Posts Tagged ‘Anxiety’

In this day and age of juggling work and family, people are under more stress than ever. What may be a temporary bump in the road for some, can be downright debilitating for others. When people refer to anxiety they are often referencing a “feeling” that they get under exorbitant amounts of stress. And we have all experienced what is considered to be anxiety at one time or another. Anxiety disorder, however, is something very different; a general term that medical professionals use to describe a variety of psychological conditions related to fear, anxiety, and phobias.

Most noticeable, anxiety disorder can interfere with everyday activities, getting in the way of work responsibilities, social activities, and personal relationships. Even the most commonplace activities – shopping, driving; even leaving the house – can seem insurmountable to those suffering from an anxiety disorder. The conditions associated with anxiety disorder are numerous and not everyone feels them acutely as others. But these conditions are considered to be a disorder if they are ongoing, irrational, and interfere with daily life.

People who suffer from anxiety in any capacity will report varied emotions when faced with situations that activate their fight or flight response. This feeling of heightened anxiety can also be described as fear – an emotion that the body reacts to by releasing adrenalin throughout the body. When we are not able to calm this reaction – when the fear or anxiety takes over – the adrenalin takes over as well and a host of physiological reactions ensue. Those with anxiety report increased heart rate, sweating, the inability to catch their breath, and paralyzing fear.

Thankfully, there are a number of excellent medications on the market today that have been designed to help people who suffer from anxiety. But in order to treat sufferers appropriately, it is necessary to determine the anxiety disorder subcategory from which the patient suffers.

Generalized anxiety disorder refers to ongoing and persistent fear and anxiety that comes and goes with no particular catalyst. A sufferer of generalized anxiety may feel a heightened state of awareness, fear, and worry most of the time – manifesting itself in a host of physical symptoms including body tension, sleep disorders, headaches, stomach ailments, and heart palpitations.

Panic disorder refers to episodes of anxiety generally provoked by one or several catalysts. The sufferer reacts to a particular stress by experiencing heightened anxiety and panic translated to often severe physical symptoms that sometimes include hyperventilation, dizziness, shaking, and incapacitating fear. Many new sufferers of panic disorder have confused the symptoms of the condition with those experienced during a heart attack.

Social anxiety is anxiety experienced in any social situation, rendering the sufferer incapable of being within groups of people without feeling embarrassed or scrutinized. Often the anxiety is so great that those suffering from this disorder avoid most social interaction.

Phobias also fall under the umbrella of anxiety and include agoraphobia – where sufferers limit their visitation to places because of their fear of anxiety surfacing; many agoraphobics have difficulty leaving their homes for this reason. Other phobias are included in this subcategory as well; in essence, a phobia is an irrational and ongoing fear of a particular place, situation, or object. Often, the fear is so great that people will avoid the catalyst altogether.

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is anxiety that is manifested through compulsive behavior – activities that the sufferer can not help but complete. Such disorders vary in severity and circumstance; those who suffer most strongly experience very real feelings of dread if they do not complete certain repetitive, often ritualistic behaviors – checking locks, counting steps, etc. Often the OCD sufferer is completely aware of how irrational their behavior is but they are unable to stop doing it nonetheless.

There are many comprehensive medications on the market today that have made significant strides in managing and even eliminating many disorders of this kind. Those who live with an anxiety disorder no longer have to suffer at the hand of their irrational thoughts; with proper medical diagnosis, supervision, and pharmaceutical intervention if necessary, anxiety need no longer run the show.

Product Description
In this completely revised second edition of their well-received book, Gavin Andrews and his team continue to draw upon the materials and methods that they have used successfully in clinical practice for 15 years. Over half the material in this edition is new, and an entirely new section covering post-traumatic stress disorder has been included. This is an unique and authoritative overview of the recognition and treatment of anxiety disorders, giving Clinician Guide… More >>

The Treatment of Anxiety Disorders: Clinician Guides and Patient Manuals

i believe i have social anxiety disorder or another similar anxiety disorder and i told my parents. i have a doctors appointment and i was wondering what they usually do.

ANXIETY

The feeling of anxiety is common to all and we have all felt it many times in the course of our lives. But when anxiety becomes an excessive, irrational dread of everyday situations, it becomes a disorder.

Find out more on Anxiety Disorders and Panic Attacks

Nearly 40 million people above the age of 18 are affected by this disorder in a given year. Anxiety disorder may be caused by a mental condition, a physical condition, the effects of drugs, or from a combination of these.

Some of the common Types of Anxiety Disorders are:

I PANIC DISORDER

This condition is characterized by periods of intense fear or a psychological distress that lasts for about half an hour.

II GENERAL ANXIETY DISORDER (GAD)

This condition is characterized by excessive anxiety and worry, occurring more days than not for a period of at least 6 months, about a number of events or activities. Having this disorder means always anticipating disaster, often worrying excessively about health, money, family, or work. Sometimes, though, the source of the worry is hard to pinpoint.

III PHOBIC DISORDERS

These are persistent, unreasonable, intense fears (phobias) of situations, circumstances, or objects giving rise to anxiety and avoidance. Phobic disorders are classified as general (agoraphobia and social phobia) or specific.

A) Agoraphobia

Agoraphobia literally means “fear of the marketplace”. Therefore, people with agoraphobia are afraid of open or public places. In reality, most people with agoraphobia are actually afraid of having a panic attack in these settings, especially settings in which there will be no one to help in case of panic attack or an actual emergency.

B) Social Anxiety Disorder

The person suffering from this disorder has an excessive and unreasonable fear of social situations. The anxiety in this case arises out of the fear of being closely watched, judged or criticized by people around you.

C) Specific Phobias

A specific phobia is fear of and anxiety about a particular situation or object. Specific phobias are the most common anxiety disorders. Among the most frequent are fear of animals zoophobia), heights (Acrophobia) and thunderstorms (Astraphobia or Brontophobia).

i) Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD)

OCD is a type of disorder involving two elements: obsessions and compulsions. Obsessions are repetitive unwanted thoughts that make you feel anxious. Compulsions are repetitive behaviors and rituals that the patient feels compelled to perform as performing them temporarily reduces the anxiety.

ii) Separation Anxiety

This form of anxiety is a normal developmental stage experienced by a child when separated from the primary caregiver. It typically manifests itself as crying and distress when the child is away from a parent or from home.

ANXIETY MANAGEMENT & TREATMENT

At Home: In certain cases, it is possible to treat anxiety at home. However, these cases are limited to ones where the attack is of a short duration and where you know the reason for the attack. In such cases, stress can be relieved by practicing activities such as: Meditation, Watching TV, Deep breathing , Resting in a dark room etc.

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Medical Treatment: When the nature of attacks is more serious in nature then the patient has to turn to medical treatment. Medical treatment depends on the cause of the anxiety.

There are cases when the cause cannot be identified. In such cases, the only way to treat is control of symptoms.

Medication does not cure anxiety disorders, but it helps to keep them under control while the person receives psychotherapy.

With proper treatment many people with anxiety disorders can lead normal, fulfilling lives.

Cathy M. Ross

Product Description
Therapists and their clients benefit from understanding how anxiety is generated in the brain, how it can become panic or unbounded worry, and ultimately how the brain re-establishes the neurochemical balance that is basic to a state of well-being. These insights in the brain underlying mental phenomena put anxiety into a perspective that makes it easier to become calm, and provides the bases for effective intervention with thought exercises, br… More >>

The Anxious Brain: The Neurobiological Basis of Anxiety Disorders and How to Effectively Treat Them