GAD (Generalized Anxiety Disorder) Overview

GAD is defied as excessive or exaggerated worry about everyday life issues. People with anxiety tend to over think issues and expect the worst even when there is no real reason for their worry.

While it’s normal to contemplate issues, and too often think about the worst out come, people with anxiety display a negative compulsive behavior when it comes to every day life situations. Too often worrying about money, relationships, school, or health can become a challenging disability that can make the situations worsen and disrupt daily functioning.

A person of any age, from a child to an adult, can develop GAD which can resemble other other disorders such as panic disorder or obsessive-compulsive disorder. No matter at what age there are treatments available that can help lessen the overbearing feelings of hopelessness and worry.

What are the Symptoms of Anxiety

Anxiety symptoms can be mild to very extreme and are different for every individual. Everyone experiences some sort of anxiety in their life but when it starts effecting their quality of life it can become problematic. Symptoms can be singular or combined and include:

• Excessive, Obsessive, ongoing worry.
• Restlessness and being on edge.
• Irritability.
• Muscle tension and aches.
• Difficulty concentrating.
• Sleeping issues.
• Twitching and trembling.
• Being easily startled.
• Lack of confidence.
• Sweating, nausea and/or diarrhea.

There may be times when you worry and there is nothing definitively wrong, like a bad feeling or a sense of panic, or you may have overwhelming feelings of fear for no apparent reason. These symptoms generally start at a young age and carry on from childhood to adulthood. Very often GED occurs along side other disorders such as drug and alcohol abuse, mood disorders, and depression.

Anxiety Symptoms in Children

• School work being affected
• Feeling overly anxious to fit in
• Lack of confidence
• May strive for approval or perfection
• Worries about things a child shouldn’t such as wars or starving people in other countries

What Causes Anxiety

Anxiety is a mental condition with four million Americans suffering from it every year with causes of the condition varying from person to person. The exact cause of anxiety isn’t yet known but is believed to be derived from a number of factors including genetics, brain chemistry and environmental stresses.

• Genetics Some studies have shown that anxiety could be caused in part by genetics allowing family’s to pass the condition from member to member.
• Brain chemistry Neurotransmitters are chemicals in the brain that help move information from nerve cells to nerve cells. When the neurotransmitters off balance it becomes difficult to transmit messages throughout the brain and may cause feelings of distress and anxiety.
• Life and Environmental Factors Certain trauma and stressful life events such as the death of a loved one, losses of large sums of money, accidents, medications, issues with employment, and/or drug and alcohol abuse are common triggers for GAD as well.
• Personality Disorders Other mood and personality disorders can also play a large role in the development of generalized anxiety disorder.

Generalized Anxiety Disorder Diagnosis

There is no specific test that can be administered to diagnose anxiety but your doctor may perform other tests to rule out physical issues that might be the cause of your symptoms. If non are found then you may be referred to a psychiatrist, a physician that specializes in mental and mood disorders, to conduct an evaluation of your condition.

Being prepared for your visit can drasticly cut down on time and help be properly diagnosed. Some things to think about and have on hand before going to your appointment that will help include:

• A list of stress factors in your life that bring on your symptoms and any traumatic events you’ve been through throughout your life such as deaths, divorce, work and so on.
• A comprehensive list of all of your symptoms. What makes the symptoms worse as well as what makes them lessen.
• Any and all health problems including physical and mental.
• A list of all medications your currently taking and have taken in the past. As well as how they make you feel when taken or when discontinued.

The doctor will make their diagnosis based on length of symptoms, intensity of the symptoms, and how they interrupt daily activities and quality of life. They may opt to take you off medications or suggest therapy to see if your condition changes.

Anxiety Medications and Treatment Options

If no physical evidence is found that may be causing the symptoms your doctor may decide to start treatments including both psychotherapy and certain medications depending on the severity of your condition. Treatment options include:

• Anitdepressents to help with mood disorerders. Some of the most affective being fluoxetine (Prozac), paroxetine (Paxil), escitalopram (Lexapro), sertaline (Zoloft), venlafaxine (Effexor) and imipramine (Tofranil)
• Buspirone (BuSpar) is an anti-anxiety medication that, if prescribed, would be taken daily on an ongoing basis.
• Benzodiazepines might be prescribed as a short term solution for moderate to extreme cases. They are a type of sedative that can help with panic attacks and help alleviate feelings of enhanced worry and anxiety. Some common Benzodiazepines include: clonazepam (Klonopin), lorazepam (Ativan), diazepam (Valium), chlordiazepoxide (Librium) and alprazolam (Xanax). These should be used with caution as they can be a habit forming drug.
• Psychotherapy is an ongoing process that in combination with medications has been shown to help dramatically. Talking with a psychiatrist can help get to the root of the problem which in turn you may be able to fix and alleviate your anxiety for the long term.

It’s important to remember that anti-anxiety medications take time to become effective, from several weeks to months,  so it’s important to take them consistently whether or not you see improvement of your condition.

Alternative Anxiety Treatment

There are many things you can do and change in your everyday life that can dramatically decrease your anxiety symptoms. Staying away from drugs and alcohol is very important because they can change the chemical balances in the brain resulting in dependency and increased feelings of anxiousness, eating healthy keeps the body at tip top shape which has been shown to help chemicals in the brain to be more stable, staying away from stimulants such as caffeine, cigarettes and sugars will help slow down your nervousness and make you feel less stressed, and certain relaxing teas have been shown to calm you down if consumed throughout the day.

Giving yourself space from the rest of the world and treating yourself to alone time and relaxation can be a effective and healthy way to alleviate your anxiety. Draw a bath when the feelings of anxiety start to come on and try to focus on something else such as a good book or soothing music, take a walk outside and simply enjoy the scenery, or exercise which has been shown to help immensely by burning off excess energy and focusing the mind on something else.