Generalized Anxiety disorder: a hallmark of many behavior disorders

Patients with generalized anxiety disorder experience worry or anxiety and a number of physical and psychological symptoms. The disorder is frequently difficult to diagnose because of the variety of presentations and the common occurrence of psychiatric conditions.

Anxiety is a root of many behavior disorders. Anxiety disorders are serious medical illnesses. The principle specific signs of anxiety disorder are intense, observable anxiety and /or fears. Generalized anxiety disorder is one of the case in point of anxiety disorder In this disorder, the anxiety may be persistent and uncomfortably high of most of the time, or it may come as a sudden attack that lasts from a few hours to several days. An anxiety attack makes people thoroughly miserable, force them to the border of panic and upset their health. Often people think that they have a serious medical disorder, for the symptoms often include palpitation, fatigue, blurred vision, sweating, dizziness, headache and so on. There is a sense of foreboding and apprehension mixed with the physical symptoms. Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) is chronic and always anticipating disaster, often worrying excessively about health, money, family, or work. The source of the worry is hard to pinpoint.

Symptoms of Generalized anxiety disorder are as under:

Persistent worrying or obsession about small or large concerns that's out of proportion to the impact of the event

Inability to set aside or let go of a worry

Inability to relax, restlessness, and feeling keyed up or on edge

Difficulty concentrating, or the feeling that your mind "goes blank"

Worrying about excessively worrying

Distress about making decisions for fear of making the wrong decision

Carrying every option in a situation all the way out to its possible negative conclusion

Difficulty handling uncertainty or indecisiveness

Physical signs and symptoms may include:

Fatigue

Irritability

Muscle tension or muscle aches

Trembling, feeling twitchy

Being easily startled

Trouble sleeping

Sweating

Nausea, diarrhea or irritable bowel syndrome

Headaches

Persons with Generalized anxiety disorder seem unable to calm down, and they may startle more easily than other people. Often, they have trouble falling or staying asleep. GAD doesn’t characteristically avoid certain situations as a result of their disorder. When impairment associated with GAD is mild, people with the disorder may be able to function in social settings or on the job. If severe, however, GAD can be very debilitating, making it difficult to carry out even the most ordinary daily activities.

Tests for generalized anxiety disorder:

To help diagnose generalized anxiety disorder, doctors may thoroughly do a physical exam to look for signs that anxiety might be linked to an underlying medical condition. Doctor also order blood or urine tests or other tests, if a medical condition is suspected

And ask detailed questions about symptoms and medical history.

He/ she use psychological questionnaires to help determine a diagnosis.

Treatment options:

There are two main treatments for generalized anxiety disorder that include:

Psychotherapy: psychotherapy involves working with a therapist to reduce anxiety symptoms of patients. It can be an effective treatment for genera, lized anxiety disorder.

Cognitive behavioral therapy is one of the most effective forms of psychotherapy for generalized anxiety disorder.

Medications: Several types of medications are used to treat generalized anxiety disorder such as Antidepressants, Buspirone (An anti-anxiety medication), Benzodiazepines.

It is observed that the disorder comes on gradually and can begin across the life cycle, though the risk is highest between childhood and middle age. It can be distinguished from normal anxiety because in GAD, there is avoidance of common social situations for fear of being judged, embarrassed or humiliated and repeated, random panic attacks or persistent worry/anticipation of another panic attack and feelings. They perform uncontrollable, repetitive actions, such as washing their hands repeatedly or checking things over and over whereas in normal anxiety, people suffer sadness or difficulty sleeping immediately following a traumatic event. Patients with generalized anxiety disorder may respond to psychological or pharmacological therapies or a combination of both approaches.