Anxiety can manifest in more ways than just worrying about a test or having a fear of elevators. Anxiety disorders range in both severity and symptoms, and Mental Health Outreach Peer Educators (M-HOPE) interns taught students that though anxiety affects everyone, there are ways to control and cope with it.

A circle of 20 students sat in University Union West Thursday night during the M-HOPE-sponsored event, “Anxiety and College Students,” where interns taught them how to identify and cope with anxiety through a presentation and interactive discussion.

Anxiety, the most common mental disorder, is fear, worry or uneasiness when thinking about the future. It can be caused by problems at work or school, tests or obligations, relationships or friendship issues, family, financial problems or even alcohol. It affects over 25 million Americans, according to the presentation, and becomes a disorder when it interferes with people’s daily lives or ability to function.

Allison Dashow, an M-HOPE intern and a junior majoring in psychology, said that she hopes students learned how to manage anxiety, because a majority of students know someone who suffers from some form of the disorder.

“You might not be able to fully wrap your head around it and that’s OK,” Dashow said. “Anxiety is so prevalent, so we should be able to talk about it and help people with it.”

Four interns explained different anxiety diagnoses, their symptoms and impacts. General Anxiety Disorder, or persistent worry about activities or events that may impede one’s ability to focus on tasks, affects three to four percent of the population and its symptoms include: headaches, trembling, frustration, disrupted sleep and inability to fully relax.

Dina Moumin, a sophomore majoring in biochemistry, said she thinks it is important to be educated on anxiety because of its prevalence on college campuses.

“I feel like it would be helpful for me to be able to recognize it and help those in need,” Moumin said. “Even if it’s not a big help, I just want to try to give advice to friends I know who have anxiety.”

They also discussed panic disorders, which affects three to six million Americans and is twice as common in women, and panic attacks. Both of them are episodes of anxiety or terror in response to certain triggers. Attacks typically last under 10 minutes but can last up to an hour. Social anxiety was another topic, which is an overwhelming worry and self-consciousness about everyday social situations. It includes fear of being judged, avoidance of eating or drinking in front of others and behaving in certain ways to avoid embarrassment.

OCD, PTSD, selective muteness and phobias were also discussed as manifestations of anxiety, according to the presentation. Though both physical and mental outcomes arise from anxiety, such as sweaty hands and feet, heart or muscle tensions, nausea or dizziness and feelings of nervousness or panic, there are ways students can cope with it.

Students can practice deep breathing, positive self-talk, exercise and a lower caffeine intake to manage anxious thoughts. The University Counseling Center also has 15 counselors and social work graduate interns to help students in need.

Emily Blum, a sophomore majoring in mathematics, said that it was a beneficial event, and now feels better prepared to help her friends and people around her cope with anxiety.

“I came because I want to help people more and I want to be more aware of what’s going on, not even just in my friends, but generally in people around me,” Blum said. “I’m going to go to a bunch of these [events] and hopefully I can help people.”