Treatment Of Anxiety Disorders

Anxiety disorders are a serious problem. In addition, to causing panic attacks, anxiety disorders disrupt the normal functioning of a person’s life. If proper treatment is not looked for, the patient’s condition can worsen as his anxiety soars to new highs. It is wrong to think that by simply trying to talk yourself out of anxiety you’ll have solved the core problem. This would be like thinking you’d be able to talk your way out of a heart or stomach disorder – it is simply not done.

The good news is that most, if not all, forms of anxiety, especially phobia-related, are very responsive to treatment, though you might need to show considerable patience as the treatment process is usually long-term. The reason behind the length of the treatment lies in the fact that studies have shown that patients who don’t undergo the full length of treatment face greater risks of the reoccurrence of the disorder. For instance, one such study reports that as many as two-thirds of patients who were treated for GAD for a period of only six weeks, had a recurrence of the disorder, as a result of which half of these patients required further medications.

Despite these astonishing findings, the shocking reality is that most people who suffer from an anxiety disorder tend to shy away from treatment. One study on patients with GAD alleges that about two-thirds of them never receive any treatment. It is astounding how people will go on living a life which is unsatisfactory even though they can change things around and make their days more meaningful and fruitful.

When a person does make the right move and take on a treatment plan, he/she will usually have to take on a combination of Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT) along with medications. Both the CBT and the medications, which are usually Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitor (SSRI), have the same aim; meaning that both SSRIs and psychotherapy affect the same areas of the brain. Additionally, a person may be advised to alter certain segments of their lifestyle, for instance their diet or exercise routine, to augment the treatment process and reduce the impact of anxiety on the patient’s life.

Note though that the medications prescribed as well as the non-drug therapies adapted will vary from one type of anxiety disorder to another. While CBT might be used for almost all disorders, certain alternations might be made depending on the type of the disorder. For instance, hypnosis might be used with patients suffering from basic phobias, while patients with Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) might be found better suited to exposure and response prevention. In any case, it is crucial that if a person is suffering from any form of anxiety disorder, he/she take on the aid of medical professionals so that anxiety doesn’t become the master of their life.