ANXIETY
DISORDERS
What we will discuss
¾ Symptoms of anxiety disorders
¾ Role of research in understanding the
causes of these conditions
¾ Effective treatments
¾ How to obtain treatment
¾ How to make treatment more effective
Each anxiety disorder has
different symptoms, but all the
symptoms cluster around
excessive, irrational fear and
dread
Panic Disorder
¾ Characterized by sudden attacks of terror
¾ Can occur at any time, even during sleep
¾ Affects about 6 million American adults
¾ People who have full-blown panic attacks can become
very disabled
Panic disorder is one of the most treatable of all the
anxiety disorders, responding in most cases to
certain kinds of medication or certain kinds of
cognitive psychotherapy.
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder
(OCD)
¾ Persons have persistent, upsetting thoughts
(obsessions)
¾ Use rituals (compulsions) to control the anxiety
¾ Affects about 2.2 million American adults
OCD usually responds well to treatment with certain
medications and/or exposure-based psychotherapy.
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
(PTSD)
¾Develops after a terrifying ordeal that involved
physical harm or the threat of physical harm.
¾Most people with PTSD relive the trauma
¾Affects about 7.7 million American adults
Certain kinds of medication and certain kinds of
psychotherapy usually treat the symptoms
Social Phobia
(Social Anxiety Disorder)
¾ Diagnosed when people become overwhelmingly anxious and
excessively self-conscious in everyday social situations.
¾ Physical symptoms that often accompany social phobia include
blushing, profuse sweating, trembling, nausea, and difficulty talking.
¾ Affects about 15 million American adults
Social phobia can be successfully treated with certain kinds of
psychotherapy or medications
Specific Phobias
¾ An intense, irrational fear of something that poses little
or no threat.
¾ The causes of specific phobias are not well understood
¾ Affects about 19.2 million American adults
Specific phobias respond very well to carefully targeted
psychotherapy
Generalized Anxiety Disorder
(GAD)
¾ Go through the day filled with exaggerated worry and
tension, even though there is little or nothing to provoke
it.
¾ GAD is diagnosed when a person worries excessively
about a variety of everyday problems for at least 6
months
¾ Affects about 6.8 million American adults
GAD is commonly treated with medication or cognitivebehavioral therapy
Treatment of Anxiety Disorders
¾ Medication
¾ Antidepressants
¾ Beta-Blockers
¾ Psychotherapy
¾ Anti-anxiety Drugs
Information taken from:
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
National Institutes of Health
NIH Publication No. 06-3879
Anxiety Disorders
+ Anxiety Disorders affect millions of people
+ We all have anxiety
+ Problems arise when anxiety begins to interfere with everyday functions
+ Panic attacks are severe anxiety reactions where a person may feel like they are dying
or can’t breathe
+ Sometimes people with severe anxiety choose not to leave their home because they
feel safer there and are afraid of having a panic attack
+ Many times anxiety is a learned response to stimuli that has occurred earlier in life
+ Anxiety disorders include Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, Obsessive Compulsive
Disorder and Simple Phobias
+ Treatments range from relaxation and breathing techniques to therapy and medication
+ Prognosis is positive if people seek help for anxiety issues