Anxiety Disorders, Symptoms and Treatment

Everybody feels anxious from time to time - it is a normal response to stressful situations. In some cases it can improve performance. But for some people anxiety becomes severe or prolonged and interferes with everyday life. This is called an anxiety disorder. Treatment involves counseling or psychotherapy, medicines or a combination of these.

Types of anxiety disorders

Obsessive-compulsive disorder
Panic Disorder
Post-traumatic stress disorder
Social phobia (or social anxiety disorder)
Generalized anxiety disorder

Anxiety Depression

Anxiety is a normal reaction to stress. It helps one deal with a tense situation in the office, study harder for an exam, keep focused on an important speech. In general, it helps one cope. But when anxiety becomes an excessive, irrational dread of everyday situations, it has become a disabling disorder.

It is very prolonged or severe
It happens in the absence of a stressful event
It is interfering with everyday activities such as going to work or socializing

Anxiety Symptoms

The brain sending messages to parts of the body to prepare for the "fight or flight" response causes the physical symptoms of anxiety. The heart, lungs and other parts of the body work faster. The brain also releases stress hormones, including adrenaline. The following symptoms can occur as a result:

Abdominal discomfort
Diarrhea
Dry mouth
Rapid heartbeat or palpitations
Tightness or pain in chest
Shortness of breath
Dizziness
Frequent urination
Difficulty swallowing

Psychological symptoms can include:

Insomnia
Irritability or anger
Inability to concentrate
Fear of madness
Feeling unreal and not in control of your actions (depersonalization)

Treating anxiety disorders

Self-help

Some people may be able to improve their symptoms by relaxation techniques, exercise or talking to other people in support groups. Your GP can advise you about groups in your area. Talking treatments

Counseling

This can be effective for some people with anxiety, minor depression or after traumatic events, but is not generally effective for people with phobias, OCD or personality disorder. It involves talking through the problem with the counsellor, who helps the person focus on what it is they want to do and how they can achieve their goal. It does not usually involve giving advice.

Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT)

This is a form of psychotherapy carried out by a specially trained therapist. Cognitive therapy involves assessing the reasoning behind people's thinking, on the basis that incorrect thinking results in abnormal reactions. Behavioral therapy aims to change behavior. Usually the person is gradually exposed to the situation causing anxiety. CBT combines these two types of therapies, and is proven to be effective for anxiety disorders including phobias and panic disorder.

Medicines

A short (up to 10 days) prescription of benzodiazepine tablets, such as diazepam, may be helpful in relieving short-term stress-related anxieties. However, they should not be taken for longer periods because of the risk of addiction.

Buspirone is another medicine that is prescribed in the short-term to relieve anxiety. This has less side-effects than benzodiazepines and people do not become dependent on it. Antidepressants such as paroxetine (eg Seroxat) may be prescribed for certain anxiety disorders such as generalised anxiety disorder, social phobia and OCD, and when anxiety is associated with depression.

Another group of drugs known as beta- blockers relieve many of the physical symptoms of anxiety such as palpitations and tremors and may be helpful for some people. They do not affect psychological symptoms, but some people find they can relax more if their physical symptoms are relieved.

Relaxation

Relaxation training is a feature of some types of psychotherapy. Various types of relaxation therapy are available - you might want to discuss this with your doctor. Some people may find yoga or the Alexander technique helpful.

Complementary therapy

A wide variety of complementary therapies is available for the treatment of anxiety. However, there is no conclusive evidence that these are of benefit or free from side effects. Anyone who chooses to take complementary medicines should tell their pharmacist, as interactions with other medicines are possible.

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