Ask the Doctor: What’s the difference between normal worrying and an anxiety disorder?
By Gregory Brown, M.D.
Dr. Gregory P. Brown answers the question: “What’s the difference between normal worrying and an anxiety disorder?”
Transient worry and concern over stressful situations is a normal response to life. When anxiety symptoms or worry begin to impair daily functioning, it’s possible that the normal experience of episodic worry may have progressed into an anxiety disorder.
Panic attacks, repetitive checking behavior, recurrent nightmares of trauma, or obsessive guilt, may indicate a more severe problem and should be assessed by a physician or therapist.
Gregory P. Brown, M.D. is an associate professor of psychiatry at the University of Nevada School of Medicine in Las Vegas. Dr. Brown is board certified in general psychiatry and forensic psychiatry, American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology.
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