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Anxiety and Dissociative Disorders: Fearing the World Around Us

23 September, 2015 - 14:33

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

  1. Outline and describe the different types of anxiety disorders.
  2. Outline and describe the different types of dissociative disorders.
  3. Explain the biological and environmental causes of anxiety and dissociative disorders.

Anxiety, the nervousness or agitation that wsometimes experience, ofteabout something that is going to happen, is a natural part of life. We a ll feel anxious at times, maybe when we think about our upcoming visit to the dentist or the presentation we have to give to our class next week. Anxiety is an important and useful human emotion; it is associated with the activation of the sympathetic nervous system and the physiological and behavioral responses that help protect us from danger. But too much anxiety can be debilitating, and every year millions of people suffer from anxiety disorders, which are psychological disturbances markeby irrational fears,often of everydaobjects and situations (Kessler, Chiu, Demler, & Walters, 2005). 1