What Are Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, Phobic Disorders, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, and Panic Disorder?

Obsessive-compulsive disorder is characterized by obsessions, which are ideas, images, or impulses that intrude into a person's thinking (for example, fear of contamination). The obsessions may seem silly, weird, nasty, or horrible and may be accompanied by compulsions, which are repetitive, even ritualistic urges (for example, ritualistic hand washing) to do something that will lessen the discomfort that they cause. People with this disorder are aware that their obsessions are not actual risks or threats, so they have not lost touch with reality (which would be called psychosis). Obsessive-compulsive disorder is common among older people but usually begins in earlier life. Women are more likely than men to be affected.

Phobic disorders involve persistent, unrealistic, yet intense anxiety brought on by certain situations. Examples include fear of public places (agoraphobia) and fear of confinement (claustrophobia). Phobic disorders are more common among children and younger adults than they are among older people, though they are not rare among older people. Phobic disorders can severely inhibit social interactions, though most phobias are not disabling.

Posttraumatic stress disorder involves the re-experiencing or replaying of an overwhelmingly disturbing event, resulting in intense fear, a sense of helplessness, horror, and an urge to avoid things associated with the disturbing trauma. The re-experiencing or replaying of the event usually takes the form of a nightmare or flashback. The event may have occurred long ago: The effects of severe stress during childhood or young adulthood on the way some people function later in life are widely recognized. Disturbing, traumatic events can certainly occur in middle or old age as well.

Panic disorder is characterized by recurrent, brief periods of intense fear or nervous discomfort. These periods, or panic attacks, are rare in older people and when they occur tend to be less severe than those in younger adults.

Back to Anxiety.