Anxiety
Sometimes suffering from anxiety is a normal part of life. However, people with anxiety disorders often have an excessive and persistent fear of everyday situations. Often, anxiety disorders involve recurring episodes of sudden feelings of intense anxiety, fear or terror.
Feelings of anxiety interfere with daily activities, can be difficult to control, and can last for a long time. You may avoid certain places or situations to prevent these feelings. Symptoms may begin during the childhood or teenage years and continue into adulthood. Whatever form of anxiety you have, treatment can help you get rid of it.
Common signs and symptoms of anxiety include: feeling nervous or tense Feeling of impending danger, panic or pessimism An increased heart rate Increased breathing rate Sweating, shaking, feeling weak or tired Focusing on difficulties or thinking about anything Other than current anxiety, difficulty sleeping, gastrointestinal problems, and difficulty controlling anxiety.
Types of anxiety
agoraphobia: a type of anxiety disorder in which you feel fear and often avoid being in places or situations that may cause panic and make you feel trapped, helpless or embarrassed.
Anxiety due to a medical problem: It includes the presence of anxiety symptoms that are directly caused by a physical health problem.
Generalized anxiety disorder: This includes persistent and excessive worrying about activities or events, and even normal and routine problems. Anxiety that is out of proportion to the actual situation and affects how you feel physically is difficult to control. It often occurs in conjunction with depression or other anxiety disorders.
Panic disorder: It involves recurring episodes of sudden, intense fear that reach a peak within minutes. You may feel shortness of breath, chest pain, rapid or pounding heart, and these panic attacks may cause you to worry about these things happening again or avoid situations in which they occurred.
Selective Muteness: Children's inability to speak consistently in certain situations, such as when they are at school, even if they can talk in other situations such as when they are at home with close family members. This can interfere with tasks at school, work, and social interaction.
Social fear disorder (social phobia): High levels of anxiety, fear, and avoidance of social situations due to feelings of embarrassment, self-awareness, and anxiety that others will judge or view them negatively.
When do you visit the doctor?
* When you feel excessive anxiety, which negatively affects your work, relationships, or any other aspects of your life, and you are disturbed by the feeling of fear and difficulty in controlling it.
Feeling depressed or having other mental health problems related to anxiety, and believing that anxiety is linked to a physical health problem
Causes
The causes of anxiety disorders are not fully understood. It appears that life experiences and events may trigger anxiety disorders in people who are already prone to anxiety. Inherited traits may be a factor behind this.
Medical reasons: For some people, anxiety may be associated with an underlying health problem. In some cases, signs and symptoms of anxiety are the first signs of a medical illness. If your doctor suspects that your anxiety may have a medical cause, he or she may order tests to look for signs of a problem.
Examples of medical problems that can be linked to anxiety include: heart disease, diabetes, thyroid problems, such as hyperthyroidism, respiratory disorders, such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and asthma, chronic pain or irritable bowel syndrome, and Rare tumors that produce certain hormones are of concern.
Factors that may increase your risk of developing an anxiety disorder:
Trauma: Children who have endured abuse or trauma or witnessed traumatic events are more likely to develop an anxiety disorder at some point in their lives. Anxiety disorders can affect adults who have experienced another traumatic event.
Stress due to illness: Having a health condition or a serious illness can cause you to feel very anxious about things such as treatment and the future, and the accumulation of stress from smaller life situations that cause stress, such as the death of a family member, or feeling stressed due to work or a constant feeling of anxiety due to financial conditions.
Personality: Certain types of personalities are more likely to develop anxiety disorders than others.
Other mental health disorders: People with mental health disorders, such as depression, usually also develop an anxiety disorder.
Heredity: having blood relatives with an anxiety disorder, anxiety disorders can be inherited
Diagnosis
Psychological evaluation: This involves discussing your thoughts, feelings and behavior to help determine a diagnosis and to look for associated complications. Anxiety disorders often co-occur with other mental health problems — such as depression and others — which can make diagnosis more difficult.
Treatment
The two main treatments for anxiety disorder are psychotherapy and medication. You may benefit more from a combination of the two. A trial and error method may be needed to discover which treatments work best for you.
Psychotherapy
Psychotherapy, also known as talk therapy or psychological counseling, involves working with a therapist to reduce your anxiety symptoms. This can be an effective treatment for anxiety. Cognitive behavioral therapy is one of the most effective forms of psychotherapy for anxiety disorders.
Cognitive behavioral therapy focuses on teaching specific skills to improve symptoms and gradually return to activities that the patient avoids because of anxiety. Cognitive behavioral therapy includes exposure therapy, in which you gradually confront the object or situation that makes you anxious and thus build confidence that enables you to deal with the situation and symptoms of anxiety.
Drugs
Different types of medications are used to help relieve symptoms depending on the type of anxiety disorder you have and whether you also have other mental or physical health problems. For example: certain types of antidepressants are also used to treat anxiety disorders. An anti-anxiety medication called buspirone may be prescribed.
In limited cases, your doctor may prescribe other types of medication, such as sedatives called benzodiazepines or beta-blockers. These medications are for short-term relief of anxiety symptoms and are not intended for long-term use.
Lifestyle and home remedies
While most people with anxiety disorders need psychotherapy or medications to control anxiety, lifestyle changes can also make a difference. Here's what you can do:
Maintain your physical activity
Create habits that keep you physically active most days of the week. Exercise greatly reduces anxiety. It may improve your mood and help you stay healthy. Start slowly and gradually increase the amount and intensity of activities.
Use stress management and relaxation techniques
Visualization and meditation techniques are examples of relaxation techniques that can relieve anxiety.
Make sleep a priority
Do what you can to make sure you get enough sleep to feel rested
Et healthy food
Such as focusing on vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and fish
