Anxiety disorders are serious medical illnesses that affect approximately 19 million American adults. These disorders fill people's lives with overwhelming anxiety and fear. Unlike the relatively mild, brief anxiety caused by a stressful event such as a business presentation or a first date, anxiety disorders are chronic, relentless, and can grow progressively worse if not treated.

Effective treatments for anxiety disorders are available, and research is yielding new, improved therapies that can help most people with anxiety disorders lead productive, fulfilling lives. If you think you have an anxiety disorder, you should seek information and treatment.

Click on the links below to learn more about these anxiety disorders:

• Panic Disorder
• Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder
• Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
• Social Phobia (Social Anxiety Disorder)
• Specific Phobias
• Generalized Anxiety Disorder

Each anxiety disorder has its own distinct features, but they are all bound together by the common theme of excessive, irrational fear and dread.

For more information on treating anxiety disorders, see:

• Role of Research in Improving the Understanding and Treatment of Anxiety Disorders
• Treatment of Anxiety Disorders
• How to Get Help for Anxiety Disorders
• Strategies to Make Treatment More Effective
• Anxiety Disorder Resources