Everyone experiences anxiety at some point in their lifetime. We’ve all gotten that midnight phone call saying some loved one has been taken to the hospital. This is a normal part of life on our planet.

In spite of all our preparing for that rainy day, occasionally a storm will come along and take the roof off your house and leave you with wet furnishings and weeks of dealing with your insurance company.

Events like this can be stressful and always cause anxiety. But what is the difference between normal anxiety and an anxiety disorder? For the answer to this question, we may want to look at various personality types:

? The Happy-Go-Lucky Guy - to this guy (or gal) the glass is always half full. They consistently have a smile on their face and no one has ever seen them upset, worried or distressed.

? The Worrier - this person is prone to worry about almost everything. In fact, if there’s nothing to worry about, they start worrying! Their face may even be contorted in an expression of worry. Women are twice as likely to fall into this category as men.

? The Calm, Peaceful Soul - this person takes life as it comes. They deal with emergencies with the same levelheaded finesse as they deal with ordering lunch. They rarely get upset about anything.

Of the four categories above, which do you think would develop an anxiety disorder? The answer is pretty clear. By and large, a person who worries constantly and even obsesses over events in their lives will at some point develop a bonafide “anxiety disorder”.

Generalized Anxiety Disorder or GAD is a disorder where the sufferer is worried almost constantly. They normally have symptoms such as:

1. Inability to concentrate

2. Jittery feelings

3. Irritability

4. Insomnia

5. Fatigue

There can be genetic reasons why one person will develop GAD and some research shows that brain chemistry is linked to this disease. However, the main difference between anxiety and an anxiety disorder is the ability to deal with tragedy and move past it. Those who become obsessed with negative events often develop GAD. They lack the ability to realize that everyone goes through death, disaster and adversity at various points in their lives.