by Jocelyn Snider

Generalized anxiety disorder is diagnosed if symptoms are present in most days than not for more than six moths.

Generalized anxiety disorder is one of the common anxiety disorders. Anxiety disorders are the term covering several different forms of abnormal, pathological anxiety, fear, phobia and nervous condition, which may come on all of a sudden or gradually, over a period of several years and may impair or prevent the pursuing of normal daily routines.

The essential characteristic of Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) is excessive uncontrollable worry about everyday things. This constant worry affects daily functioning and can cause physical symptoms. GAD is usually difficult to diagnose for it lacks some of the dramatic symptoms, like unprovoked panic attacks, that are seen with other anxiety disorders. To be able to diagnose Generalized Anxiety Disorder, the Generalized Anxiety Disorder Symptoms must be present more days than not for at least 6 months.

The diagnostic criteria for Generalized Anxiety Disorder symptoms are:

- Excessive anxiety and worry (apprehension), occurring more days than not for a period of at least 6 months, about numerous events or activities.

-The person with GAD finds it hard to control the worry.

-The anxiety and worry are associated with three or more of the following six symptoms, with at least some symptoms are present for more than 6 months in most days than not (at least one is required for children):

-restlessness or feeling tense or on the edge

-easily fatigued

-difficulty concentrating or mind going blank

-irritability

-muscle tension and muscle aches

-difficulty falling or staying asleep, or restless unsatisfying sleep

-difficulty swallowing -trembling, sweating

-nausea, light-headedness

-feeling out of breath

The focus of anxiety and worry is not limited to, or the anxiety or worry is not about having a panic attack, being embarrassed in the public, being contaminated, gaining weight, having multiple physical complaints, or having a serious illness, and the anxiety, and worry do not occur exclusively during post traumatic disorder.

The anxiety, worry, or physical symptoms cause clinically significant distress or impairment in social, occupational, or other important areas of everyday activities.

The disturbance is not due to the direct physiological effect of substance, such as alcohol and drug abuse, or medical condition, and does not occur exclusively during a mood disorder, a psychotic disorder, or a pervasive developmental disorder.

When the anxiety level of people with GAD is mild, they can still function socially and keep a job. Even if they don’t avoid certain situations as a result of their disorder, they may have difficulty doing the simplest daily activities if there anxiety is severe. The disorder comes on gradually and can begin at any age, but the risk is highest between childhood and middle age.

Generalized Anxiety Disorder is commonly treated with medication or cognitive-behavioral therapy. Several drugs are used to treat anxiety disorders and these include: benzodiazepines and antidepressants, and Quetiapine.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/health-articles/how-to-generalized-anxiety-disorder-752346.html

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/health-articles/how-to-generalized-anxiety-disorder-752346.html

About the Author
Learn about  social anxiety treatment  and  how to control anxiety  at the  Health And Nutrition  site.

by Ellen Huston

About the Author
Ellen Huston is writer and researcher for http://www.superstressmanagement.com . Please visit her site for information on herbs to reduce stress as well as articles on other stress related topics.

by Debra Taylor-McGee, Ed.D.

You might feel alone; but, you are not. Many world citizens are wondering how they will manage if they lose their businesses or practices. The spoken and unspoken Mayday is being heard in many therapy offices. Anxiety over our money is beginning to terrify many people, and they are seeking help for sometimes paralyzing symptoms of anxiety. Heart pounding, feelings of dread or fear, sleep changes, appetite changes, intrusive thoughts causing difficulty concentrating – these are all symptoms of anxiety – and prevent us from taking action to remedy a national situation which is overwhelming at best.

Anxiety is rising because our very basis of security is being shaken – how we make money affects how we pay for shelter and food and how we take care of our loved ones. How do you find peace? In other articles, I have written about how to allay anxiety by meditation, a break from the news, surrounding us with positive people, and exercise.

But what about nuts and bolts ways to take charge? Finding a way to take control helps the symptoms subside because you are taking positive actions. But until the symptoms subside, you may not have the focus and energy you need to take control. What a catch-22!

Jonathan, a 34 year old dentist, has been observing his practice start to dwindle. He’s worried. He wakes up in the middle of the night by his heart beating rapidly, sweating and afraid. He was in debt from dental school, office start-up costs, and daily living. He also had a wife who worked part time in the practice and two children, a mortgage and two dogs. He was just beginning to see large enough profits to pay himself a salary when the economic floor fell out. Our first step is to help him manage his fears and feelings of being out of control.

Part of feeling out of control is not seeing options to restore our safety. While I can help people with their money beliefs and the issues underlying them, I defer to financial planners to help make a plan for the money. I recommend a couple of different fee only financial planners (from National Association of Personal Financial Advisors or NAPFA) to look at the total economic picture. These planners don’t sell products; they review the person’s financial state and help them make a plan to improve his situation. They can look at your finances including debt load and suggest a specific way to cope with it. Sometimes it means making a bare bones budget or rearranging debt so that it can be paid in a different, more manageable manner.

I help people, like Jonathan, manage his anxiety while he worked with the financial planner. The intertwining of strategies to cope with anxiety and to develop clarity about his situation led to increasing energy and focus. He was able to create and implement marketing, financial and stress reduction plans. Jonathan found a part time consulting position and teaches a class in order to bring in more money during this time. His wife works extra hours in another dental office. Once his anxiety was manageable, he could think creatively again. While not everyone wants to, Jonathan was able to look at deeper issues that contributed to his anxiety. When his symptoms whisper to him now, they are signaling him to take action of some sort. Once he identifies what the symptoms are telling him, he has noticed that the symptoms subside. He can then take action. Learning to listen to the underlying message of our symptoms is an important coping skill.

While therapy and financial planners might seem beyond your financial abilities, consultation will save you money in the long run. Sometimes just scheduling an hour to talk helps reduce the anxiety enough to take action. After all, we all need a good listening to at times! Please don’t suffer in silence, there is help out there.

About the Author

Dr. Deb, or Debra Taylor-McGee, Ed.D., HSPP, is a licensed psychologist in private practice in downtown Indianapolis, Indiana. She enjoys working with individuals and couples from all professions; however, she is especially fond of working with attorneys. Attorneys are highly verbal, information driven, and sometimes quite opinionated. Working with this group is challenging and rewarding. Once the attorney channels his or her drive into therapy, his or her transformation is tremendous!

Dr. Deb also enjoys working with adults with Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder. Once they discover that they are not stupid or spacey, they soar.

Dr. Deb has a number of clients who are financially stressed. While they are not necessarily debt laden, they have sabotaging beliefs about money and success.

Working with an ADHD attorney who keeps himself from being successful is her ideal client! You can contact her through her website, http://www.theattorneystherapist.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Debra_Taylor-McGee,_Ed.D.
http://EzineArticles.com/?Suffering-From-Economic-Anxiety?-How-to-End-the-Suffering&id=2084483

Do you recall the last time it seemed your body was about to fail you — you couldn’t breath, you were uncomfortable, you knew that something was just not right? Chances are, unless you were in the midst of a true life-threatening event, you were simply experiencing a symptom of a panic attack. Anxiety or panic attacks come with a list of uncomfortable feelings, some of which I’m going to list and discuss to help you recognize them the next time they happen to you.

“If Only My Heart Would Stop Pounding!”

A racing heart is one of the most common symptoms of a panic attack. Any number of stressful situations can bring out this reaction signaling a mild or even a severe attack of anxiety. When your heart pounds you might have the reaction of clutching your chest because you think you may be having a heart attack. The trick is to calmly (as best you can) evaluate your situation and recognize that this is probably a symptom of your anxiety attack.

“Oh Man! I Just Can’t Breath”

Feeling like you just can’t breath is another symptom you might experience during an anxiety attack. Not being able to breath is indeed frightening — you feel as if you’re boxed in and the world is caving in. If you’re under stress, do yourself a favor by considering that this may just be a panic attack symptom.

Losing Control! Oh No!!!

It can be hard to manage anxiety when you’re in the middle of feeling like you’re losing control — of yourself and the situation. Being afraid you’ll lose control is the last thing you need when you can’t catch your breath, you’re feeling light headed, and your heart is pounding. The trick here may be to realize that this is a natural by-product of all the other symptoms your body is putting you through.

A Feeling as If You’ll Faint from Light-headedness

The lightheaded, “about to faint” feeling tends to happen when you’re in a crowded area. A fear of being in crowds is known as agoraphobia and light-headedness is one of the common symptoms associated with this anxiety. This is merely one of the symptoms associated with anxiety attacks and you may not have a more serious issue other than that.

In Conclusion, but no, it’s not yet over…

The symptoms associated with anxiety attacks vary from one person to the next. Each person experiences fear and the symptoms of anxiety attacks differently based on his own level of fear. The symptoms of anxiety can be controlled and even treated so that you can lead a normal life. If you want to seriously pursue treatment, get together with your doctor to discuss your symptoms and possibly draw up a plan to manage anxiety as it happens in your day-to-day life. The ultimate goal is to get control of your life by managing anxiety and stress before it destroys you.