Is it an Anxiety Disorder or Stress?

Many practitioners believe that when it comes to anxiety an important part of treatment is to diagnose the underlying condition that the patient is experiencing. Is it chronic or episodic? Is it an issue of adjusting to misfortune or is the anxiety out of proportion to the presenting life stressors? Yet other treaters believe that diagnosis is less important than treating the symptoms. In other words, however they arrive at it, both men are experiencing similar stuff - namely uncertainty and anxiety. This in turn causes mental anguish and, whether chronic or acute, deserves to be treated. Treatment, of course, can take on many forms - from behavioral techniques to pharmacological interventions. If you feel that your experiences are analogous to Albert or Marshall's - or an amalgam of both - you may want to consult your health-care provider.