Everyone feels anxious or tense from time to time. Before a job interview, an important appointment, or an unexpected event, that is a normal reaction. An anxiety disorder is different: the anxiety is intense, lasts a long time, and is out of proportion to the actual situation. It can interfere with work, relationships, and daily life. This article gives a broad overview of the most common forms of anxiety, their symptoms, and the treatment options available.
What is an anxiety disorder?
An anxiety disorder is a persistent pattern of excessive worry, fear, or avoidance that does not simply pass on its own. It differs from everyday stress in that the symptoms last longer, often for months, recur, and genuinely get in the way of daily functioning. A doctor or psychologist never makes a diagnosis lightly: any classification is always given as a preliminary DSM-5 classification, based on a careful intake assessment.
Common types of anxiety disorders
Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD)
With GAD, someone experiences persistent, difficult-to-control worry about a wide range of topics: health, work, money, relationships. The worries often feel excessive, yet are hard to let go of. Many people with GAD feel constantly “on edge”, struggle to relax, and find their mind keeps racing even in the evening.
Panic disorder
This involves recurring panic attacks: short, intense episodes of overwhelming fear accompanied by physical symptoms such as a racing heart, shortness of breath, or dizziness. We cover panic attacks in more depth in a separate article on our website, so here we keep it to this brief introduction.
Social anxiety disorder
Social anxiety centers on an intense fear of rejection, judgment, or embarrassment in social situations. We also have a dedicated, more detailed article on this topic on our site, so we keep this section brief.
Specific phobias
A specific phobia is an intense, disproportionate fear of a particular object or situation, such as heights, spiders, needles, or flying. This fear often leads to avoidance behavior that unnecessarily limits daily life.
Other forms
Other forms include agoraphobia (fear of places where escape feels difficult) and separation anxiety. What all these forms have in common is that anxiety, normally a protective response, has become disproportionate to the actual risk involved.
Symptoms: physical and mental
Anxiety disorders can show up in several ways:
Physical symptoms:
- Heart palpitations or a racing heart
- Sweating, trembling, or a dry mouth
- Muscle tension, headaches
- Stomach and digestive complaints
- Fatigue and sleep problems
Mental and behavioral symptoms:
- Persistent worrying or rumination
- Difficulty concentrating
- Irritability
- Avoiding certain places, people, or situations
- Trouble relaxing, even at rest
Not everyone recognizes all of these symptoms in themselves. It is the combination of symptoms and the extent to which they limit daily functioning that determines whether professional help is worthwhile.
When to seek help
It is worth considering professional support when anxiety symptoms:
- Last longer than a few weeks
- Noticeably affect work, study, or relationships
- Lead to avoiding important activities
- Are accompanied by exhaustion, low mood, or sleep problems
- Do not ease despite your own efforts to manage them
In a crisis, if you have thoughts of suicide or feel in immediate danger, it is important to seek help right away by calling 112 (in the Netherlands) or going to A&E. Mavera GGZ does not provide crisis care.
Treatment: what actually works?
At Mavera GGZ, treatment is always tailored to the individual and their specific symptoms, based on evidence-based methods.
Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is generally the first-line treatment for anxiety. It examines which thoughts and behavior patterns keep the anxiety going, and works step by step toward new, more helpful ways of thinking and acting, including gradual exposure to avoided situations.
When anxiety is linked to earlier distressing experiences, EMDR can be used to help process those experiences.
ACT (Acceptance and Commitment Therapy) can be a helpful addition when someone feels especially stuck in a struggle against anxious thoughts and feelings, by learning a different way of relating to them while still taking meaningful steps in life.
In some cases, pharmacotherapy may form part of the treatment, in consultation with the treating clinician and the GP.
With the right treatment, meaningful improvement is often achievable. This does not mean anxiety will never return, but people generally learn to manage tension better and regain a sense of control over daily life.
The path to treatment
Specialist mental healthcare in the Netherlands requires a referral from your GP (huisarts). After the referral, an intake conversation takes place to map out the symptoms and the request for help, after which a suitable treatment plan is drawn up together.
At Mavera GGZ, the average waiting time for an intake is approximately 6 weeks, and treatment itself usually starts within about 3 months. Our BIG-registered clinicians provide care in Dutch, Turkish, English, Ukrainian, Polish, Uyghur, and Arabic.
In closing
Anxiety is part of life, but when it takes over and starts limiting daily functioning, seeking help is a sensible step. With the right guidance and evidence-based treatment methods, meaningful improvement is within reach.
Do you have questions about anxiety symptoms, or would you like to know more about the options at Mavera GGZ? Contact us at 010 – 254 38 96 or info@maveraggz.nl. We are located at Rozenlaan 115, 3051 LP Rotterdam.
Keywords
