The Anxiety Moment

This book provides a comprehensive exploration of anxiety through interdisciplinary lenses—psychological, neuroscientific, biological, educational, cultural, and evolutionary. It examines the nature of anxiety as both a normal emotional state and a clinical disorder, emphasizing the distinction between adaptive worry and pathological anxiety. The text defines anxiety in psychological terms as an anticipatory emotional response involving cognitive distortions, physiological arousal, and behavioral avoidance. Diagnostic criteria from the DSM-5 and ICD-11 are reviewed alongside major clinical tools such as the GAD-7, BAI, HAM-A, and STAI. Their utility in clinical, educational, and research contexts is examined in-depth, emphasizing the limitations of relying on any single instrument. The epidemiology section highlights global and demographic patterns—showing higher prevalence in women, youth, and low-resource settings, with particular attention to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, academic stress, and socioeconomic pressures. The text also details risk factors including genetic predispositions, early-life trauma, and social stigma, supported by data from major global health sources such as the WHO and NIMH. From a neuroscientific view, the book explores how anxiety is rooted in hyperactivity of the amygdala, under-regulation by the prefrontal cortex, and dysfunctions in GABA, serotonin, and norepinephrine neurotransmitter systems. Emerging findings from genetics, epigenetics, and biomarkers are discussed, reinforcing the biological foundations of anxiety disorders and dispelling myths of anxiety as personal weakness. The educational consequences are explored in relation to test anxiety, school dropout, performance decline, and workplace avoidance, with policy suggestions for educators and administrators. Cross-cultural dimensions highlight how anxiety is variably expressed (e.g. , "taijin kyofusho," "ataques de nervios") and often misunderstood due to stigma or somatic metaphors in different cultures. Cultural sensitivity in diagnosis and public communication is advocated. The evolutionary perspective frames anxiety as a legacy of survival—once useful for threat detection, but now often maladaptive in modern stress contexts. The book urges a unified understanding of anxiety that respects both biological reality and cultural nuance, advocating for accessible mental health care, improved diagnostic literacy, and stigma reduction. By integrating research from clinical psychology, psychiatry, neuroscience, and education, this book bridges gaps between academic and public understandings of anxiety.