Anxiety

Intermittent or occasional anxiety comes up as a normal part of life, whether it’s from an upcoming presentation, move or other major life event and is expected. For some though, this sense of worry or panic doesn’t go away with time and sometimes continues to get worse. There are different kinds of anxiety disorders including generalized anxiety disorder, panic disorder, and phobia-related disorders.

Individuals suffering from generalized anxiety disorder, GAD, have been struggling with excessive anxiety or worry for over 6 months on a near daily basis over stressors including a job, health, social interactions, or other routine daily occurrences. Common symptoms of GAD include

• Feeling restless, wound-up or on-edge
• Being easily fatigued
• Having difficulty concentrating
• Being irritable
• Having muscle tension
• Difficulty controlling feelings of worry
• Having difficulty sleeping

Individuals living with a panic disorder have onsets of panic episodes usually reaching its worst within a few minutes usually caused by environmental triggers. Common symptoms of panic disorder include

• An accelerated heartbeat
• Sweating, trembling, or shaking
• Shortness of breath or feelings of choking
• Feelings of doom or being out of control

Phobia-related disorders are similar to panic disorder, but the feelings of dread and panic are brought on by a specific object or situation such as spiders, clowns, or height. Common symptoms of phobia-related disorders mimic those of panic disorder. People who have a phobia-related disorder actively try to avoid certain objects or situations because they have irrational reactions when introduced to their phobia.

Fortunately, there are numerous ways to help treat anxiety and keep the symptoms at bay. Some of the most common treatment options include Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), group therapy, medication, research groups, and lifestyle changes including diet, exercise and meditation.

We offer a number of different therapies that can help with you or your loved ones concerns about anxiety. Trust that you are in good hands. Give us a call to schedule an appointment with a therapist to start learning how to manage your anxiety.