Symptoms of Anxiety Disorders

Psychologist Douglas Mennin, PhD, talks about the symptoms typical of anxiety disorders, and in particular generalized anxiety disorder (GAD). The symptoms of each anxiety disorder vary in different people, but they all provoke extreme fear or worry that interferes with daily life. People with GAD experience constant, chronic, and unsubstantiated worry, often about health, family, money, or work. This worrying goes on every day, possibly all day, and people don’t know how to stop it. Some may also experience some physical symptoms such as muscle tension and fatigue, restlessness and irritability, or gastrointestinal discomfort.