Mental health: What is anxiety?

'Tension', 'anxiety', 'ghabrahat', these are terms used often by clients who wish to describe fears associated with certain events, issues, thoughts and feelings.

"Taken to great extents, they become disorders which gain psychological nomenclature", says Healthmeup expert, Dr Kersi Chavda , Consultant Psychiatrist, P.D.Hinduja National Hospitals.

General Anxiety Disorder basically refers to situations where there is "a feeling of impending doom". There is always a feeling that something bad will happen and the patient is constantly nervous, tense and scared that something will happen to him or to someone he cares for. On occasion, it may be a situation that occurs after an actual life incident - e.g., chest pain after an actual heart attack can cause tremendous anxiety about another impending event or it may occur out of the blue without any obvious trigger. The person's anxiety may cause him to restrict his/ her activities or movements, which may cause irritation and anger in people's reactions to the anxious one. General Anxiety Disorder is basically continuous and long term. It often needs counselling and medication to help the person gain control over his emotions.

Anxiety attack

An "anxiety attack" as the name suggests is an acute episode, which is characterised by extreme panic. The person experiences a variety of symptoms, which may include chest pain, breathlessness, cold sweats, palpitation etc. enough to cause him to feel that he may suffer from an impending heart attack. He is rushed to a doctor, who finds nothing wrong with him and is then referred to a psychiatrist for an evaluation. Panic attacks can be really frightening, both for the patient as well as a bystander and can be treated with medications and reassurance for control.

Separation anxiety

This refers to the anxiety experienced by a person, usually a child, in relation to the distancing of himself from his usual environment or a person he loves. Usually seen in children, when schooling starts, it is characterised by fears, crying, shouting/aggression etc., which often persist until the loved one is seen again. It is unlikely to continue beyond age six. Usually reassurance and a gradual separation from the environment is all that is necessary to help the child overcome these problems.