Understanding Generalized Anxiety Disorder
Friday, December 4th, 2009 Subscribe To Our Feed
People who feel overly worried or anxious daily might be suffering from generalized anxiety disorder or GAD. Symptoms include extreme anxiety or worry about normal situations.
People with generalized anxiety disorder are unable to stop worrying about everyday events and situations, and may become overly concerned with money, work, school, health or their families. They spend their days in constant worry or anxiety over certain situations, and they often end up feeling worn out, depressed, sad, and cannot enjoy relationships or social activities.
The root cause of this disorder is still unknown to us. Based on doctors and researchers work however, there seems to be several factors that play a role in the development of generalized anxiety disorder. Heredity is a risk factor of anxiety disorders.As with many diseases and disorders, GAD is seen to stem from genetics. It seems that an individual is more likely to suffer from GAD if his or her parents were constant “worriers”.
Environmental factors can also be a cause of anxiety disorders. Stressful events such as abuse, divorce, moving, changing jobs or losing a loved one can trigger real fear, dread and anxiety, These feelings can worsen or linger on if they are left unaddressed. Some may constantly relapse into a fear or anxious state whenever they experience stress. MedicineNet.com reports that many people turn to food, nicotine or caffeine to manage their feelings, but this often makes the situation worse.
The neurochemical composition of the brain is also seen as a cause of generalized anxiety disorder. People who have anxiety problems typically have abnormal levels of neurotransmitters in the brain, which can effect the types of messages the brain is sending or receiving. This means the person may be experiencing a fear response from only a mildly stressful situation, and will start to link the mildly stressful situation to that negative experience. This happens because the brain is producing the wrong signals so the person has a distorted perception of the situation.
Correcting neurotransmitter imbalances is possible by eating certain foods and maintaining a healthy lifestyle. It’s important to understand that generalized anxiety disorder is quite common. It is important to take note that GAD is a common disorder; and it affects more women than men.
Even though family history and environmental factors may not change, there are several ways to reduce the effects of GAD and other panic disorders. Lifestyle and behavior modification may be our best anxiety treatment option. We can certainly choose to eat healthy foods, stay fit through regular exercise, get enough rest and manage stress in a healthy way. These things are proven to lessen feelings of worry, fear and anxiety.
Technorati Tags: No Tags
Related Tags: No Tags
Possible Related Posts
Generalized Anxiety Disorder: Explanation and SymptomsBattling Anxiety Disorder - And Winning!Some Common Anxiety Treatment Methods
