Have you ever become extremely nervous, to the point where you stuttered and shook just by the thought of doing something that you didn't want to do? Maybe you were thinking about getting on an elevator, maybe it was looking at a spider or maybe it was being in a social situation.

Have you ever felt the need to continually wash your hands even though you knew that they were clean? Have you ever felt really uneasy about something that other people around you didn't even notice?

Did you contribute to the problem by asking yourself "what's wrong with me" and begin to feel self conscious? Did you repeatedly question why others were able to do this and you found it so difficult?

If you answered yes to any of these questions, what you were experiencing was anxiety and if you have ever experienced these feelings be assured you are not alone. When faced with the same types of challenges an estimated 18 million people go through the same kinds of emotions.

In fact, medical professionals agree that anxiety is one of the most common medical problems today. And anxiety is more than just emotions, anxiety can result in very limiting behaviors that affect a person's entire life.

As you probably noticed in my examples, there are many types of anxiety. Here are some of the most common types:

1.Panic Attacks are an intense fear for a very short period of time, usually about 15 minutes. They come on without warning or reason and are far more intense than any other form of anxiety.

2.Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, also know as, OCD is a very common type of anxiety. The person who suffers from OCD experiences impulsive thoughts and they deal with these thoughts by engaging in actions that are repeated over and over again.

3.Post Traumatic Stress Disorders are caused by a person witnessing a terrifying event. After the event the person is subject to worry, often unjustified that the event will take place again.

4.Phobias are the most common type of anxiety in which the person has unjustified fear of either certain things or doing certain things. This would include things like irrational fears to elevators or even going outside.

The Symptoms

There are many symptoms of anxiety and they vary widely depending on the severity of the condition. Also, certain people will experience anxiety one way while the next person will experience the same type of anxiety with completely different symptoms. Here I have listed some of the symptoms.

Depression Unrealistic expectations Difficulty sleeping Dizziness Extreme fear Back pain Difficulty in concentrating Fatigue Physical symptoms

Treatments for anxiety

The first thing to do is to find a qualified professional. Make sure that you find someone that you can relate to because openness and honesty are the keys to recovery.

Cognitive therapy which is talk therapy that changes the meaning that something has to someone and medication are the most common treatments for those who suffer from anxiety. The two are usually used in combination, although each can be used alone.

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