Do You Have An Generalized Anxiety Disorder?.

Are you suffering from GAD?

Worrying about everyday life events is known as Generalized Anxiety Disorder or GAD. People suffering from this kind of disorder always feel that something disastrous is going to happen, and they cannot stop themselves from worrying about money, health, work, family, college or friends. The worrying becomes almost compulsive and it begins to take over the life of the sufferer affecting their relationships and social activities. It comes to dominate their ability to function by causing fear and dread. Click here for more information on What is Anxiety Disorder.

Symptoms of GAD

Anxiety affects the thinking process of a person, and it can lead to various physical symptoms including irritability, sweating, headaches, restlessness, nausea, difficulty in concentrating, tiredness, trembling, trouble falling asleep, frequent urination and getting easily startled.

What causes anxiety is not yet fully understood but it is believed there are various factors involved that contribute to its development, including genetics, brain chemistry and stress in the sufferers’ environment. If you have a family history of anxiety or depression you may be more likely to suffer from it and GAD has been linked to abnormal levels of neurotransmitters in the brain. These are the chemical messengers passing the information between nerve cells, and when they get out of balance, the brain does not receive messages properly. This will change the brains reaction to different situations ans thus cause anxiety.

If there has been a traumatic event such as a death of a loved one, divorce, trauma or if there is a high level of stress from a job, it may cause the onset of anxiety. Click here for more information on Anxiety Therapy.

Treatment of Anxiety

Anxiety is normally treated by psychiatrists or other mental health professionals like psychologists. These professional are trained to diagnose and treat any kind of mental illnesses. The treatments for anxiety may include cognitive-behavioral therapy and the use of drugs. If GAD has started to interfere with everyday functioning, medications can be very useful. These may include tranquillizers to relax and calm the patient.

By recognizing the features that cause anxious behavior, cognitive-behaviour therapy can bring about a change in thought patterns and allow sufferes to deal with them. It helps by giving people an understanding of their worries and how it distorts their thinking and so limiting their effect.

GAD cannot be prevented, but there are some things that can be done to lessen or control the symptoms. This includes reducing the consumption of caffeine containing products such as tea, coffee, chocolate and cola. Talk to your pharmacist or doctor before taking any over the counter herbal remedies or medicines, as they may contain the chemicals that increase the anxiety symptoms. Eat a well-balanced diet, and exercise regularly. If you have suffered a traumatic experience you may need to seek the support of a counelor.

For more information visit our Anxiety and Depression Homepage.