Panic disorder: Individuals in this condition say they have feelings of fear terror that come on suddenly without warning. Other symptoms of a panic attack include cold and sweating palms, chest pain is common, palpitations or irregular heartbeats can occur which may lead them to fear they are having a heart attack.

Fears that they will die from the panic attack are common.

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD): PTSD This condition develops following a traumatic and/or terrifying event that causes or threatens the death of the self or others.   Individuals suffering from this condition are often anxious and depressed.  They may get startled easily.  They can experience flashbacks into the memory of the memory.  They can be triggered into panic attacks by things that remind them of the tragic event.

Social anxiety disorder:  People with social phobia or social anxiety disorder worry excessively about everyday social situations. Their worries often focus on being judged, or the fear of behaving in a way that would cause to be embarrassed or ridiculed.

Specific phobias: A specific phobia is an intense fear of an object or situation.  Intense fear of spiders, snakes or rodents is common.  Many people fear flying or freeway driving so much that they will avoid these activities.  The fear is inappropriate or “over the top” when seen through the eyes of others.

Generalized anxiety disorder:  We have treated individuals with this problem over the years. Folks with this worry a lot, all the time, about a lot of things, even when there’s no good reason for the anxiety.

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD): People with this problem have constant thoughts or fears that compel them to repeat certain rituals or routines. The regular and persistent thoughts are obsessions, and the behaviors that seem to help calm the obsessive thoughts are called compulsions. A common example is an individual who is so fearful of disease and germs that they constantly wash their hands.  The Jack Nicholson character in the movie “As Good As It Gets” will give you a good idea of the disorder.