Anxiety & Mood Disorders

Anxiety is extreme worry or nervousness. Situational anxiety, like before an important exam or job interview, is a normal and expected part of life. This type of anxiety is temporary, and after the intimidating event has passed or the worrisome situation has been resolved, the symptoms of anxiety should ease. On the other hand, if your anxiety is constant and has begun to affect your daily life, you may have an anxiety disorder. With an anxiety disorder, the symptoms of anxiety can persist and even worsen over time seemingly without a cause.

If you’re wondering whether or not you are experiencing an excessive amount of anxiety, here are some common symptoms that you can look for: 

• Excessive worry

• Trouble sleeping 

• Difficulty concentrating 

• Fatigue 

• Increased heart rate

If you have experienced one or more of these symptoms, you may have an anxiety disorder.

So far, researchers say that anxiety disorders have both genetic and environmental causes. If one of your close relatives has an anxiety disorder, you may be at risk for developing one yourself. Additionally, extremely stressful or traumatic events could cause someone to develop an anxiety disorder, especially if the event occurred in childhood or adolescence.

Every person is unique, but therapy helps most people manage their anxiety so that it doesn’t affect their daily lives. One of the most common forms of therapy used to treat anxiety is cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), which encourages people to think differently about their situations and teaches them new behaviors and methods that they can use to react to situations that provoke anxiety. We also recommend evidence-based treatment modalities, such as CBT, Psychodynamic Psychotherapy, Acceptance Commitment Therapy (ACT), Mindfulness-Based Interventions. Additionally, there are certain medications that can be beneficial to people struggling with the symptoms from anxiety disorders.