Condition Anxiety
Anxiety: when worry stops being useful
A certain amount of anxiety is healthy — it sharpens attention and keeps you safe. It becomes a problem when the worry is excessive, hard to control, and sticks around even when there is nothing specific to worry about, wearing on your sleep, focus, and body.
To gauge whether your anxiety has crossed into that range, the GAD-7 anxiety screening is the standard quick tool: seven questions about the last two weeks, scored privately here. It is a starting point for a conversation, not a diagnosis.
Take the anxiety test
What anxiety can look like
Generalized anxiety tends to show up as a mix of mental and physical signs, more days than not:
- Feeling nervous, on edge, or unable to relax
- Worry you can’t switch off or control
- Restlessness, or a sense that something bad is coming
- Irritability
- Trouble concentrating
- Physical signs: racing heart, tight chest, tension, stomach upset
- Sleep that anxiety keeps you from
Read the full guide to anxiety symptoms →
Explore the types of anxiety →
When to seek help
- Worry is hard to control and has lasted six months or more.
- Anxiety is limiting what you do — avoiding places, people, or tasks.
- You have panic attacks, or physical symptoms you can’t explain.
Questions worth asking a clinician
- Is this generalized anxiety, panic, or something more specific?
- Which helps more for me — therapy, medication, or lifestyle changes?
- Are any of my physical symptoms worth ruling out medically?
- What can I do during a panic or high-anxiety moment?
Anxiety by the numbers
19.1%
of U.S. adults with an anxiety disorder in the past year
NIMH
31%
lifetime prevalence among U.S. adults
NIMH
1.6×
higher past-year rate in women than men
NIMH
Sources: National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH); Harvard/NCS-R replication.
Frequently asked questions
What are the signs of anxiety?
Common signs include excessive, hard-to-control worry, feeling nervous or on edge, restlessness, irritability, difficulty concentrating, muscle tension, and trouble sleeping — plus physical symptoms like a racing heart, chest tightness, and nausea.
What does anxiety feel like physically?
Anxiety often shows up in the body as a pounding or racing heart, tight chest, shortness of breath, dizziness, a churning stomach, sweating, trembling, and muscle tension. These are real physical effects of the body’s stress response, not "all in your head".
What causes anxiety?
Anxiety disorders develop from a combination of genetics, brain chemistry, personality, and life experiences such as stress or trauma. Physical health issues, caffeine, and some medications can also amplify anxiety.
Does anxiety go away?
Everyday anxiety comes and goes, but an anxiety disorder tends to persist without treatment. The good news is that anxiety disorders are among the most treatable conditions — most people improve significantly with therapy, and often do not need lifelong treatment.
How is anxiety treated?
First-line treatment is usually cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), which is highly effective, sometimes combined with medication such as SSRIs. Paced breathing, exercise, limiting caffeine, and good sleep also help. A clinician can tailor the approach.