are escitalopram (Lexapro) and fluoxetine (Prozac). SNRIs include duloxetine (Cymbalta)and venlafaxine (Effexor).
Bupropion. This is another type of antidepressant commonly used to treat chronic anxiety. It works differently than SSRIs and SNRIs.
Other antidepressants. These include tricyclics and monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs). They are less commonly used because side effects, like drops in blood pressure, dry mouth, blurry vision, and urinary retention, can be unpleasant or unsafe for some people.
Benzodiazepines. Your doctor may prescribe one of these drugs if you’re having persistent panicky feelings or anxiety. They help lower anxiety. Examples are alprazolam (Xanax) and clonazepam (Klonopin). They work quickly, but you can become dependent on them. Usually, they’re meant to be an add-on to your anxiety disorder treatment and you shouldn’t take them for a long time.
Beta-blockers. This type of high blood pressure drug can help you feel better if you’re having physical symptoms of anxiety, such as a racing heart, trembling, or shaking. A beta-blocker may help you relax during an acute anxiety attack.
Anticonvulsants. Used to prevent seizures in people with epilepsy, these drugs also can relieve certain anxiety disorder symptoms.
Antipsychotics. Low doses of these drugs can be added to help make other treatments work better.
Buspirone (BuSpar). This anti-anxiety drug is sometimes used to treat chronic anxiety. You’ll need to take it for a few weeks before seeing full symptom relief.

Psychotherapy: This is a type of counseling that helps you learn how your emotions affect your behaviors. It’s sometimes called talk therapy. A trained mental health specialist listens and talks to you about your thoughts and feelings and suggests ways to understand and manage them and your anxiety disorder.

Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT): This common type of psychotherapy teaches you how to turn negative, or panic-causing, thoughts and behaviors into positive ones. You’ll learn ways to carefully approach and manage fearful or worrisome situations without anxiety. Some places offer family CBT sessions.

These tips may help you control or lessen your symptoms:

Learn about your disorder. The more you know, the better prepared you will be to manage symptoms and roadblocks along the way. Don’t be afraid to ask your doctor any questions you might have. Remember, you are a key part of your health care team.
Stick to your treatment plan. Suddenly stopping your meds can cause unpleasant side effects and can even trigger anxiety symptoms.
Cut down on foods and drinks that have caffeine, such as coffee, tea, cola, energy drinks, and chocolate. Caffeine is a mood-altering drug, and it may make symptoms of anxiety disorders worse.
Don’t use alcohol and recreational street drugs. Substance abuse increases your risk of anxiety disorders.
Eat right and exercise. Brisk aerobic exercises like jogging and biking help release brain chemicals that cut stress and improve your mood.
Get better sleep. Sleep problems and anxiety disorder often go hand in hand. Make getting good rest a priority. Follow a relaxing bedtime routine. Talk to your doctor if you still have trouble sleeping.
Learn to relax. Stress management is an important part of your anxiety disorder treatment plan. Things like meditation, or mindfulness, can help you unwind after a stressful day and may make your treatment work better.
Keep a journal. Writing down your thoughts before the day is down may help you relax so you’re not tossing and turning with anxious thoughts all night.
Manage your negative thoughts. Thinking positive thoughts instead of worrisome ones can help reduce anxiety. This can be challenging if you have certain types of anxiety, however. Cognitive behavioral therapy can teach you how to redirect your thoughts.
Get together with friends. Whether it’s in person, on the phone, or the computer, social connections help people thrive and stay healthy. People who have a close group of friends that support and chat with them have lower levels of social anxiety.
Seek support. Some people find it helpful and uplifting to talk to others who are experiencing the same symptoms and emotions. Self-help or support groups let you share your concerns and achievements with others who are or who have been there.
Ask your doctor or pharmacist before taking any over-the-counter meds or herbal remedies. Many have chemicals that can make anxiety symptoms worse.

It can be challenging and frustrating to live with an anxiety disorder. The constant worry and fear can make you feel tired and scared. If you’ve talked to a doctor about your symptoms, then you’ve taken the first step toward letting go of the worry.

It can take some time to find the right treatment that works for you. If you have more than one anxiety disorder, you may need several kinds of treatment. For most people with anxiety disorders, a combination of medicine and counseling is best. With proper care and treatment, you can learn how to manage your symptoms and thrive.