General Information About Generalized Anxiety Disorder
Disease Details and Frequently Asked Questions
It is a chronic anxiety disease where a person writhes in a continuous, uncontrollable, and irrational expectation that 'the worst will happen' regarding daily life events such as health, family, money, and work.
A panic attack is a sudden, severe crisis of fear of death/suffocation lasting 10-15 minutes. Generalized anxiety, rather than a severe crisis, is a state of 'inner distress and apprehension' that spreads over most of the day and lasts continuously for months.
Because the mind is constantly on alert, the body tenses up. The most typical physical findings are stubborn stiffness in the shoulder/neck muscles, fatigue, stomach cramps, frequent urination, trembling in the hands, and difficulty falling/staying asleep.
Everyone worries about an exam or debts. However, to call it GAD, this state of excessive anxiety must last almost every day for at least 6 months and make the person's life (work, relationships) unlivable.
There is no blood test or X-ray. It is detected by the psychiatrist clinically evaluating the patient's mood, the severity of their worry, and their body's physical stress responses according to DSM-5 diagnostic criteria.
Treatment is two-pronged. SSRI group Antidepressants are used to balance serotonin and turn off the panic signal in the brain. With Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) taken alongside the medication, the patient is taught how to catch and change the thought patterns that produce disaster scenarios.
Our health library contents are prepared for informational purposes only and with scientific data available at the time of recording. For all your questions, concerns, diagnosis, or treatment regarding your health, please consult your doctor or a healthcare institution.
