 There are now a range of treatments for GAD. It is important that you discuss your existing problems with your own doctor or a specialist in anxiety disorders. The aim must be to get a proper diagnosis and an informed choice between the treatment options. It is important to recognise that there is no single treatment that will cure you. Medical science can do no more than offer support while you learn how to manage your condition more effectively. Xanax can be useful to relieve the symptoms in the short term, but long-term use has the risk of dependence or addiction. All the benefits and disadvantages of each form of treatment should be understood before you adopt any of them.
Behavioural therapies
The advantage of these therapies is that you, as a person, become the centre of attention. Rather than have a doctor write a prescription and make another appointment for you to report back, you are more in control of the process to reduce, if not cure, your anxiety.
At a physical level, you may benefit from distracting yourself so that you briefly forget your worries. Thus, engaging in one or more of the following is useful:
- meditation and relaxation exercises — the use of biofeedback is becoming more acceptable;
- yoga;
- massage; and
- sport.
At a cognitive level, you can learn how to modify existing behaviour and learn new behaviour. Therapists teach a range of different techniques to begin the process of adjusting your reactions to different situations and building new habits. By guiding you through everyday situations, what previously was instinctive and "unconscious" can be revealed. Once you understand how you are reacting, you can unlearn those responses and substitute more constructive responses.
Socially, most people benefit from joining groups of others with similar problems. You can learn much from hearing how others cope. It also has the benefit of forcing you to continue some level of sociability. People who suffer from GAD can find themselves isolated, afraid to go out, afraid to meet others. This kind of gathering is less threatening than an ordinary social situation, and can provide a support network drawn from both health professionals and fellow sufferers.
Medication therapies
In combination with the behavioural therapies, medication can be useful to eliminate or reduce many of the more distressing symptoms, even if only temporarily. None of the existing drugs can cure GAD. The aim is to give you some degree of control over your condition while you work on modifying your behaviour to feel less anxious naturally. This also reflects two underlying truths about the medications:
- many of them cannot be taken if you are young or older, or if you are pregnant or nursing; and
- they cannot be taken over longer periods of time.
The drugs fall into two classes:
- some of the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) such as Paxil more usually reserved for the treatment of depression have been found useful at low dosages for the treatment of GAD; and
- the benzodiazepines such as Xanax which can quickly relieve anxiety sufferers. The disadvantage of this class of medication is that the risks of dependence or addiction are high if they are used over the longer term.
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