Treating Anxiety Effective Strategies for Managing Symptoms
Anxiety disorders affect a significant portion of the population, with nearly 30% of adults and 15-30% of children and adolescents experiencing symptoms at some point. These symptoms can interfere with daily life, causing uneasiness, fearfulness, and difficulty concentrating, among other things. However, anxiety disorders are treatable, and many effective treatments are available, including therapy, medication, and mindfulness practices.
In this article, the focus will be on integrative medicine treatments for anxiety. By combining conventional techniques with integrative medicine, many people can find relief and lead productive, fulfilling lives. The article will explore various treatment options, including coaching, herbal medicines, nutrition, exercise, and more. Readers will learn how a team approach can help individuals achieve a sense of calm and regain control of their moods, even in the face of the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic.
What is Anxiety?
Stress is an activation of the sympathetic system to threat. It can be beneficial to help us pay attention to a risk in our environment that is truly life-threatening. However, anxiety occurs when the sympathetic activation becomes chronic or happens outside of threatening situations. Anxiety is a mis-calibration of the sympathetic system.
Generalized Anxiety Disorder
Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) is a mental health condition that affects 2% of U.S. adults. It is characterized by boundless worry most days of the month for at least six months. Symptoms of GAD include restlessness, irritability, muscle tension, and difficulty concentrating.
Panic Disorder
Panic Disorder is a mental health condition found in 2-3% of U.S. adults. It includes repeated and recurrent episodes of panic, including chest pain, heart palpitations, shortness of breath, dizziness, and abdominal distress. People with Panic Disorder can also have agoraphobia, a fear of leaving environments considered safe.
Social Anxiety Disorder
Social Anxiety Disorder is a mental health condition found in 7% of U.S. adults. It is a persistent fear of being watched and judged by others. This fear can cause a person to avoid everyday activities. Symptoms of Social Anxiety Disorder include blushing, sweating, trembling, nausea, and difficulty speaking.
Phobias
Phobias affect 8-12% of U.S. adults. They include intense aversion to specific situations or even objects that are out of proportion to the actual danger from the situation or object, such as heights, flying, spiders, blood, and others. Phobias can cause significant distress and impairment in daily life but can improve with therapy and medication.
What Causes Anxiety?
Medical issues, genetics, exercise, substance abuse, sleep, micronutrient insufficiencies and dietary patterns, neurotransmitter imbalances, environment, and trauma can all contribute to anxiety disorders.
Medical Issues
Anxiety disorders have to be differentiated from diseases such as arrhythmia, thyroid issues, or chronic pain. Hyperthyroidism or Graves' disease can cause sweating, insomnia, and weight loss without a known trigger.
Genetics
Anxiety disorders can run in families, with a heritability of approximately 30% for GAD.
Exercise
A sedentary lifestyle, characterized by low physical activity/exercise levels, is linked with increased anxiety. Over time, this lack of movement can lead to anxious features. .
Substance Abuse
Substance abuse, particularly alcohol abuse, is linked with anxiety.
Sleep
Insomnia or poor sleep can increase the risk of anxiety. Improving sleep can improve many mental health conditions.
Micronutrient Insufficiencies and Dietary Patterns
A nutrient-poor diet that results in micronutrient deficiencies can increase the risk of GAD, panic attacks, and other mental health disorders. Inflammatory dietary patterns high in sugars, fried foods, refined grains, and beer are more associated with anxiety symptoms than diets like the Mediterranean diet.
Neurotransmitter Imbalances
Imbalances in neurotransmitters such as GABA, dopamine, serotonin, norepinephrine, and excessive histamine levels are linked with excessive anxiety.
Environment
Experiences such as trauma, abuse, exposure to stressful events, and other negative situations can increase the risk of anxiety disorders throughout the lifespan.
How to Calm Anxiety
The most effective way to calm anxiety is to develop a personalized treatment plan that combines traditional and alternative medicine approaches. The plan should be tailored to the individual's temperament, lifestyle, and circumstances. Practitioners should conduct a thorough evaluation of the person's symptoms and possible underlying causes, followed by targeted lab tests to identify the root cause.
The following modalities can help reduce stress and tension and promote peace:
Coping strategies
Control Techniques
Relaxation techniques
Meditation
Support from friends and family
Support groups
Socializing
Journaling
Visualization techniques
Stress reducers
Consistency in daily routines
Additionally, quitting smoking can also help reduce anxiety symptoms. By incorporating these modalities into a personalized treatment plan, individuals can effectively manage their anxiety and improve their overall well-being.
Conventional Treatment for Anxiety
Medications
Medications are often used to manage the symptoms of anxiety while the root cause is identified and healed. Antidepressants are commonly used to help manage anxiety symptoms by helping the brain use certain chemicals to control mood or stress. Anti-anxiety medications such as benzodiazepines work by reducing the symptoms of anxiety. Using these in combination with antidepressants may speed symptom recovery. Beta-blockers, which are traditionally used for high blood pressure, can help relieve the physical symptoms of anxiety, such as shaking, racing heart, and blushing. It is important to note that if anxiety is caused by another medical condition, such as hyperthyroidism, then medications to treat that condition can lessen anxiety.
Psychotherapy
Psychotherapy is an effective way to explore and understand feelings and behaviors and gain coping skills. The most common form of psychotherapy for anxiety is cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT). CBT helps people identify negative thoughts and behaviors and provides them with strategies for managing and changing them at the moment and proactively. The gold standard treatment for anxiety includes at least eight weeks of CBT weekly.
Other forms of therapy can help people more intensively when they need it. People can attend therapy for 9 hours per week (known as IOP or intensive outpatient therapy), 30-40 hours per week (known as partial hospitalization), or participate in multiple outpatient group sessions per week if they need more than 1 hour of care with a therapist each week, or want to make faster progress.
Nutrients and Dietary Patterns
Certain nutrients and dietary patterns can treat or reduce the symptoms of anxiety. Omega-3 fatty acids, found in foods such as chia seeds, flax seeds, walnuts, and salmon, can alleviate anxiety symptoms. Iron, magnesium, and B vitamins help synthesize neurotransmitters and maintain brain function. Deficiencies in these nutrients can contribute to anxiety. An anti-inflammatory dietary pattern can also promote overall calm.
Herbal Medicines
Herbal medicines, or anxiolytic herbs, can be powerful allies in reducing anxiety symptoms. However, these herbs can also come with side effects and may interact with other medications or supplements. It is advisable to consult with a healthcare practitioner before incorporating herbs into your routine.
Integrative Modalities
Integrative modalities, which combine traditional and complementary alternative medicine with conventional medicine, can help promote overall healing and reduce anxiety symptoms. Acupuncture, meditation, breathing techniques, yoga, biofeedback, exercise, stretching, and spending time in nature have all been shown to effectively reduce anxiety symptoms
Summary
An integrative approach to treating anxiety involves identifying the underlying causes and combining conventional therapy and medication with functional tools such as nutrition, herbs, supplements, and mind-body integrative modalities.
