Anxiety disorders are among the most prevalent mental disorders in the United States affecting over 40 million adults today. Among the six major types anxiety disorders, the following paper aims to compare three of them. Though post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) share some similarities in terms of their clinical description and causes, each has its own unique characteristics, and therefore require different treatments.
Clinical Description
Though OCD and PTSD are unique disorders, the two share a number of similarities in terms of their clinical description. OCD is characterized as an overwhelming buildup of anxiety towards external objects or situations with symptoms involving recurrent intrusive thoughts, panic attacks, and avoidance. Victims often strive to suppress these symptoms through compulsions or actions that ultimately suppress their obsessions, providing quick relief. Similarly, individuals suffering with PTSD experience anxiety, particularly towards a specific situation with distressing symptoms involving intrusive thoughts, panic attacks and avoidance. Individuals with PTSD often
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One characteristic appearing in all three disorders is the concept of worrying. Individuals with GAD are often described to worry indiscriminately about everything, their concerns are often similar to those among society but the degrees to which they worry vary significantly. Comparably, PTSD is a condition that involves significant worrying, often about reliving a traumatic occurrence or experiencing a flashback. Like GAD and PTSD, those with OCD also experience worrying, particularly towards specific thoughts, images or impulses that they effort to suppress. Commonly, individuals with OCD worry about perfection, aggressive or sexual thoughts and