Generalized Anxiety Disorder in Spanish

What it means

Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) is a mental disorder in which a person is often worried or anxious about many things and finds it hard to control this anxiety. The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) explains that occasional anxiety is a normal part of life, but people with GAD feel extremely worried or nervous more frequently or more intensely, even when the worry is out of proportion with the situation. According to MedlinePlus, the main symptom is frequent worry or tension for at least 6 months, even when there is little or no clear cause. Other symptoms include problems concentrating, fatigue, irritability, and problems falling or staying asleep. There is no test that can make the diagnosis; it is based on answers to questions about the symptoms.

Generalized Anxiety Disorder in Spanish

Spanish term: Trastorno de ansiedad generalizada
Gender and article: masculine: el trastorno de ansiedad generalizada
Pronunciation: trahs-TOR-noh deh ahn-syeh-DAHD heh-neh-rah-lee-SAH-dah

Other Spanish terms	Where it is used	Note
TAG	General	Abbreviation used by MedlinePlus en español and given by the National Cancer Institute's Spanish dictionary.
trastorno por ansiedad generalizado	General	Headword of the entry in the National Cancer Institute's Spanish dictionary, which adds that the condition is also called trastorno de ansiedad generalizada.

Trastorno de ansiedad generalizada is the name used by the Spanish brochure of the National Institute of Mental Health and by MedlinePlus en español. It takes the masculine article, el trastorno de ansiedad generalizada. The National Cancer Institute's Spanish dictionary files the condition under a slightly different headword, trastorno por ansiedad generalizado, with por and the ending -ado, and adds that it is also called TAG and trastorno de ansiedad generalizada. MedlinePlus en español uses the abbreviation TAG as well.

Vocabulary from the MedlinePlus en español article: preocupación (worry), tensión (tension), ansiedad (anxiety), fatiga (fatigue), irritabilidad (irritability) and problemas para concentrarse (problems concentrating). It calls talk therapy psicoterapia and cognitive-behavioral therapy terapia cognitiva conductista, abbreviated TCC. For the six-month mark it writes durante al menos 6 meses. The NIMH brochure describes people with the disorder as people who se preocupan extremadamente o se sienten muy nerviosas.

Phrases for an appointment

What a patient or a clinician might say, in English and Spanish:

Who	English	Spanish
Patient	I worry about everything, every day, and I can't control it.	Me preocupo por todo, todos los días, y no puedo controlarlo.
Clinician	How long have you been feeling this way?	¿Desde cuándo se siente así?
Patient	For more than six months. It is hard for me to fall asleep and to concentrate at work.	Desde hace más de seis meses. Me cuesta conciliar el sueño y concentrarme en el trabajo.
Clinician	Do you also have physical symptoms, such as muscle tension or an upset stomach?	¿Tiene también síntomas físicos, como tensión muscular o malestar estomacal?
Patient	Yes, my neck and shoulders are always tense, and I get irritated easily.	Sí, siempre tengo tensión en el cuello y los hombros, y me irrito con facilidad.
Clinician	What you describe may be generalized anxiety disorder. I would like to ask you some more questions.	Lo que describe puede ser un trastorno de ansiedad generalizada. Quisiera hacerle algunas preguntas más.
Patient	I was diagnosed with generalized anxiety disorder two years ago.	Me diagnosticaron trastorno de ansiedad generalizada hace dos años.
Patient	Could I talk with someone about talk therapy?	¿Podría hablar con alguien sobre la psicoterapia?

In 9 languages

Language	Term
English	Generalized Anxiety Disorder
Spanish (Español)	Trastorno de ansiedad generalizada
Chinese (中文)	廣泛性焦慮症
Korean (한국어)	범불안 장애
Vietnamese (Tiếng Việt)	Rối loạn lo âu lan tỏa
Filipino (Tagalog)	Generalized anxiety disorder
Portuguese (Português)	Transtorno de ansiedade generalizada
Thai (ภาษาไทย)	โรควิตกกังวลทั่วไป
Japanese (日本語)	全般性不安障害

Where you'll see it

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Related ICD-10-CM category

ICD-10-CM code: F41 → Other anxiety disorders

Related terms

Your right to an interpreter in the United States

If English is not your primary language and you have difficulty communicating in English, you may need an interpreter or a translated document when you visit a doctor or dentist, go to the emergency room or pick up a prescription. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights states that two federal laws, Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act, require programs that receive its funding to provide language access services free of charge.

You can ask when you make the appointment or at the front desk: "I need an interpreter, please." «Necesito un intérprete, por favor.»

More terms: Mental health

All terms in this area: Mental health — Salud mental

Sources

This page is a language reference. It is not medical advice.