We Are Living in Dangerous Times, Part 6

Take the “Generalized Anxiety Disorder Self-Test

Before we go into the description of the signs and symptoms of anxiety and anxiety disorder, I invite you to take a screening tool that can help you find out if you have an anxiety disorder. The test, that is called GAD-7 was developed by Drs. Robert L. Spitzer, Janet B.W. Williams, Kurt Kroenke and their colleagues. It was developed through an education grant from Pfizer. GAD stands for generalized anxiety disorder and the test is equipped with 7 items.

Over the last two weeks, how often have you been bothered by the following problems? (Check one of the following blanks: 0 (Not at all), 1 (Several days), 2 (More than half the days), 3 (Nearly every day))

1. Feeling nervous, anxious or on edge

2. Not being able to stop or control worrying

3. Worrying too much about different things

4. Trouble relaxing

5. Being so restless that it is hard to sit still

6. Becoming easily annoyed or irritable

7. Feeling afraid, as if something awful might happen

Add up your results for your checked items. Get the sum of your checked items. Your total score is a guide to how severe your anxiety disorder may be: 0 to 4 = Mild Anxiety; 5 to 9 = Moderate Anxiety; 10 to 14 = Moderately Severe Anxiety; 15 to 21 = Severe Anxiety.

If your score is 10 or higher, or if you feel that anxiety is affecting your daily life, call and see your doctor.

(To be continued)