Everyone feels anxious from time to time, but people with anxiety disorders experience frequent and severe worry that disrupts their normal life.

In this article, we explore the different types of anxiety disorders along with management and coping techniques for anxiety.

What is anxiety?

Feeling anxiety before a specific event, such as a test, is normal.

Usually, anxiety is temporary. But someone with an anxiety disorder experiences regular, severe worry. The anxiety may be debilitating and prevent them from doing their normal activities.

Anxiety disorders are common. According to the National Institute of Mental Health, approximately 19.1%Trusted Source of adults in the United States have an anxiety disorder.

Types of anxiety disorder

There are many types of anxiety disorders, which we describe here:

Agoraphobia
Agoraphobia is the fear of space where it is difficult to escape or receive help if something goes wrong.

People with this type of phobia tend to avoid specific places or situations. For example, they might avoid crowds or public transport. Some people may become housebound in severe cases.

Generalized anxiety disorder
Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) involves constant worrying over everyday things. The anxiety might have no clearTrusted Source cause or trigger. This chronic condition can cause trouble sleeping, irritability, and muscle tension.

Obsessive-compulsive disorder
Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) causes distressing, intrusive thoughts that a person may manage by carrying out repetitive behaviors that provide temporary relief.

Phobias
Agoraphobia is one type of phobia, or fear. However, many other phobias exist. Some are common and relatively mild, such as a fear of spiders, or arachnophobia. Others may be more disruptive to a person’s life.

Panic disorder
Those with panic disorder are prone to panic attacks. These panic attacks cause physical symptoms similar to a heart attack.

Selective mutism
People who have this rare disorder avoid speaking, despite having the ability to do so. Those with selective mutism are typicallyTrusted Source very shy. They fear social judgment and embarrassment.

Separation anxiety
Separation anxiety is commonTrusted Source in children, but adults also experience it.

People with this type of anxiety disorder have an intense fear of separation from the people who are close to them in their lives.

Social anxiety disorder
People with this anxiety disorder have an intense fear of social interactions. They typicallyTrusted Source fear social humiliation and worry about judgment from others.