Anxiety:
You need to be anxious sometimes. It's a normal, useful response to life's challenges and dangers. But for 3 to 5 percent of the population, occasional bouts of anxiety lengthen into days, weeks and months of dread. Then it's called generalised anxiety disorder.
Here's
the encouraging news: half the people who receive proper treatment for
GAD show improvement within three weeks. And 75 percent will feel a lot
better within nine months.
The type of treatment regimen you need depends on how severe your symptoms are. If GAD isn't interfering with your life, you might begin with nonpharmaceutical options. Because many anxiety
drugs have side effects and you can become dependent on them, it's often best to see them as a second choice. That said, if GAD is making the simplest of tasks impossible, you'll want to fight back with powerful medicines. And combining drugs and behavioural techniques can be even more effective. Whatever route you take, make sure you stick with it over the long haul; one study reported
that two-thirds of those who were treated for GAD for only six weeks suffered a recurrence, and half required additional medications.
Treatment Options
PROCEDURES
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Behavioural therapy May be as effective as medication
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Insight therapy Traditional talk-it-out approach.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Supportive psychotherapy Positive, helpful advice.
MEDICATIONS
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Benzodiazepines Good for acute attacks, quick-acting
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Tricyclics Tried-and-true antidepressants
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SSRIs Most popular long-term medications
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Newer antidepressants Unique drugs with fewer side effects
LIFESTYLE CHANGES--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Diet & exercise Healthy choices can make a real difference
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sleep Getting enough is key for reducing anxiety
NATURAL METHODS
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Herbs Valerian, St. john's wort; take care with kava
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Alternative therapies Meditation, acupuncture, stress reduction
You need to be anxious sometimes. It's a normal, useful response to life's challenges and dangers. But for 3 to 5 percent of the population, occasional bouts of anxiety lengthen into days, weeks and months of dread. Then it's called generalised anxiety disorder.
What is happening
Over countless millennia the human body has been conditioned to quickly respond to threats with fear and anxiety. This reaction, termed the 'flight or flight response', primes the body to outrun, out-think or outfight any opponent in sight. In fact, when you're moderately anxious, your ability to perform is greatly enhanced. It's why so many people think they actually do better when they're under stress.
When you have generalised anxiety disorder (GAD), your body fails to switch off that response when the threat is gone. Instead, it treats everyday events as life threatening. A bill is coming due, and the thought of it sends your heart racing. You sweat and worry intensely at the idea of entering
a room full of strangers. And sometimes, your anxious feelings are just free floating, with no discernible cause. Your brain profile begins to look like that of someone living in a war zone, with chemicals called nuerotransmitters and a compound called gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) all out of whack. Bouts of misplaced anxiety can last anywhere from a few moments to years.
Classic symptoms of GAD include persistent dire feelings and unwanted thoughts, chest pains, an inability to properly concentrate, irritability, trembling, dry mouth and hot flushes or sweats. Studies
of twins have found that in a third of cases, GAD has genetic causes. If a parent or sibling has it, you're more likely to show symptons too. The other two-thirds of the time, GAD comes from learned behaviours. Generally, it starts to show up between the ages of 20 and 35.
LIKELY FIRST STEPSOver countless millennia the human body has been conditioned to quickly respond to threats with fear and anxiety. This reaction, termed the 'flight or flight response', primes the body to outrun, out-think or outfight any opponent in sight. In fact, when you're moderately anxious, your ability to perform is greatly enhanced. It's why so many people think they actually do better when they're under stress.
When you have generalised anxiety disorder (GAD), your body fails to switch off that response when the threat is gone. Instead, it treats everyday events as life threatening. A bill is coming due, and the thought of it sends your heart racing. You sweat and worry intensely at the idea of entering
a room full of strangers. And sometimes, your anxious feelings are just free floating, with no discernible cause. Your brain profile begins to look like that of someone living in a war zone, with chemicals called nuerotransmitters and a compound called gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) all out of whack. Bouts of misplaced anxiety can last anywhere from a few moments to years.
Classic symptoms of GAD include persistent dire feelings and unwanted thoughts, chest pains, an inability to properly concentrate, irritability, trembling, dry mouth and hot flushes or sweats. Studies
of twins have found that in a third of cases, GAD has genetic causes. If a parent or sibling has it, you're more likely to show symptons too. The other two-thirds of the time, GAD comes from learned behaviours. Generally, it starts to show up between the ages of 20 and 35.
- Counselling to help look for the root of the problem.
- Rapid-acting medications to calm you down until longer-acting antidepressant drugs can take effect.
- Lifestyle changes, from meditation to proper diet and exercise, to help you deal with your anxiety on a daily basis.
- Avoid substances containing caffeine, such as coffee and cola drinks. These can worsen anxiety.
QUESTIONS TO ASK
- Why are you giving me a drug for depression when I have anxiety?
- Are there any prescription or over-the-counter drugs that could be causing my anxiety?
- Is it okay to drink alcohol?
- Could I have a medical condition may be contributing to my anxiety?
- Is there anything my family and friends can do to help me through this?
Treatments
The type of treatment regimen you need depends on how severe your symptoms are. If GAD isn't interfering with your life, you might begin with nonpharmaceutical options. Because many anxiety
drugs have side effects and you can become dependent on them, it's often best to see them as a second choice. That said, if GAD is making the simplest of tasks impossible, you'll want to fight back with powerful medicines. And combining drugs and behavioural techniques can be even more effective. Whatever route you take, make sure you stick with it over the long haul; one study reported
that two-thirds of those who were treated for GAD for only six weeks suffered a recurrence, and half required additional medications.
Treatment Options
PROCEDURES
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Behavioural therapy May be as effective as medication
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Insight therapy Traditional talk-it-out approach.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Supportive psychotherapy Positive, helpful advice.
MEDICATIONS
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Benzodiazepines Good for acute attacks, quick-acting
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Tricyclics Tried-and-true antidepressants
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SSRIs Most popular long-term medications
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Newer antidepressants Unique drugs with fewer side effects
LIFESTYLE CHANGES--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Diet & exercise Healthy choices can make a real difference
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sleep Getting enough is key for reducing anxiety
NATURAL METHODS
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Herbs Valerian, St. john's wort; take care with kava
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Alternative therapies Meditation, acupuncture, stress reduction
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