General Anxiety Disorder
Differences Between Anxiety and Stress:
Stress
-a response of an organism to any demand for change that alters the organism’s equilibrium
-caused by pressures and demands of life
-“good stress” can improve performance
-situational – depends on stressors
Anxiety:
-feeling of apprehensiveness, worry, and often fear
-caused by psychological/physiological disposition
-anxiety costs our bodies energy
-continual – persistent worry
Both stress and anxiety are characterized by:
-Increased heart rate, increased respiration, sweating, shaking, aches and pains, feeling overwhelmed,
nervousness, changes in concentration
General Anxiety Disorder (GAD):
-a “person is tense, apprehensive, and in a state of autonomic nervous system arousal”
Robin Marantz:
-“Anxiety is not fear, exactly, because fear is focused on something right in front of you, a real and
objective danger. It is instead a kind of fear gone wild, a generalized sense of dread about something
out there that seems menacing — but that in truth is not menacing, and may not even be out there. If
you’re anxious, you find it difficult to talk yourself out of this foreboding; you become trapped in an
endless loop of what-ifs.”
Psychological symptoms:
-exaggerated worry and uneasiness (sometimes for no obvious reason)
-anxiety is disproportionate to the situation
-overly concerned about everyday problems
-not just stress and nervousness, but also fear
-difficulty concentrating, relaxing, and sleeping
Physical symptoms:
-fatigue, headaches, muscle tension, trembling, irritability, sweating, nausea, feeling out of breath,
easily startled
-essentially everything you feel when you’re nervous or scared, but individuals with GAD feel them
almost constantly
The (Vicious) Cycle of Anxiety
http://londoncognitive.com/2011/03/10/the-vicious-cycle-of-anxiety/
More about GAD:
-Range
-mild anxiety can function relatively normally
-severe anxiety can’t do simple, daily tasks
-develops gradually usually between childhood and middle age
-can depend on personality types
-has been shown to be hereditary
-treated with medication or cognitive-behavioral therapy
Evolutionary Significance
-individuals with GAD have more worry and fear than most people, but, as a result, they are also more
apprehensive and cautious in nearly every situation
-this apprehensiveness allows them to avoid certain dangers and improve their likelihood of survival,
which increases their overall fitness
Helpful Links:
http://www.beststressanxietyrelief.com/stress-and-anxiety/the-difference-between-anxiety-and-stress-part-1.html
http://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/anxiety-disorders/generalized-anxiety-disorder-gad.shtml
http://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2009/10/04/what-is-anxiety/
Stress
-a response of an organism to any demand for change that alters the organism’s equilibrium
-caused by pressures and demands of life
-“good stress” can improve performance
-situational – depends on stressors
Anxiety:
-feeling of apprehensiveness, worry, and often fear
-caused by psychological/physiological disposition
-anxiety costs our bodies energy
-continual – persistent worry
Both stress and anxiety are characterized by:
-Increased heart rate, increased respiration, sweating, shaking, aches and pains, feeling overwhelmed,
nervousness, changes in concentration
General Anxiety Disorder (GAD):
-a “person is tense, apprehensive, and in a state of autonomic nervous system arousal”
Robin Marantz:
-“Anxiety is not fear, exactly, because fear is focused on something right in front of you, a real and
objective danger. It is instead a kind of fear gone wild, a generalized sense of dread about something
out there that seems menacing — but that in truth is not menacing, and may not even be out there. If
you’re anxious, you find it difficult to talk yourself out of this foreboding; you become trapped in an
endless loop of what-ifs.”
Psychological symptoms:
-exaggerated worry and uneasiness (sometimes for no obvious reason)
-anxiety is disproportionate to the situation
-overly concerned about everyday problems
-not just stress and nervousness, but also fear
-difficulty concentrating, relaxing, and sleeping
Physical symptoms:
-fatigue, headaches, muscle tension, trembling, irritability, sweating, nausea, feeling out of breath,
easily startled
-essentially everything you feel when you’re nervous or scared, but individuals with GAD feel them
almost constantly
The (Vicious) Cycle of Anxiety
http://londoncognitive.com/2011/03/10/the-vicious-cycle-of-anxiety/
More about GAD:
-Range
-mild anxiety can function relatively normally
-severe anxiety can’t do simple, daily tasks
-develops gradually usually between childhood and middle age
-can depend on personality types
-has been shown to be hereditary
-treated with medication or cognitive-behavioral therapy
Evolutionary Significance
-individuals with GAD have more worry and fear than most people, but, as a result, they are also more
apprehensive and cautious in nearly every situation
-this apprehensiveness allows them to avoid certain dangers and improve their likelihood of survival,
which increases their overall fitness
Helpful Links:
http://www.beststressanxietyrelief.com/stress-and-anxiety/the-difference-between-anxiety-and-stress-part-1.html
http://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/anxiety-disorders/generalized-anxiety-disorder-gad.shtml
http://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2009/10/04/what-is-anxiety/
Creighton University Honors Program
Sources and Methods: Evolutionary Psychology
Omaha, NE 68178
April 29, 2011
Editors: Kelly Dean, Adam Grahn, Nathan Messbarger
