Anxiety is a mild to severe feeling of uneasiness, fear, or worry. Everyone experiences these feelings at some point in their lifetime ‒ like right before a job interview or during a final exam.
However, for some individuals, this is more than just an occasional occurrence. Are you struggling to keep these constant feelings of anxiousness in check? Are they starting to interfere with your daily life?
People with generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) might believe that a disaster is just around the corner. They’re always preoccupied with concerns over health, finances, work, family, or relationship issues. The level of concern seems disproportionately high for the problem at hand, and people with GAD tend to focus on the worst-case scenario.
Psychological symptoms of generalized anxiety disorder vary, but may include the following:
Physical generalized anxiety disorder symptoms might include:
Such symptoms of generalized anxiety disorder can significantly disrupt your work and personal life. Note that the reasons behind these worries could change over time, as you become older, and from one topic to another.
Unfortunately, GAD affects children and teenagers as well. Their generalized anxiety disorder symptoms might include undue concern over:
Furthermore, a young person with generalized anxiety disorder might demonstrate the following behaviors:
Similar to other mental health conditions, generalized anxiety disorder is most likely the product of complex interactions between environmental and biological factors, including:
Other contributing factors
The diagnosis of generalized anxiety disorder is made slightly more often in women than in men. You may be more prone to developing generalized anxiety disorder based on the following things:
If you have a negative or timid temperament or avoid anything dangerous, you might be more vulnerable to GAD.
Have you undergone significant changes or lived through negative or traumatic events (whether recently or during childhood)? Chronic medical conditions or other mental health disorders boost your chances, too.
Research shows that GAD has a tendency to run in families.
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Generalized anxiety disorder is in some ways debilitating, and its complications could include:
Generalized anxiety disorder also produces or aggravates medical conditions like:
Since generalized anxiety disorder very frequently occurs in association with other mental health disorders, diagnosis and management are quite challenging. They commonly occur in conjunction with:
To diagnose GAD, your doctor or mental health professional might do several things:
Two of the main options are medication and psychotherapy. Combining both forms of treatment usually offers the best prognosis for the patient.
Also referred to as psychological counseling or talk therapy, psychotherapy includes working with a counselor or therapist. It may help to reduce your symptoms of generalized anxiety disorder.
One of the most effective forms of psychotherapy is cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT). The goal of CBT is to teach you skills for managing your anxieties and slowly returning to the activities you previously avoided.
Be sure to fully discuss with your doctor the various benefits and potential side effects of medications, which may treat generalized anxiety disorder. Generalized anxiety disorder treatment options may include:
Serotonin, norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs), and selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are among such options. However, your doctor may also prescribe other types of antidepressant medications.
It’s designed to treat anxiety for a longer duration. Similar to most antidepressants, buspirone usually takes up to a few weeks to show noticeable results.
Though the majority of patients with generalized anxiety disorder may need medications, psychotherapy, or both, certain lifestyle changes could also prove beneficial. Consider taking the following steps:
Studies on herbal remedies for generalized anxiety disorder garnered mixed results, with many patients reporting no benefits at all. Certain herbs, like valerian and kava, might be linked to serious liver damage, while theanine or passionflower have a potentially calming effect. However, most remedies contain multiple ingredients, and it’s hard to identify exactly which one is ideal for treating generalized anxiety disorder.
Remember to consult your doctor before trying any herbal supplements to prevent interactions with prescribed medications.
Though it’s tough to predict what causes generalized anxiety disorder, consider taking these steps to keep the situation from worsening:
Generalized anxiety disorder is one of the most common mental disorders affecting people of all ages, and can interfere with your daily life. Consult a health care practitioner to learn how to tackle the disorder. They may prescribe medications, recommend psychotherapy, or both, to battle general anxiety disorder. Making lifestyle adjustments may further relieve symptoms.
