ORIGINAL ARTICLE ‘I have anxiety, but I have values and preferences’ Experiences of users with generalized anxiety disorder: A qualitative study Mar  ıa M. Hurtado, 1 Amelia Villena, 2 Amanda Vega, 1 Gisela Amor, 1 Clara G omez 3 and Jos e Miguel Morales-Asencio 4 1 Mental Health Unit, Regional University Hospital, M alaga, 2 Mental Health Unit, Valle de los Pedroches Hospital, Pozoblanco, 3 Badalona Care Services, Barcelona, and 4 Faculty of Health Sciences, University of M alaga, M alaga, Spain ABSTRACT: To understand the experience and perceptions of people diagnosed with generalized anxiety disorder, along the whole process and their role through the decision-making process for their treatment. A qualitative study through focus groups composed of people diagnosed with generalized anxiety disorder was carried out. Content analysis was carried out to explore the most representative issues. Five thematic categories were identified: onset of the disorder, symptoms and course; daily life with the disorder; coping with the disorder; demand of healthcare for anxiety, and treatment options and decision-making. Most of the patients reported physical symptoms of anxiety. The majority of participants perceived little social support from their environment and occupational interferences. Coping seems to differ among participant that have recovered or not recovered. The involvement of users with generalized anxiety disorder was scarce, and pharmacological treatment was always the first option offered. There is scarce orientation to elicit preferences and values of patients across the process of care for people with generalized anxiety disorder. The consequence is a biased predisposition of the healthcare system to provide pharmacological treatment as the first option and ignore the perspective of patients on how to cope with their illness. KEY WORDS: anxiety disorders, patient-centred care, qualitative research. INTRODUCTION Anxiety disorders are one of the most common mental illnesses, overcoming mood disorders, impulse control disorders and substance abuse. Nevertheless, there are important differences among countries: according to DSM-5, the prevalence of generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) ranges from 5% in high-income countries to 1.6% in low-income countries, with a lifetime preva- lence of 3.7%. Comorbidities across the lifespan are very common (around 80%), and it has an important impact on daily functioning in half of the affected sub- jects (Ruscio et al. 2017). GAD is characterized by an excessive, constant and uncontrollable worry about var- ious topics, usually related to circumstances of daily Correspondence: Mar  ıa M. Hurtado, UGC Salud Mental, Hospi- tal Regional Universitario of M alaga, M alaga 29009, Spain. Email: marienahurtado@gmail.com Authorship statement: All authors listed meet the authorship cri- teria according to the latest guidelines of the International Com- mittee of Medical Journal Editors and are in agreement with the manuscript. Declaration of conflict of interest: The authors declare no con- flict of interest. Mar  ıa M. Hurtado, CP, PhD. Amelia Villena, CP. Amanda Vega, CP. Gisela Amor, CP. Clara G omez, CP. Jos e Miguel Morales-Asencio, B.Sc, PhD. Accepted December 15 2019. © 2020 Australian College of Mental Health Nurses Inc. International Journal of Mental Health Nursing (2020) , – doi: 10.1111/inm.12690