Our body’s natural response to stress is called anxiety. It’s a sense of fear or dreads about what’s to come or what’s gonna happen next in a critical situation like the first day of school, going for an interview, or giving a speech causes most people to feel nervous and agitated. There are many things you need to know about anxiety.
In some cases it is a common and usually healthy emotion. However, when a person frequently feels unbalanced levels of anxiety, it might become a medical disorder.
What is anxiety?
According to the American Psychological Association (APA)” anxiety is an emotion defined by feelings of tension, worried thoughts and physical changes like increased blood pressure.”
Things you need to know about anxiety
Common types of anxiety disorders:
- Panic disorder: feeling recurring panic attacks at sudden times. A person with panic disorder may live in terror of the next panic attack.
- Phobia: it is about extreme anxiety of a particular object, situation, or activity
- Social anxiety disorder: intense fear of being judged by others in social situations.
Symptoms of anxiety disorder
There are several different diagnoses develop anxiety disorders, the symptoms of a generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) include the following:
- Excitement and a feeling of being “on-edge”
- Ungovernable emotions of distress
- Heightened irritation
- Attention difficulties
- Sleeping disorders, such as difficulties in falling or staying asleep
Causes
The causes of anxiety disorders are often complicated. Some might occur once for all, some may head to others, and some might not lead to an anxiety disorder unless another is present. Some possible causes include:
- Environmental stressors like problems at work, relationship problems, or any family problems
- Genetics, people who have an anxiety disorder in their family members, are more likely to encounter one themselves.
- Medical factors, these include the symptoms of various diseases, the consequences of a medication, or maybe the pressure of an intense surgery or prolonged recovery
- Brain chemistry, some psychologists describe many anxiety disorders as misalignments of hormones and electrical signals in the brain
Treatment
If you are diagnosed with anxiety, you ask for some treatment options from your doctor. Luckily, for some people, medical treatment isn’t necessary. Minor changes in their lifestyle may be enough to cope with the symptoms.
However, there are some cases when treatment can assist you to overcome the symptoms and lead you to a happy life.
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Self-treatment
A person can manage an anxiety disorder at home without clinical guidance in some cases. But there is a chance that it may not be sufficient for severe or long-term anxiety disorders.
Stress management: Learning to control stress can assist in restrict potential triggers. Create any upcoming pressures and deadlines, organize records to make daunting jobs more flexible, and try to take time off from study or work.
Relaxation techniques: Some simple actions can benefit soothe the mental and physical signs of anxiety. These actions include reflection, deep breathing exercises, long warm baths, relaxing in the dark, listening to therapy music and yoga.
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Counseling
An official method of treating anxiety is psychological counseling. It includes cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), psychotherapy, or a combination of various therapies.
CBT: Cognitive-behavioral therapy aims to identify and reduce destructive thought patterns that build the infrastructure of worried and troublesome sensations. In this treatment, a professional of CBT hopes to restrict distorted thoughts and transform the way people respond to things or situations that trigger anxiety.
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Medications – Things you need to know about anxiety
Common medications used for the treatment of anxiety include antidepressants and sedatives. They work to create balanced brain chemistry, stop occurrences of anxiety, and prevent the most critical symptoms of the disorder.
