Anxiety Symptoms, Types, Causes and Treatments

The Classic Sign Of A Social Anxiety Disorder

Are you just shy or is it a social anxiety disorder?

The classic sign of a social anxiety disorder is a strong fear of embarrassment or humiliation in social situations, research finds.

Bear in mind that many people are apprehensive in unfamiliar social situations or with those they do not know.

Social anxiety disorder is more than being shy.

To be a social anxiety disorder, the fear should be so great that the social situation can only be born with considerable distress.

Either that or social situations are often avoided — sometimes causing serious personal disadvantage.

Many people with the disorder are reluctant to seek help, precisely because of the embarrassment they feel and/or the potential for humiliation they sense.

• Try Dr Jeremy Dean’s ebook: The Anxiety Plan: 42 Strategies For Worry, Phobias, OCD and Panic

Around 13% of the general population are thought to have a social anxiety disorder.

Dr Kristy L. Dalrymple, the author of the study, said:

“Despite its prevalence, social anxiety disorder has not received the same attention from the public or mainstream media as other disorders, such as obsessive compulsive disorder.
Due to its social and economic impact, it merits further study in order to help researchers and clinicians determine possible causes, and the best treatment.
This isn’t about overcoming shyness.
This is about helping our patients who suffer from a disorder that prevents them from living a happy and healthy life.”

Unfortunately, a social anxiety disorder can significantly affect people’s lives.

Experiencing social anxiety disorder is linked to fewer romantic relationships, greater unemployment and fewer days worked, as well as lower productivity.

Dr Dalrymple said:

“There are many differing opinions about social anxiety disorder and the best treatment.
Should it be treated with medication, behavioral therapy, or both?
The significant increase in the prescription of antidepressant medications (which often are used to treat SAD) over the past several years — an increase of 400 percent — should be considered when determining the best approach.
Are we simply medicating, or are we helping patients to truly improve their quality of life?”

The study was published in the journal Expert Review of Neurotherapeutics (Dalrymple, 2012).

The Natural Foods That Decrease Stress Risk By 23%

One of the easiest ways to reduce the risk of stress and anxiety.

Eating vegetables daily is linked to a lower chance of anxiety and depression, new research finds.

The study of over 65,000 Australians found that the more vegetables they ate each day, the lower their risk of suffering from anxiety and depression.

Women in particular seemed to be sensitive to vegetable intake.

Vegetables had a stronger protective effect on women than it did on men.

[Dr Jeremy Dean’s ebook is “The Anxiety Plan: 42 Strategies For Worry, Phobias, OCD and Panic”]

Binh Nguyen, the study’s first author, said:

“We found that fruit and vegetables were more protective for women than men, suggesting that women may benefit more from fruit and vegetables.”

Women who ate 5-7 servings of vegetables each day were 23% less likely to suffer from stress than those who had 0-1 servings per day.

Dr Melody Ding, study co-author, said:

“This study shows that moderate daily fruit and vegetable consumption is associated with lower rates of psychological stress.
It also reveals that moderate daily vegetable intake alone is linked to a lower incidence of psychological stress.
Moderate fruit intake alone appears to confer no significant benefit on people’s psychological stress.”

The study was published in the journal BMJ Open (Nguyen et al., 2017).

The Online Anxiety Therapy That Changes People’s Brains In 9 Weeks

The amygdala is an area of the brain vital to the processing of the emotions.

Propranolol For Anxiety: Are Beta Blockers Effective?

Propranolol for anxiety is sometimes prescribed, but is it an effective treatment?

Propranolol — a type of beta blocker — has not been shown to be an effective treatment for anxiety.

The conclusions come from a recent review of the research.

Propranolol works by blocking the action of adrenaline.

The drug is mostly used to treat high blood pressure, but is now sometimes prescribed for anxiety.

Actors, public speakers and musicians in general are known to take them to cope with stage fright.

One study from the 1980s found that 27% of orchestra musicians admitted to taking beta blockers before performances to help their nerves (Fishbein et al., 1987).

Does propranolol for anxiety work?

In general, the evidence for its use in the treatment of anxiety disorders is poor.

The reason being that it only affects the physical symptoms for a short period.

It does not affect the psychological symptoms of anxiety.

In other words: it stops your heart beating fast, but does not reduce the rush of anxious thoughts through your brain.

People who regularly use beta blockers like propranolol for anxiety can find they become reliant on them.

The research on propranolol for anxiety

Propranolol for anxiety is often prescribed ‘off-label’, despite little evidence of its long-term effectiveness.

A recent review of the research concluded that there were few studies of its effectiveness and little evidence it helped in treating anxiety disorders.

The study’s authors concluded that:

“…the quality of evidence for the efficacy of propranolol at present is insufficient to support the routine use of propranolol in the treatment of any of the anxiety disorders.”

Research that has been done has tested propranolol for anxiety against benzodiazepines and placebos.

They found…

“…no statistical difference between the effects of propranolol and benzodiazepines on anxiety and panic attack frequency.
In addition, four […] trials failed to show solid evidence on the therapeutic effect of propranolol in patients with dental phobia, animal-type specific phobia, and social phobia.
No RCTs were available on the effects of propranolol in the treatment of any of other anxiety disorders (e.g. generalised anxiety disorder, obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD), separation anxiety disorder, or selective mutism.”

The study was published in the Journal of Psychopharmacology (Steenen et al., 2016).

→ Read more about PsyBlog’s anxiety ebook: “The Anxiety Plan: 42 Strategies For Worry, Phobias, OCD and Panic”

What Is Anxiety? Discover The Symptoms, Causes And Best Treatments

It can be hard to tell what is anxiety and whether it needs treatment.

Anxiety is a sense of uneasiness, concern or agitation that varies from mild to severe.

At the milder end, it is vague and starts to make you feel unsettled, jumpy and worried.

Towards the more severe end it provokes inner turmoil, feelings of dread and can have a serious impact on everyday life.

What is anxiety?

Everyone experiences anxiety to some degree and sometimes these responses are severe.

Examinations, medical procedures, public speaking and so on can lead to anxiety and loss of sleep.

How anxiety impacts your everyday life determines whether it is a ‘disorder’ or ‘regular’ anxiety.

Anxiety that causes persistent problems with sleeping or seriously interferes with everyday life could require some treatment.

Some people get very anxious over things which others would not consider that anxiety-provoking.

If you are worrying all the time or regularly experiencing unpleasant physical and psychological symptoms, then this could be a sign of something deeper.

Deep-rooted anxiety often leads to avoidance of the anxiety-provoking object or situation.

This type of anxiety can consistently stop you from doing the things you might otherwise like to do.

Anxiety symptoms

Anxiety typically has both psychological and physical symptoms.

Here are some typical psychological symptoms:

Feeling nervous and tense.
Finding it hard to concentrate and settle down.
Thinking a lot of negative thoughts.
Experiencing a sense of dread that something horrible is about to happen.
Sensation of the the mind being filled with thoughts rushing through it.

Physical symptoms could include:

Problems sleeping.
Feeling sick.
A churning stomach.
Breathing heavily.
Sweating.
Hot flashes.
Muscle tension and headaches.

This is not a completely list, people report many different types of physical and psychological symptoms.

Severe anxiety is also linked to depression, insomnia and misusing drugs.

It can lead to problems at work and in relationships and difficulty in enjoying everyday, pleasurable pursuits.

Causes of anxiety

There are a large range of factors that could influence whether you experience anxiety as a mental health problem.

Here are some possible causes:

Anxious personality. Some people are genetically prone to anxiety.
Childhood experiences. Bullying, hostile parents or other frightening experiences during childhood.
Long-term health problems like chronic pain are linked to anxiety.
Everyday habits such as working long hours, financial or housing problems and stress can cause anxiety.

Often, chronic anxiety stems from a variety of causes specific to your lifestyle, situation and genetics mixed together.

Types of anxiety disorders

Anxiety disorders come in various types.

These are some of the main ones:

Generalised anxiety and worry: constantly worrying about a wide range of issues, rather than something specific.
Social phobia: fear of other people and social interactions. This can stop people with social phobia from getting the things they want: relationships, promotions or just human contact in general.
Specific phobias: fears of things like the environment, snakes, spiders, enclosed spaces, blood, injections and so on.
Panic: involves the experience of intense fear, including a very strong physical reaction and the sensation of being about to die or losing complete mental control.
OCD: people experience intrusive thoughts that are repulsive to them and also possibly engaging in repetitive behaviours.

What is anxiety therapy?

Psychological therapies are very effective for anxiety disorders.

In particular, cognitive-behavioural therapy (CBT) has been found to help many types of anxiety disorders.

Dr Jeremy Dean’s latest book “The Anxiety Plan” is based on the principles of CBT and provides 42 strategies for dealing with anxiety.

Other ways of managing anxiety yourself include:

Support groups.
Eating healthily.
Complementary therapies like yoga and meditation.
Exercise.

Understandably, some people find self-help too difficult.

If so, psychologists, psychiatrists and other mental health professionals can provide the psychological support required.

What is anxiety medication?

Along with psychological therapies, people are often prescribed medications.

Some people find they need medication, but bear in mind that:

It can be difficult to come off medications.
Medications have all sorts of side-effects.
If possible, it is better to learn to deal with anxiety using internal, psychological resources.

Four types of medication are:

Antidepressants. Make you feel calmer, but there are side-effects.
Beta-blockers. Reduce the physical symptoms of anxiety, such as a racing heart and shaking hands. However, they do not change the psychological symptoms.
Tranquillisers. Should only be used in the short-term until you can start therapy or some other treatment.
Pregabalin (Lyrica). This is an anticonvulsant drug sometimes prescribed for anxiety.

Even if you do decide to take medication, also consider self-help options at the same time as these can work better in the long-run.

→ Get Dr Jeremy Dean’s new anxiety ebook.

Psychotherapy Works Best In The Morning

Psychotherapy for those experiencing anxiety works best at particular time of the day.

Psychotherapy works best in the morning, new research finds.

It is partly down to higher cortisol levels in the morning, the study suggests.

People in the study had agoraphobia and panic disorder.

Treatments for anxiety disorders often involve exposure to the phobic situation or object.

With exposure people can learn that their worst fears do not materialise.

Dr Meuret, a clinical psychologist and the study’s first author, said:

“For example, a patient may think that standing in an elevator could cause him or her to lose control or faint, suffocate, or may create physical symptoms that would be intolerable.
By having them stand in an elevator for a prolonged time, the patient learns that their feared outcome does not occur, despite high levels of anxiety.
We call this corrective learning.”

The results showed that people had more success overcoming their fears when tackled in the morning.

Dr Meuret said:

“The hormone cortisol is thought to facilitate fear extinction in certain therapeutic situations.
Drugs to enhance fear extinction are being investigated, but they can be difficult to administer and have yielded mixed results.
The findings of our study promote taking advantage of two simple and naturally occurring agents – our own cortisol and time of day.”

Cortisol levels are likely not the only factor.

Other ways to explain the effect include:

sleep quality and quantity,
natural circadian rhythms,
memory and learning changes,
and attentional control.

Dr Meuret said:

“Notably, higher cortisol was related to greater reductions in threat appraisal, perceived control and panic symptom severity at the next session, and that was the case over-and-above the effects of time-of-day, with large effect sizes.”

The study was published in the journal Psychoneuroendocrinology (Meuret et al., 2016).

Young Women Have Highest Depression And Self-Harm Risk

Only 3% are receiving psychological therapy, the survey of 17,000 found.

Only 3% are receiving psychological therapy, the survey of 17,000 found.

Young women are at the greatest risk of common mental health problems, new research finds.

One in four young women have self-harmed, usually by cutting themselves, according to the UK survey, compared with 10% of young men.

One-fifth of young women had experienced common mental disorders problems.

Women of all ages were much more likely to report severe mental health problems than men.

Around one in eight men reported a common mental health disorder.

A comparison with previous surveys suggests that young women’s mental health is getting worse, while young men’s may be improving.

10% taking medication

Overall, the survey found that one in six adults in England met the criteria for a common mental disorder, like anxiety and depression.

The most common form of treatment people used was medication, taken by 10% of those interviewed.

Just 3% received psychological therapy.

Only one-third of people, though, received any treatment at all for their condition — although treatment levels have increased from one-quarter almost a decade ago.

Stephen Buckley, head of information at the Mind charity, said:

‘Young people are coming of working age in times of economic uncertainty, they’re more likely to experience issues associated with debt, unemployment and poverty, and they are up against increasing social and environmental pressures, all of which affect well-being.’

Mr Buckley blamed the rise on social media:

“Since the last data was released in 2009, we’ve seen a surge in the use of social media.
While social media can promote good mental health and can help people feel less isolated, it also comes with some risks.
Its instantaneous and anonymous nature means it’s easy for people to make hasty and sometimes ill-advised comments that can negatively affect other people’s mental health.
It’s important to avoid sites that are likely to trigger negative feelings and/or behaviour and to take a break from social media if you’re feeling vulnerable.”

The study was carried out by NHS Digital (NHS, 2016).

This Legal Drug Could Protect Brain From Ageing

Could cigarettes contain the latest clue to an anti-ageing drug?

Could cigarettes contain the latest clue to an anti-ageing drug?

Nicotine could help to protect the brain from Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease, new research finds.

The substance — when given independently from tobacco — could help to protect the ageing brain.

The neuroprotective effect of nicotine could be down to its well-known quality of reducing appetite.

For the study, the researchers gave varying levels of nicotine to mice in their drinking water.

There was no evidence, though, that it caused anxiety, which the researchers were concerned would be the case.

Dr Ursula Winzer-Serhan, who led the research, said:

“Some people say that nicotine decreases anxiety, which is why people smoke, but others say it increases anxiety.
The last thing you would want in a drug that is given chronically would be a negative change in behavior.
Luckily, we didn’t find any evidence of anxiety: Only two measures showed any effect even with high levels of nicotine, and if anything, nicotine made animal models less anxious.”

The mice given the highest levels of nicotine ate the least and gained the least weight.

Dr Winzer-Serhan cautioned:

“I want to make it very clear that we’re not encouraging people to smoke.
Even if these weren’t very preliminary results, smoking results in so many health problems that any possible benefit of the nicotine would be more than cancelled out.
However, smoking is only one possible route of administration of the drug, and our work shows that we shouldn’t write-off nicotine completely.”

The next step for the researchers is to test whether nicotine has a an anti-ageing effect.

Dr Winzer-Serhan said:

“Although the results are intriguing, we would need large-scale clinical trials before suggesting anyone change their behavior.
At the end of the day, we haven’t proven that this addictive drug is safe — and it certainly isn’t during childhood or adolescence — or that the benefits outweigh the potential risks.”

The study was published in the Journal of Toxicology (Huang et al., 2016).

The Attitude To Exercise That Benefits Mind And Body To Max

Greatest psychological and neurophysiological benefits seen from exercise with this attitude.

Greatest psychological and neurophysiological benefits seen from exercise with this attitude.

People gain the greatest psychological and neurophysiological benefit when they really believe in exercise, new research finds.

A positive attitude towards sport and exercise is a self-fulling prophecy, explained the study’s first author Mr Hendrik Mothes:

“The results demonstrate that our belief in how much we will benefit from physical activity has a considerable effect on our well-being in the manner of a self-fulfilling prophecy.”

For the study 76 people exercised for 30 minutes on a stationary bicycle.

All saw one of two videos beforehand.

The first praised the positive effects of cycling, the second did not.

The results showed that people who already had positive views of exercise enjoyed the exercise more, had lower anxiety afterwards and better mood.

The video that was positive about cycling had the same effect.

The researchers also made recordings of the electrical activity in the brain

These revealed that those with positive expectations about exercise or who had seen the video were more relaxed on a neuronal level.

Mr Mothes said:

“Beliefs and expectations could possibly have long-term consequences, for instance on our motivation to engage in sports.
They can be a determining factor on whether we can rouse ourselves to go jogging again next time or decide instead to stay at home on the couch.”

Appreciate what you already do

Beliefs are a powerful thing: consider a 2007 study on 84 hotel attendants (Crum et al., 2007).

Some were encouraged to appreciate how much exercise they were already doing as part of their job.

The rest were told nothing.

Incredibly, the average weight of those encouraged to appreciate the exercise they already did reduced from 145.5 lbs to 143.72 lbs.

Over the same period the rest showed no significant change.

That’s like dropping a bag of sugar. In four weeks. With no additional exercise.

Now that’s the power of the mind-body link right there, measured in pounds and ounces.

The new study was published in the Journal of Behavioral Medicine (Mothes et al., 2016).

Image credit: marcovdz

6 Ways Being Connected To Nature Reduces Anxiety

Nature provides people ‘a sense of renewal’ which lowers anxiety, new research finds.

Nature provides people ‘a sense of renewal’ which lowers anxiety, new research finds.

People who feel connected to nature have lower levels of anxiety, recent research finds.

Nature seems to provide people an escape from busy urban environments — a way to let their minds recover.

It may be that it is not even necessary to be in nature to get the benefit, as long as one feels connected to it.

For the research people were asked about what nature meant to them.

Here are six of the themes that emerged when people talked about what nature gave to them:

1. Relaxation

The authors explain:

“…nature induced relaxation and acted as a relief from stress.
Nature was also described as being responsible for feelings of peace and calm.
Some participants indicated that nature provided a sense of renewal, was re-grounding, and created feelings of fulfilment.”

2. Time out

The authors explain:

“…nature providing a sense of being away from the everyday, escape, and refuge.
Participants saw being in nature as being away from the urban environment and providing a sense of freedom.”

3. Enjoyment

People described how being in nature gave them a sense of enjoyment, joy, happiness and contentment.

4. Connection

More than pure enjoyment, though, being in nature gave people the sense of…

“…being connected to something larger and revolved around feeling immersed, being part of something bigger, at one with, or connecting with what was important.
Being connected to nature was occasionally spoken about in terms of being at one with the world which also had secondary benefits of feeling peaceful.”

5. Sensory engagement

A spiritual aspect was also important, the authors write:

“…nature was stimulating to the senses and was associated with ideas of beauty
This often included a spiritual aspect or a sense of the flawlessness of nature.
Nature allowed them to breathe fresh air, experience natural elements, such as sunshine, and find space to be alone.”

6. Healthy perspective

People reported that…

“…nature was responsible for wellbeing and positive health.
Those participants who mentioned the health benefits of nature considered that nature was very important to their everyday lives, their mental health, overall wellbeing, and fitness.”

The study was published in the Journal of Health Psychology (Martyn & Brymer, 2016).