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People with GAD experience intense feelings of worry or fear that occur most days for six months or longer. This anxiety is related to a variety of different areas of life, such as relationships, careers, health, and safety. GAD affects nearly 6% of adults at some point in their lives.

In addition to worry and fear that is difficult to control, symptoms of GAD may include:

• Changes in sleep or difficulty sleeping
• Difficulty concentrating
• Digestive issues
• Fatigue
• Feeling restless
• Irritability
• Tense muscles, often in the neck and shoulders

While some people may be genetically prone to GAD, this condition may run in families partially because of life circumstances and the home environment. The specific causes are not fully understood.

Diagnosis involves an evaluation with a healthcare provider or mental health professional (such as a psychiatrist, psychologist, or social worker) who will ask questions and assess the condition.

OBSESSIVE COMPULSIVE DISORDER

OCD IS CLASSIFIED UNDER ITS OWN CATEGORY, SEPARATE FROM ANXIETY DISORDERS. IT IS CLASSIFIED UNDER THE CATEGORY OF OBSESSIVE-COMPULSIVE and RELATED DISORDERs UNDER THE DSM-5. 

OCD involves repeated, unwanted thoughts or urges (obsessions) and the feeling the need to do something repeatedly (compulsions). It affects up to 3 million American adults.

Symptoms of OCD include:

National Institute of Mental Health. Obsessive-compulsive disorder.

• Feeling fear of losing control of their behavior
• Feeling the need to clean excessively or an intense fear of germs
• Fear of forgetting or losing things
• Placing items in a specific order
• Repeatedly checking that things have been completed

OCD may be caused by genetics or traumatic experiences, especially in childhood, but the causes are not fully understood. 

Panic disorder is a condition in which a person experiences many panic attacks over a long period of time. The panic attacks come on suddenly, without any known danger, and involve intense feelings of fear or feelings of losing control. This condition is more than twice as common among females than males.

Symptoms of a panic attack include

• Difficulty breathing
• Dizziness
• Feeling weak
• Increased heart rate
• Light-headedness
• Pain in the chest
• Shaking or chills
• Sweating with or without feeling hot
• Upset stomach

A person with panic disorder is intensely fearful of experiencing another panic attack, and they often fear or avoid places where they have had a panic attack.

Like GAD, it is not entirely clear what causes panic disorder. People who experience traumatic events or loss are at an increased risk. 

SAD involves fear or worry related to social interactions. Women are more likely to experience SAD than men, especially among teens and young women. Additionally, their symptoms tend to be more severe.

Social anxiety disorder symptoms include:

• Avoiding social situations or interactions
• Extreme shyness or fear of talking to new people
• Feelings of nervousness, embarrassment, or being judged
• Overthinking conversations
• Ruminating about interactions with others

The specific causes of social anxiety disorder are unclear. It may run in families, and stress and environmental factors also may play a role

Separation anxiety disorder involves intense fear or reaction related to being apart from those to whom the individual is attached. These fears and reactions are normal for babies and young children but can become a concern if they do not grow out of it around school age. This condition may also affect teens and adults.

Symptoms of separation anxiety disorder include:

• Difficulty sleeping, leaving the house, or taking part in activities that involve being away from a primary caregiver
• Extreme reaction when separated from a primary caregiver
• Fear or worry related to danger for a primary caregiver or self
• Feeling physically ill when separated from a primary caregiver
• Intense desire to constantly be with a specific person

The causes of separation anxiety disorder are not fully known. Traumatic experiences, instability at home, and stressful situations can increase the risk of this condition. It can be diagnosed with an evaluation from a mental health professional.

A phobia is a continuous, irrational, and intense fear of something that poses little or no actual danger. 

For example, a person may have a phobia of both spiders and heights.

Phobia symptoms include:

• Avoiding something specific due to fear, such as needles or dogs
• Difficulty breathing
• Increased heart rate
• Shaking
• Sweating
• Upset stomach

Phobias can be caused by a traumatic event involving the thing that is feared or someone repeatedly or intensely expressing the dangers of what is feared. However, sometimes the cause is unrelated to the specific phobia, or the cause is unknown.

How anxiety and unresolved trauma can interfere with relationships

Anxiety and unresolved trauma can significantly impact relationships by creating a cycle of fear and mistrust. Individuals with unresolved trauma may experience hyper-vigilance, leading to constant guarding against potential threats, which can result in accusations or suspicion without cause. This hyper-vigilance can also lead to difficulty being emotionally vulnerable or sharing deep feelings, creating a fear of physical intimacy.
In contrast, anxiety can cause individuals to feel overly alert or numb, affecting their ability to communicate effectively and respond to stress within relationships. This can lead to communication breakdowns, where partners may shut down during arguments or become overwhelmed by emotional conversations.
Both anxiety and unresolved trauma can create a toxic environment in relationships, where trust is undermined and emotional intimacy is diminished. It is crucial for individuals and couples to seek professional help to understand and address these issues, allowing for a healthier and more resilient partnership. 

Here's a great article to read on the 10 Common Patterns Seen in Unresolved Relational Trauma | Psychology Today 

When your friends or family tell you to "snap out of it," it probably feels like you're alone on an island. All you want is for someone to understand why getting out of bed feels like running a marathon, or why living your daily life feels like being stuck upside down on a roller coaster when you're afraid of heights. Internal struggles, past traumas, deep-rooted anxieties, and depression don't have a simple on/off switch. I use a humanistic approach combined with gold-standard treatments like Exposure Response Prevention and CBT while identifying the root causes and possible factors to help my clients. Often, day-to-day struggles are only surface-level, and deeper issues may lie underneath. Conditions like anxiety and depression, for example, can be inherited through genetic predisposition, but suppressing these feelings will only make them worse. My goal is to help clients navigate difficult times and equip them with the tools to recognize when they're struggling and how to manage it. 

Being in a relationship isn't at all like what we see in the movies. When you first meet someone and feel that instant spark, it's amazing and exciting, but it takes effort and commitment to maintain that spark. Sometimes, couples start to grow apart because they feel like they've lost their individuality and aren't being true to themselves. This leads to blaming and resentment in the relationship. It's natural to fear losing oneself or the other person, and this fear can lead to distancing ourselves from the relationship. Sometimes this distance happens intentionally, and sometimes it does not. Of course, some relationships may no longer serve a purpose or have reached their end, and that's okay. On the other hand, there are relationships where both partners feel stuck, lost, and miss the connection they once had, fearing that they'll never get it back. However, it's possible to rekindle that connection and regain a sense of individuality while still being a team with your partner. Through therapy, we can work together to uncover and address deep-rooted issues. I understand that couples therapy can be intimidating. As a therapist, I aim to be compassionate, empathetic, and straightforward. To find solutions, both partners need to be willing to truly hear each other, embrace uncertainty, take personal responsibility for the relationship, and be ready to put in the effort. With this approach, finding balance within the partnership is entirely possible!