From work worries to family-related stress to more existential concerns about what we want our future to become, contemporary life can often feel like an obstacle course of challenges—and it’s normal to feel overwhelmed by the task of navigating it all with ease. Feeling anxious from time to time is a fact of life—especially during stressful periods of transition or change. But when anxiety begins to interfere with your normal routines and take over your thought patterns in a persistent fashion, it may be time to consult your doctor.
Generalized Anxiety Disorder is an illness characterized by repeated, exaggerated worry about routine life events and activities that may result in chronic levels of an elevated stress response, and a weakened immune system. People with normal anxiety may suffer a sleepless night or occasional feelings of distraction and irritability—but people with Generalized Anxiety Disorder experience these symptoms more frequently and with greater intensity, along with other symptoms, on a daily basis in a way that