Generalized Anxiety Disorder
Everyone feels anxious or uneasy from
time to time. Your first day on a new job, planning for a long trip,
going to the dentist....your palms sweat, you feel shaky, your heart
pounds. Some anxiety helps to keep you focused on the job at hand.
However, when your anxiety is so
serious that it interferes with your work, leads you to avoid certain
situations or keeps you from enjoying life, you may be suffering from
a form of the most common type of mental disorder, an anxiety
disorder.
Anxiety disorders are not just a case
of "nerves." You can't overcome an anxiety disorder just through
willpower, nor can the symptoms be ignored or wished away. These
disorders cause you to feel anxious most of the time, making some
everyday situations so uncomfortable that you may avoid them entirely.
Or, you may experience occasional instances of anxiety that are so
terrifying and intense that you may be immobilized with fear. Although
these conditions can be very frightening and disabling, they are also
very treatable. It is important to recognize the symptoms and seek
help.
Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) is
constant, exaggerated worry and tension without any apparent reason.
This may cause a person to always anticipate a disaster or worry
excessively about health, money, work, or family problems. Often,
however, the source of the worry and tension is not specific, and
simply inhibits a person's ability to get through the day.
People suffering from GAD may
experience:
- inability to relax
- inability to fall asleep or stay
asleep
- trembling or irritability
- twitching or muscle tension
- headaches
- sweating or hot flashes
- feeling lightheaded or out of breath
- feeling nauseated
- going to the bathroom frequently
- feeling tired or unable to
concentrate
Treatment
Treatment for anxiety disorders usually involves both medication
and psychotherapy. Studies have shown with proper treatment, 70-80
percent of people with panic disorders significantly improve and often
within 6-8 weeks.
There are many different drugs used to
treat anxiety symptoms; therefore, it is possible that if one type is
not effective, another may be. Many of these medications have side
effects, so the patient should be monitored and observed closely.
Behavioral therapy and
cognitive-behavioral therapy are also very effective in treating these
disorders.
Behavioral therapy
focuses on changing specific actions and uses different techniques to
stop this behavior. One technique involves diaphragmatic breathing
which is a form of deep-breathing. Another technique called exposure
therapy gradually exposes the patient to the object or situation which
frightens him/her and helps the patient to develop coping skills.
Cognitive-behavioral therapy
teaches the persons new skills in order to react differently to the
situations which trigger the anxiety or panic attacks. Patients also
learn to understand how their thinking patterns contribute to the
symptoms and how to change their thinking to reduce or stop these
symptoms.
Source: National Mental Health
Association
