HOUSTON’S ANXIETY TREATMENT CLINIC
If you often feel uptight and hopeless or are experiencing an overwhelming feeling that life is a constant struggle, you might be suffering from anxiety. Anxiety is an uneasy feeling often characterized by fear and/or worry. You can experience mild, moderate or severe anxiety. Most people experience anxiety at some points in their life, and it is therefore quite a common condition with effective treatments available.
WHAT TO KNOW ABOUT
Overview Anxiety In Houston Texas
Several types of anxiety disorders exist, such as panic disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, and various phobia-related disorders.
Generalized Anxiety Disorder may consist of the following symptoms:
Panic Disorder may consist of the following symptoms:
RISK FACTORS
Shyness or behavioral inhibition in childhood
Exposure to stressful environment or negative life events during early childhood or adulthood
History of anxiety or other mental illnesses
Physical health conditions (such as but not limited to thyroid problems, a heart arrhythmias) may produce or aggravate anxiety symptoms.
Treatment And Therapies
There are two CBT methods that can be applied to people with anxiety disorders – cognitive and exposure therapy. Cognitive therapy gives more attention to identifying, challenging, and neutralizing negative and unhelpful thoughts that sprout from the disorder. This therapy helps people recover and be able to engage in activities they have been avoiding. Exposure therapy, on the other hand, is used alongside relaxation exercises and/or imagery. CBT can involve one person or a group who shares the same struggle. Often home tasks are given to these people to compete between sessions, giving them more opportunities to further improve.
Anti-Anxiety Medications
Anti-anxiety medications
Help ease symptoms of anxiety, panic attacks, and extreme fear or worry. The most common medication of this type is benzodiazepine. Although they are commonly used as first-line treatments for generalized anxiety disorder, they still have advantages and disadvantages you should be aware of. They are also effective in relieving anxieties and take effect quicker than other antidepressants. Like any other drugs, they also have drawbacks or risks. Some include resistance to such medications if taken over a long period of time. In such cases, patients may need to increase the dosages in order to take effect thus may result in drug dependence.
In response to people being dependent on this drug, doctors prescribe benzodiazepines for only short periods of time – a practice helpful for older adults, for those who have substance abuse problems, and those who easily become dependent on medications.
If people abruptly stopped taking medications
Benzodiazepines in particular, may exhibit withdrawal symptoms or worse, their anxiety may return. Benzodiazepines should then be tapered off slowly. If the time comes when you need to stop taking it, the doctor in charge will decrease your dosage and slowly be independent. When used for a longer term, they are considered as a second-line treatment for anxiety and “as needed” treatment for any distressing and elevated showcase of symptoms.
Another type of anti-anxiety medication is called Buspirone. It is a non-benzodiazepine medication indicated specifically for chronic anxiety and is not effective for all people taking it up.
Antidepressants
Antidepressants
as its name suggests, are used to treat and fight depression. They can also be useful in treating anxiety disorders. Taking this medication improves the way their patient’s brain uses certain substances that control mood and stress. Generally, you’ll have to try taking several types of antidepressants to find the right one – it is necessary to find what is suitable for you because the right medication can improve your symptoms and give manageable side effects. Antidepressants used by a close family member, who showed improvement, are also considered.
Antidepressants take a long time to work. It is then necessary to give the medication time before judging its effectiveness. Ideally, you should not stop taking them once you have already started taking antidepressants. When your doctor decides to stop your medications, the dosage should be gradually decreased to give time for your body to adjust with the change. Stopping without your doctor’s consent can lead to withdrawal.
Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs)
And serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs) are types of antidepressants that are considered as first-line treatments for anxiety. Another type is tricyclic antidepressants and monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs), which are classified as an order class of antidepressants, are less commonly used but effective for treating anxieties.
Take Note: In some cases, children, teenagers, and even young adults under the age of 25 may experience suicidal thoughts or behavior when taking antidepressant medications, particularly in the first few weeks of taking it or when the dose changes. Due to this, patients of all ages should be carefully observed to avoid further complications.
Although participants may benefit from taking part in a clinical trial, they should be aware that the purpose of clinical trials is to increase scientific knowledge and contribute to the development of new treatments. Decisions on participating in a clinical trial and what process is best suited for the participant, is best made in cooperation with a licensed mental health professional.
If you want to know more about the clinical trials, you can visit the NIH Clinical Research Trials and You website. If you are looking for a clinical trial then visit ClinicalTrials.gov.
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