Fear and anxiety are often used interchangeably, treated as identical constructs. While fear and anxiety share commonalities (e.g., negative emotional states with high arousal), fear is more focused on the present, while anxiety is concerned with a potential threat in the future. Anxiety states are usually long lasting and maintained by worry (e.g., cognitive process), risk assessment and the mental time travel into numerous future possible scenarios (e.g., usually negative outcomes). The term anxiety in a clinical setting can be viewed as an umbrella global term for more specific types of anxiety concerns, like social anxiety disorder (SAD) and panic disorder (PD).
Anxiety refers to the brain response to danger, stimuli that an organism will actively attempt to avoid. This brain response is a basic emotion already present in infancy and childhood, with expressions falling on a continuum from mild to severe. Anxiety is not typically pathological as it is adaptive in many scenarios when it facilitates avoidance of danger. Strong cross-species parallels—both in organisms’ responses to danger and in the underlying brain circuitry engaged by threats—likely reflect these adaptive aspects of anxiety. One frequent and established conceptualization is that anxiety becomes maladaptive when it interferes with functioning, avoidance behavior,and persistent.Thus, pathological anxiety at any age can be characterized by persisting or extensive degrees of anxiety and avoidance associated with subjective distress.
Anxiety disorders are the most prevalent disorders, with an expected 25% of people qualifying for some type of anxiety diagnosis in their life time. More importantly, anxiety may lead to constant worrying and feelings of something bad may happen, and often leads to avoidance of situations that usually benefit people (e.g., eating out or watching a movie). It is important to note that anxiety is not just something produced by the environment or a perceived bad situation, but also a dispositional trait within the person (e.g., low levels of emotional stability).
When people are asked in a clinical setting of how much anxiety they would like to have, it is not uncommon for people to say “zero”. This makes sense, as why would anyone want to feel physical unease (e.g., butterflies or racing heart) or uncontrollable worrying. Interesting, anxiety can be viewed as a two-sided weighted coin, and while normally biased towards threat and danger, anxiety can have positive outcomes.
Think about the last time you studied for a test, or prepared for a job interview, or something important, I am guessing it was anxiety that helped motivate and prepare you for success. However, this type of anxiety is usually considered healthy and something that allows us to work towards goals and approach future requirements.
Unfortunately it is when anxiety becomes constant that it can causes distress for a persons school, work and personal relationships. In summary anxiety can make you a prisoner of the future, always thinking ahead of future negative possibilities, at the cost of enjoying and living in the present moment.
It's important for individuals experiencing anxiety symptoms or constant distress to seek professional assistance. Effective treatments like CBT and medications can help manage the condition and improve a person's quality of life. If you or someone you know is struggling with anxiety, consulting with a mental health professional is advised as the first step in getting relief from the distress.
