What Is Anxiety? What Are the Symptoms? How Is It Treated?

What Is Anxiety (Anxiety Disorder)? What Are the Symptoms? How Is It Treated?

Anxiety is one of the normal reactions a person experiences in daily life. However, in some people it can reach levels that seriously affect life. In such cases, an anxiety disorder known as anxiety may develop. Anxiety disorder, for which there are various treatment options, can affect a person's daily life less once they learn how it should be managed.

What Is Anxiety (Anxiety Disorder)?

Anxiety is a normal response to stress and occurs to protect a person from danger. Everyone experiences anxiety from time to time, but a person with an anxiety disorder has persistent or recurring anxiety that negatively affects their life. In anxiety disorders, anxiety is at a level different from the fears and worries that may ordinarily be experienced during the day. It takes the form of excessive fear or worry and may cause the person to:

Closely affect daily activities.

Cause overreactions to situations.

Make it difficult to control reactions.

What Are the Symptoms of Anxiety?

People with this disorder experience physical symptoms due to excessive feelings of worry. These symptoms may manifest as avoidance of situations that trigger anxiety attacks. Physical symptoms often occur alongside other mental health problems. Common physical and psychological symptoms include:

Weight loss

Shortness of breath

Rapid heartbeat

Digestive system disorders

Sleep problems

Nausea

Dizziness

Sweating

Feeling of losing control

Chest pain

Feeling restless

Irritability

Difficulty concentrating

Desire to avoid crowded places

What Causes Anxiety?

Environmental and genetic risk factors may each contribute to the development of excessive anxiety. Risk factors may include:

Shyness in childhood

Exposure to stressful events

Family history of psychological problems

Thyroid problems

Caffeine use

Certain medications

Hormonal changes

Serious traumas experienced in the past

Pregnancy

What Are the Types of Anxiety?

There are several types of anxiety disorder involving excessive anxiety. The factors that trigger excessive anxiety also vary by type. The most common types are:

Generalized anxiety disorder: In people with this condition, ordinary everyday events can cause worry, and this worry can become severe enough to affect daily life. The mind constantly focuses on the worst-case scenario, causing anxiety and leading to physical symptoms.

Panic disorder: People with panic disorder may experience episodes of intense fear. During panic attacks, the person is overcome by unreal feelings and sensations.

Social anxiety: People with social anxiety disorder feel anxious in social settings. As a result, they experience severe anxiety attacks.

Specific phobia: People with a specific phobia feel anxiety toward certain specific things that pose no real danger. Animals, objects or water, among other factors, may be triggers.

What Is Social Anxiety?

Social anxiety disorder causes a person to display signs of fear in society. The fear people feel in social situations is so intense that they may feel the fear will disappear once they move away. Social anxiety disorder usually emerges in childhood. Excessive shyness and avoidance of social settings are among the first signs. Social anxiety may also be seen more often in women than in men.

What Causes Social Anxiety?

Social anxiety has many causes. Genetic or environmental factors, alone or together, may cause this problem. Daily activities carried out in social settings and within communities can cause anxiety and fear due to concerns about humiliation, judgment and rejection.

How Does Social Anxiety Get Better?

People with social anxiety disorder should definitely seek support from a healthcare professional. After a medical history review by a psychiatrist, physical symptoms are evaluated. The psychiatrist, psychologist and, when needed, other healthcare professionals may need to coordinate in treating social anxiety. Treatment options for social anxiety, such as medications and psychotherapy, can be used alone or in combination.

Who Is More Commonly Affected by Anxiety?

Although it is not fully known who is more commonly affected by excessive anxiety, certain circumstances may increase the likelihood. Having an anxiety disorder or another existing psychological problem in the family is among these circumstances. Also, female hormones, which change with the menstrual cycle, may cause women to experience anxiety more often. In addition, changes in chemicals such as thyroid hormones in both sexes are also among the conditions that may cause excessive anxiety. Not only biological but also environmental factors are causes. In people who have experienced trauma in the past, anything they associate with those experiences can trigger anxiety.

How Is Anxiety Diagnosed?

Since loss of control over anxiety can cause physical symptoms, it is first necessary to make sure these symptoms are not caused by other diseases. If the cause of the symptoms is not an existing disease, diagnosis should be made by a psychiatrist. A psychological assessment should be carried out for diagnosis. In this assessment, the person's emotions, behaviors and thoughts are examined.

How Is It Treated?

A single method may not be preferred in treatment. Treatment options can include psychotherapy, medication and coping methods. The aim of treatment is to enable the person to manage their anxiety and to prevent them from being affected by the factors that cause it. Treatment options are:

Medication treatment: Various medications may be used for treatment. Medications can help prevent not only psychological symptoms but also physical symptoms. The type and dose of medications may vary according to the person's needs. Examination by a psychiatrist is also important for prescribing these medications.

Cognitive behavioral therapy: The situations that cause anxiety in the person are identified, and the therapist tries to change the behaviors and thoughts related to them. The person first needs to question their negative thoughts and their causes. When a suitable environment is created, the person is exposed to these triggers to show that they are not a situation that causes anxiety. Through these self-directed exposures, the aim is to eliminate anxiety attacks.

How Long Does Anxiety Treatment Take?

Anxiety disorder treatment may vary depending on the person's needs and the symptoms they display. Medications used for treatment may take about 1 month on average to begin taking effect. Psychotherapy sessions are also held at set intervals. It is difficult to say how long the entire treatment and recovery process will last. The process varies entirely depending on the person's adherence and the status of their anxiety.

What Should Be Done During an Anxiety Crisis?

During an anxiety crisis, the person feels a desire to move away from triggers. In these moments, it is important for the person to calm themselves and recognize that this situation should not normally cause anxiety. What can be done during a crisis includes:

Doing breathing exercises

Closing the eyes and waiting to calm down

Changing the focus by concentrating on an object

Applying muscle relaxation techniques

Visualizing

Talking to a trusted person

Contacting a healthcare facility when necessary

How Does an Anxiety Crisis Pass?

During a crisis, the body becomes tense, and breathing and heart rate increase. When one feels an anxiety crisis beginning, the person may need to calm themselves. The first step is awareness, meaning that knowing about anxiety crises before they happen can help the person manage them. When one feels an anxiety crisis starting, beginning with deep breaths can produce good results, because during an anxiety crisis the person unknowingly begins to change their breathing pattern. Bringing breathing back to normal helps the person accept that there is no problem. At this point, taking deep, slow breaths and focusing on them may be helpful. It is also helpful for the person to think about these situations before a crisis occurs and to decide with their psychiatrist what they can do. After learning what causes an anxiety crisis and how to cope with these situations without escaping from them, the person can take control. At the end of this process, crises may gradually decrease and reach a point where they are no longer experienced.

What Can Be Done to Prevent Anxiety?

Although excessive anxiety crises cannot be fully prevented, the person can be less affected by them. Along with treatment, attacks also gradually begin to disappear over time. From learning to cope with negative emotions to physical activity, there are things that can be done to manage and prevent excessive anxiety. What can be done to manage anxiety crises includes:

Following the treatment plan

Learning about anxiety problems

Learning to cope with attacks

Exercising regularly

Practicing relaxation techniques regularly

Avoiding caffeine and alcohol use

Eating healthily

What Are Ways to Protect Against Anxiety?

The cause of this psychological problem can be many different factors, both environmental and genetic. Although these factors cannot be changed much, paying attention to one's psychological health can reduce the risk. For this, it is first important to cope with stress factors that may trigger excessive anxiety. Supports that help cope with stress, such as meditation, can help a person be less affected and prevent anxiety from developing during stressful moments. Also, people who have experienced a serious trauma can learn to live with it by receiving psychological support. Being less affected by trauma can also prevent factors associated with trauma from causing anxiety crises.

Adopting a healthy lifestyle also plays a role in protecting a person from psychological problems. Reducing or completely stopping substances such as caffeine and alcohol, which may trigger anxiety, can help people at risk. Healthy eating also strongly affects brain health, and brain health can be supported by consuming quality fats. Regular exercise is also among the effective factors. Activities such as yoga, which keep one physically active while teaching breathing techniques, can be especially supportive in stress management and in preventing anxiety from becoming a problem.

If you are experiencing anxiety that affects your daily life, you can contact a healthcare facility and receive the necessary support in managing these concerns.