Contents
Anxiety disorder is a neurotic condition in which people constantly worry about some circumstance of their life: appearance or relationships with other people. This also includes the fear of closed spaces or non-hazardous things.
Internal discomfort and painful thoughts make the patient withdraw into himself, limit his social circle and prevent him from living a full life.
Anxiety disorders include:
- generalized anxiety disorder, when anxiety suddenly seizes a person, while his experiences are so strong that they do not allow him to perform even simple daily activities;
- social anxiety disorder, when fear prevents a person from being among other people – this interferes with school, work, and even the usual trip to the store;
- panic attacks, when people experience sudden attacks of causeless fear, this condition can be accompanied by high blood pressure, tachycardia, shortness of breath, sweating, feeling of a lump in the throat, trembling of the hands and fingers, nausea, vomiting, dizziness, fever, and even cramps in the hands and legs (attacks last from 15 to 30 minutes, and their frequency varies from once a day to once a month), since the attacks begin suddenly, the person is afraid to leave the house;
- phobias, when a person is afraid of completely ordinary things, such as cats, water, dolls or clowns;
- obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), when patients are obsessed with some kind of obsession, thought or feeling that causes them to perform any repetitive actions, such as washing their hands often due to fear of germs.
- post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), when a person constantly remembers a previously terrible situation, such as a war or a natural disaster.
Anxiety disorder often occurs in combination with problems such as bipolar disorder or depression. And although it is not customary in our society to go to the doctor with such problems, it will not work to cope with the problem on your own.
Causes of Anxiety Disorder
The exact origin of this condition is still unknown. Experts suggest that anxiety disorders can provoke:
- chronic cardiac or hormonal pathologies or persistent circulatory disorders;
- taking or abrupt withdrawal of psychotropic substances, chronic alcoholism, drugs, or even an overdose of caffeine;
- head injuries and their consequences;
- prolonged stress;
- melancholy temperament or tendency to exaggerate;
- mental trauma in early childhood or in adults in extreme situations (war, being on the verge of life and death, leaving loved ones or depriving them of support);
- neurotic conditions (neurasthenia, depression, hysteria) or mental illness (schizophrenia, paranoia, mania).
Symptoms of an Anxiety Disorder
A constant and uncontrollable feeling of anxiety that lasts more than 6 months in the absence of objective reasons. At the same time, it can be so strong that it changes the usual life of a person.
The patient may not go out, quit work, avoid communication with family or friends. Sometimes anxiety leaves a person for several hours or days, but the slightest push is enough for it to return again.
Physiologically, an anxiety disorder can be hinted at by:
- constant fatigue;
- insomnia;
- constant fear;
- inability to concentrate or relax;
- trembling in the hands;
- irritability;
- dizziness;
- frequent heartbeat, in the absence of cardiac pathologies;
- increased sweating;
- pain in the head, abdomen, muscles in the absence of pathologies.
Anxiety disorder treatment
Since the disease is based on the malfunctioning of neurotransmitters, medications are used to restore their normal balance. At the same time, experts categorically do not recommend treating anxiety disorders on their own, since patients do not know the specifics of the action of drugs, their interaction with each other, as well as the methods and techniques of psychotherapy.
Diagnostics
Today, there is no exact test or analysis to define an anxiety disorder, because the degree of a person’s anxiety is difficult to measure or touch. Since the complaints of patients may be similar to other diseases, experts recommend that such patients be diagnosed and managed by a neurologist, psychiatrist and therapist.
An anxiety disorder is diagnosed after collecting information about the patient’s emotional responses, lifestyle, motivations, and interests. Specialized questionnaires such as the Spielberger-Khanin Situational and Personal Anxiety Scale, the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, and the Hamilton Anxiety Scale can be used.
It is important to distinguish between an anxiety disorder and conditions such as:
- Stress. This state is the result of a reaction to an irritant, for example, to a call from a disgruntled customer. As the situation changes, stress disappears. Anxiety, on the other hand, can occur when there is no irritating situation. For example, a regular client calls, but it’s still scary to answer the call. If a person experiences such a reaction to any telephone call, then it is already a disorder that interferes with life.
- organic anxiety. This is a condition that occurs against the background of cardiovascular and endocrine diseases, as well as with organic pathologies of the central nervous system, including after previous traumatic brain injuries or diseases such as Alzheimer’s or Parkinson’s disease. Patients with this type of disorder complain of causeless fear, helplessness before the future, low self-esteem, insecurity, and a decrease in concentration.
Modern treatments
They consist of a combination of psychotherapy sessions that will help determine the exact cause of the anxiety disorder and drugs. As a rule, various types of antidepressants, tranquilizers, atypical antipsychotics, as well as non-specific anti-anxiety drugs are used. The duration of the course depends on the effectiveness of the chosen tactics.