Everybody knows what it's like to feel anxious - the butterflies in your stomach before a first date, the tension you feel when your boss is angry, the way your heart pounds if you're in danger. Anxiety rouses you to action. It gears you up to face a threatening situation. It makes you study harder for that exam, and keeps you on your toes when you're making a speech. In general, it helps you cope.

But if you have an anxiety disorder, this normally helpful emotion can do just the opposite - it can keep you from coping and can disrupt your daily life. Anxiety disorders aren't just a case of "nerves". They are illnesses, often related to the biological makeup and life experiences of the individual, and they frequently run in families. There are several types of anxiety disorders, each with its own distinct features.

An anxiety disorder may make you feel anxious most of the time, without any apparent reason. Or the anxious feelings may be so uncomfortable that to avoid them you may stop some everyday activities. Or you may have occasional bouts of anxiety so intense they terrify and immobilize you.

Anxiety disorders are the most common of all the mental disorders. At the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), the Federal agency that conducts and supports research related to mental disorders, mental health, and the brain, scientists are learning more and more about the nature of anxiety disorders, their causes, and how to alleviate them. NIMH also conducts educational outreach activities about anxiety disorders and other mental illnesses.

Many people misunderstand these disorders and think individuals should be able to overcome the symptoms by sheer willpower. Wishing the symptoms away does not work - but there are treatments that can help.

There are several different approaches to dealing with anxiety disorders. This disease is different for every person, so the treatment will be different for each person as well. Consult with your physician to decide what treatment is right for you.

Behavioral therapy
The goal of behavior therapy is to help individuals modify and gain control over unwanted behavior. People will learn how to cope with difficult situations, which will often take place through controlled exposure to these situations. The only drawback to this type of treatment is that it can take a great deal of time to achieve the desired results.

Cognitive therapy
The goal of cognitive therapy is to change unproductive thought patterns. People will learn to examine feeling as well as separating realistic from unrealistic thoughts.

Medication
The goal of medication is to resolve symptoms of anxiety through a more conventional method. Medication will help restore chemical imbalances that lead to symptoms of this disorder. The drawback to medication is that they can have side effects and treatment benefits are limited to active use of the medication.

Relaxation techniques
The goal of these techniques is to relax and calm people to a state where they will no longer experience symptoms. This therapy includes a number of techniques including breathing retraining.