Anxiety disorder is a category of a mental health diagnoses that leads to fear, worry apprehension, and excessive nervousness. These disorders alter how an individual processes emotions and behaves, causing physical symptoms. Mild anxiety can be unsettling and vague, while severe anxiety may affect an individual's day-to-day life.
In the USA, mental health disorders affect 40 million people, with only 36.9 per cent of them seeking treatment.
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What is anxiety?
According to the American psychological association, anxiety is defined as an emotion characterized by feelings of worrying thoughts, tension, and physical changes like increased blood pressure.
It is essential to know the difference between the normal feeling of anxiety and anxiety disorder, which requires medical attention.
When does anxiety require treatment?
While anxiety can be distressful, it is not always a medical condition.
Anxiety
This is where a person faces potentially worrying triggers or harmful feelings of anxiety necessary for survival.
The presence of danger or fear of incoming danger sets off alarms in the body for evasive action. These alarms can be in the form of a raised heartbeat, increased sensitivity to surroundings, or sweating. The presence of danger causes a rush of adrenaline, which triggers anxious reactions. This process prepares the individual to confront the issue or flee from potential danger physically.
Anxiety in this form is an important life event since it is a natural echo for an individual to avoid danger instinctively.
Anxiety disorders
The severity of an anxious feeling can sometimes go out of proportion to the original stressor. Physical symptoms such as nausea and high levels of blood pressure develop. These responses result in an anxiety disorder. APA defines a person with anxiety disorder as one having recurring intrusive thoughts or concerns.
Symptoms of anxiety disorders
Symptoms of a generalized anxiety disorder include
- Uncontrolled feelings of worry
- Increased irritability
- Concentration difficulties
- sleep difficulties
- Restlessness
While these symptoms may appear normal to experience in our day-to-day lives, people with anxiety disorders experience persistent and extreme levels.
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Types of anxiety disorders
According to mental health disorders' diagnostic and statistical manual, anxiety disorders are classified into several main types. In the previous edition, anxiety disorders included post-traumatic stress disorder and obsessive-compulsive disorder. These are, however, no longer grouped as anxiety disorders.
Anxiety disorders include
Panic disorder
Intense terror and apprehension characterize panic disorder. These attacks lead to confusion, dizziness, nausea, shaking, and breathing difficulties. A panic disorder attack may last for hours.
Panic disorders often occur after a prolonged period of stress or frightening experience. It may also happen without any triggers. A person experiencing a panic disorder may think of it as life-threatening and make drastic changes to avoid future attacks.
Generalized anxiety disorder
This chronic mental health disorder involves long-lasting anxiety and worries about non-specific events and situations. Generalized anxiety disorder is considered one of the most common types of anxiety disorder, and individuals with the disorder cannot point out the cause of their anxiety.
Specific phobia
This is an unfounded fear and avoidance of specific situations. Phobias are different from other anxiety disorders and relate to a particular cause. An individual with a phobia might acknowledge fear as illogical but remain unable to control their feelings of anxiety.
Agoraphobia
This is fear and avoidance of events, situations, or places which may be difficult to escape. The individual suffering from Agoraphobia feels trapped about the case and may fear leaving home or using elevators and public transport.
Social anxiety disorder or social phobia
Social anxiety disorder refers to the fear of negative judgment from others or of public embarrassment. It includes a range of feelings such as stage fright, anxiety around humiliation, fear of intimacy, and rejection.
Social anxiety disorder can cause people to avoid human contact or public situations to the extent that their everyday living becomes highly challenging.
Separation anxiety disorder
High levels of anxiety after separation from a place or a person that offer feelings of security characterize an anxiety disorder. Separation from areas of comfort may result in panic attacks.
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Causes of anxiety disorders
The causes of anxiety disorders are complex. They could occur at once; some may lead to others, while some might not lead to an anxiety disorder unless present with another.
The possible causes of anxiety disorders include
- Genetics
Individuals who have loved ones with anxiety disorders have higher chances of experiencing anxiety themselves.
- Environmental stressors
These could include relationship problems, difficulties at work, or family issues.
- Medical factors
The symptoms of particular diseases could cause anxiety. Medication side effects, intensive surgery, or prolonged recovery could also cause panic attacks.
- Brain chemistry
Psychologists have defined anxiety disorders as misalignment of hormones and electrical signals in the brain.
- Drug withdrawal symptoms
Withdrawal from substance abuse may intensify anxiety symptoms.
How to treat anxiety disorders
The treatment of anxiety disorders consists of a combination of cognitive-behavioural therapy, medication, and psychotherapy. Depression, alcohol dependence, or other conditions can sometimes have substantial effects on the mental well-being that treating an anxiety disorder is not possible until the underlying conditions are resolved.
Self-treatment
For the most common anxiety disorder, a person can treat the anxiety disorder at home without the need for medical supervision. This, however, is not effective for long-term anxiety disorders.
There are several actions an individual can take to cope with typical symptoms of anxiety disorders which include
Stress management
Learning how to manage your stress levels can help you limit panic attack triggers. Organize any coming-up pressures and deadlines and make a list. With this, you can identify the daunting task and commit to taking off-breaks.
Relaxation techniques
Carrying out simple activities can help soothe anxiety's mental and physical signs. These techniques include deep breathing, meditation, long baths, and yoga.
Exercising
Exercising can improve your self-image and release chemicals in the brain that trigger positive feelings.
Counselling
Anxiety disorder can also be treated through psychological counselling. This includes psychotherapy or cognitive behavioural therapy.
CBT
This type of treatment method aims to recognize and change harmful patterns thought patterns that are the foundation of troublesome and anxious feelings.
Exposure to triggers and fears forms part of CBT. This encourages individuals to face their fears and reduce the sensitivity to common triggers of anxiety.
Medications
Medicine such as anti-depressants, tricyclic, beta-blockers, and benzodiazepines can be used to control physical and mental symptoms.
Anxiety disorder prevention
There are numerous ways to reduce anxiety disorders. It is crucial to remember that anxious feelings are a natural factor of daily life and their presence does not always indicate a mental health disorder.
A patient can take the following steps to moderate anxious emotions
- Reduce intake of tea, chocolate, cola and caffeine.
- Consult with a medical practitioner before buying over the counter medicine.
- Keep a regular sleep pattern
- maintain a healthy diet
- Avoid alcohol and other recreational drugs
Anxiety disorder essay
Here are a few helpful tips when writing an essay on anxiety
Clarity and focus
Get clarity on what you want to write about in your essay. You can go through various topics on anxiety disorders and pick one that you feel comfortable with. Having clarity on what is required of you in the essay allows you to focus your research on the specific area.
Some of the topics you can write about on anxiety disorder include
- psychology of behaviour: anxiety disorder
- Anxiety and its types
- Generalized anxiety disorder
- Fundamentals of abnormal psychology: anxiety disorder
- Attention biases in anxiety
- Diagnosis and treatment of anxiety disorder
Brainstorm
Scribble out ideas you would like to capture in your essay. Bouncing ideas and thoughts help you become creative and inspires you to write relevant content. You are also able to content ideas in a logical manner. At the end of the brainstorming session, have an outline that you can use for your anxiety essay.
Read broadly to ensure have a good overview of the arguments and counter arguments of the experts on anxiety disorders.
While you may have a personal stance on the topic, be open-minded and attempt to view the issues and perspectives of other stakeholders.
Draft and structure your anxiety essay
This step involves outlining your ideas in a structure that builds your argument in a seamless flow.
Arrange your ideas in a logical manner in order to deliver your message. For example, begin by defining what anxiety is. You can cite various relevant sources to support your claims. Include all forms of references such as books, journals, blogs, documentaries, and articles.
Get started
Use your outline to write your essay. The opening statement of your essay should hook your reader and act as a smooth segue to set the background and a thesis statement you are building in your article.
Provide background information on the topic you want to write on. You can give statistical information that your reader may not be aware of.
Ensure you have a strong thesis statement and the major points to support your selected topic.
Body paragraphs of the anxiety essay
The body of your anxiety essay should contain three parts
- The claim
- Evidence and explanation
- Tie back to the thesis statement of your essay
Essay conclusion
The conclusion of your essay should summarize the contents of your article. For an anxiety essay, inspire your reader by offering solutions if they face anxiety. You can suggest various treatments plans or share your own personal journey of battling stress.
Proofread your essay.
Pay attention to the following aspects
- Watch out for spelling errors and grammatical mistakes
- Have your audience in mind
- Capture all information
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Frequently asked questions on anxiety.
How are anxiety disorders diagnosed?
Psychiatrists and physicians diagnose anxiety if symptoms occur for six months and significantly interfere with a person's ability to function at school, home, or work. Doctors perform psychological and physical evaluations to rule out symptoms of anxiety.
What are the most common risk factors relating to anxiety disorders?
Some specific factors associated with anxiety include
- Few economic resources
- Being divorced or widowed
- Being female
- Anxiety disorders with close relatives
What are the common anxiety disorder treatments?
Some of the standard treatment methods fr anxiety disorder include
- Cognitive-behavioural therapy
- Psychotherapy
- Stress management techniques
- Antidepressants
- Stress management techniques
- Anxiety medications
- Beta-blockers
What is the best way to treat children with an anxiety disorder?
The most effective way to treat children is through cognitive behavioural therapy and selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor medications. Specific techniques are followed when treating children.
What is panic disorder?
This a medical disorder characterized by unexpected and repeated episodes of intense fear accompanied by physical symptoms that include shortness of breath, abdominal distress, dizziness, or heart palpitations. During this time, individuals with panic disorder may flush out or feel chilled.
