If you said yes to any of the above questions, you could be suffering from Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD), Panic Disorder or PTSD or a combination of all three.
To complicate matters, one condition can predispose you to the other conditions. For example, if you are prone to anxiety, you are more at risk of developing PTSD.
The question is how can you know which condition(s) you’re suffering from?
To answer that question, let’s take a look at the similarities and differences of all three conditions.
The Anxiety and Depression Association of America states that Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) affects 6.8 million people worldwide and 3.1 million in the US.
According to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th edition, the hallmark of Generalized Anxiety Disorder is excessive worry and anxiety.
And at least 3 of the following 6 symptoms:
*Restlessness, feeling keyed up or on edge
*Being easily fatigued
*Difficulty concentrating or mind going blank
*Irritability
*Muscle tension
*Sleep disturbance (difficulty falling or staying asleep, or restless, unsatisfying sleep)
In addition, the above symptoms must occur more days than not for at least 6 months, and:
*cause significant disturbance in social, occupational or other important areas of functioning;
*not be attributable to a medical condition (such as hyperthyroidism), or a physiological reaction to a drug;
*the symptoms must also not be better explained by another condition, such as Social Anxiety disorder, Separation Anxiety or Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, or be secondary to the fear of having panic attacks, which is a common symptom of Panic Disorder;
*not be associated with reminders of traumatic events, as is the case of PTSD, or fear of gaining weight, as in anorexia nervosa or body dysmorphic disorder;
*and not be associated with a serious illness, or related to delusions in schizophrenia.
Now let’s look at Panic Disorder.
Panic attacks are the central feature of Panic Disorder. The DSM-5 divides panic attacks into two categories: expected and unexpected panic attacks.
Expected panic attacks are linked to a specific fear, such as fear of heights. Unexpected panic attacks occur without any clear trigger, and seem to appear out of the blue.
According to the DSM-5, a panic attack is characterized by four or more of the following symptoms:
*Palpitations, pounding heart, or accelerated heart rate
*Sweating
*Trembling or shaking
*Sensations of shortness of breath or smothering
*A feeling of choking
*Chest pain or discomfort
*Nausea, vomiting or abdominal distress