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Nervousness or fearfulness
Strange thoughts
or perceptions
Tremors
Pounding heartbeat
Increased Urination
High blood pressure
Sweating
Difficulty breathing
Hot flashes or cold chills

Confusion
Insomnia
GI upset
Fast heartbeat
Dizziness
Chest pain
Restlessness
Difficulty swallowing
Compulsive behaviors
Racing thoughts

Persons with anxiety disorders suffer from three or more of these symptoms regularly for at least a few weeks. Untreated, these conditions are usually lifelong. Fortunately, modern treatment can relieve most of these symptoms for most persons.

Anxiety disorders are very common: 25% of Americans will suffer from an anxiety disorder during their lifetime. These anxiety disorders cause untold suffering, both physical and emotional. Because the symptoms resemble other physical illnesses, anxiety disorders cause unnecessary emergency room visits, hospital admissions, and even invasive procedures such as cardiac catheterizations and endoscopies of the GI tract, Many persons who have been diagnosed with “Irritable Bowel Syndrome” or with “Mitral Valve Prolapse” have an anxiety disorder.

Yet few people get effective treatment for these disorders. In a moment, we will discuss the cause and treatment of anxiety disorders. First, let’s describe the five common types of anxiety disorders.

Types of Anxiety Disorders
Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) is perhaps the most common type of anxiety disorder. It consists of excessive nervousness or worry about events or activities. The person is troubled by nervousness most days, and finds it difficult or impossible to control. In addition to nervousness or worry, the person has any number of the above-listed symptoms of anxiety disorders. While the person may have real reasons for worry, clearly the anxiety is excessive and becomes a problem in itself.

Phobias cause anxiety about specific situations. If the person can avoid the particular situation, he experiences much less anxiety. Many phobias are minor, and cause little disability: fears of snakes and spiders, for example. Phobias can be disabling when the feared situation is a common part of life: elevators, driving, or flying. When forced into the feared situation, the above-listed symptoms of anxiety become very severe and can result in a “panic attack.”

Perhaps the most disabling phobia is social phobia. The person with social phobia is excessively frightened by situations in which he will be observed by others. The fear is usually of humiliation or embarrassment. Public speaking, parties, and restaurants are often the feared situations. The person with social phobia often has suffered from excessive shyness since childhood.

When forced into a “social” situation, the person will experience any of the above-listed symptoms of anxiety. Loneliness and career frustration often result from social phobia.

Panic Disorder causes “panic attacks,” sometimes known as “anxiety attacks.” These are sudden, intense spells of any of the above-listed anxiety symptoms. Particularly common are difficulty breathing, fast pounding heartbeat, intense fear, and tremors. Panic attacks can occur anywhere, anytime; often they awaken the person from sleep. The panic attack can last from a few minutes to several hours. Between panic attacks the person may feel well, or may develop symptoms of Generalized Anxiety Disorder as described above.

The fear of having another panic attack can be more disabling than the momentary panic attacks themselves. A person may worry constantly about having another panic attack. He may avoid more and more situations in which a panic attack occurred. In extreme cases the person may remain at home and rarely leave: a condition called Agoraphobia.

Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder causes unpleasant repetitive thoughts and excessively repetitive actions. Most commonly, the thoughts and actions focus on themes of dirt, germs, washing and cleaning; orderliness and neatness resulting in slowness; bizarre religious thoughts and actions; hoarding; nail biting and hair pulling. Other anxiety symptoms listed above may also be present.

Post-traumatic Stress Disorder occurs following a severe physical or psychological trauma, such as a near-fatal accident or assault. Memories and dreams of the event recurrently intrude into awareness. Persons avoid anything that might remind them of the event. Other of the above anxiety symptoms also occur.

Causes of Anxiety Disorders
While there is still much that medical science does not know about the causes of anxiety disorders, we do have increasing evidence that the causes of anxiety disorders can be chemical, psychological, or a combination of both.

Given enough stress, anyone could develop an anxiety disorder. The brain’s circuits for handling tension could be overwhelmed, and then anxiety spills over uncontrollably. Once this happens, the brain may never regain emotional stability on its own.

Even without unusual stress, a person can develop an anxiety disorder on the basis of chemical problems in the brain. These chemical disorders are often inherited, and anxiety disorders do tend to run in families. Or the chemical disorders can develop during life due to aging or disease.

Whether from stress, heredity, or disease, three brain proteins seem to be out of balance in persons with anxiety disorders: serotonin, norepinephrine, and GABA (g-aminobutyric acid).

Treatment of Anxiety Disorders.
With modern treatment, almost all patients with anxiety disorders can be helped greatly. Many patients will have almost complete remission of their symptoms; most others will have at least a 50% reduction of symptoms.

Treatment usually involves both medications and counseling. The medications used to treat anxiety disorders increase the effectiveness of the brain chemicals GABA and serotonin. Some also stabilize norepinephrine. Often relief is experienced in a matter of a few hours. Modern antidepressants are used to stabilize serotonin; mild tranquilizers increase the effects of GABA. All the medications used are safe.

The counseling done for anxiety disorders is usually cognitive therapy. This well-proven form of counseling teaches you how to reduce anxiety by mental control. Usually less than 12 sessions are required, and improvement is experienced after the first one or two sessions. Cognitive therapy can be done individually or in group therapy.

How Much Does Treatment Cost?
The treatment of anxiety disorders is surprisingly affordable. Most health insurance will pay at least 50% of the cost of care. With two policies, nearly all the costs will be paid by health insurance.

Even on a simple financial basis, treating anxiety disorders is a good investment. Patients earn and save more money because they are mentally and physically functioning better! They waste less time and money at work and at home.

By the way, an independent audit recently showed that the total cost of treatment at Tate Healthcare Specialists is 35% less than the Arkansas statewide average. I believe this is because we are more accurate in our evaluation and diagnosis and we use state-of-the-art treatment.

Should You Seek Treatment Now?
If you or a loved-one are suffering from the symptoms of an anxiety disorder to the point that your schoolwork, career, family life, or social life are adversely effected then treatment should be sought. Untreated, an anxiety disorder has a destructive effect on performance, relationships, mood, and self-esteem. Untreated, continued anxiety can result in long-term health problems such as gastric ulcer, heart disease, and high blood pressure. Treatment will improve the overall physical and psychological health of the person.

Why See A Specialist?
We know that seeing a medical specialist is more expensive than seeing your GP. But understanding anxiety disorders and prescribing the appropriate treatment are complex. Physicians who spend most of their time working with these disorders and their treatment are able quickly to diagnose, provide treatment and adjust treatment accurately. This will ensure that you will not suffer needlessly and will save you time and money.

At Tate Healthcare Specialists we specialize in the diagnosis and treatment of anxiety disorders and related conditions. We can diagnose and treat most quickly and effectively

Conclusions
Anxiety disorders are very common: up to 30% of females and 20% of males will suffer from an anxiety disorder in their lifetime. Unfortunately, most persons with anxiety disorders never receive treatment. Instead, most see their family physician for the physical symptoms of anxiety: breathing difficulties, GI distress, palpitations and chest pain.

Anxiety disorders have several subtypes, although most share similar symptoms.

Without treatment, anxiety disorders are usually lifelong. Treatment of anxiety disorders with cognitive therapy and medications results in cure or improvement in the majority of people.

Treatment is quickly effective and affordable. Most health insurance will reimburse 50% to 80% of our fee. By the way, a recent health insurance audit showed our costs of care to be 35% less than similar specialists in Arkansas. I believe this is because we are dedicated to fast, accurate diagnosis and quickly effective care.

Call 800-889-4319 today for more information or to make an appointment. You can also request an appointment by clicking Request an Appointment. Or Click Free Symptom Analysis for free feedback about your symptoms. Do it today!