BY: Dr. Prerna Kohli
Quick tips on Managing Anxiety
Anxiety VS Stress
First of all, one needs to understand how anxiety is different from stress. In general, the term Anxiety is used interchangeably with the term Stress. Certainly, there is a difference between anxiety and stress.
Hence, Stress is a response to short term pressure but anxiety is the adverse effect of stress. Unlike stress, anxiety doesn’t have identifiable root. Anxiety tends to persist relatively long time than stress. In contrast, Anxiety is a typical mental disorder and tough to treat.
Anxiety
Likewise, Occasional anxiety is a normal part of life. You might feel anxious when faced with a problem at your work place, before an exam, or making an important decision. Certainly, Anxiety is not only temporary worry or fear but it involves more than temporary worry or fear.
Therefore, an Anxiety disorder can affect a wide area of life such as work performance, social and personal relations etc.
There are some general symptoms for anxiety disorders:
• Panic/Fear
• Change in sleeping pattern
• Nausea
• Dizziness
• Uneasiness
• Not able to calm and cool
• Dry mouth
• Emotional instability
Causes and Management
Moreover, it is yet to find that what are causes anxiety. Many research studies continue to find the answer. Many studies culminated that many things combine to bring anxiety. It can be physiological or brain change, environment change or even it can be your gene.
Specifically, no lab tests are there to identify anxiety but the medical history and face to face interview help to diagnosis it.
Finally to cure anxiety, one must take a help for an expert or experienced psychologist. Who can apply appropriate therapy to treat anxiety disorder? For example, cognitive behavioral therapy is helpful to treat by recognizing and changing thought and behavior which trigger anxiety.
Medication of anti-depression also helps initially but therapy is useful for final results.
Depression VS Anxiety
Depression and anxiety disorders are also different, but evidence shows that people with depression often experience symptoms similar to anxiety disorder, such as problems sleeping and concentrating, difficulty in adjustment, irritability etc.
There is still no evidence one disorder causes the other, but there is clear evidence that many people suffer from both disorders.
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BY: Dr. Prerna Kohli
Treatments for Depression
Fortunately there is treatment for Depression, unfortunately there isn’t one set formula which is applicable for all of those who suffer from depression. The path for recover from depression varies for each individual. Treatments for Depression are available with experienced professional psychologists.
First of all, we need to know what is depression? In a layman’s terms, depression is a strong feeling of helplessness, due to which a person is not able to function normally at home or at work. Technically speaking depression is when a person feel sad, anxious, empty, hopeless, helpless, worthless, guilty, irritable, angry, ashamed or restless. They may lose interest in activities that were once pleasurable, experience loss of appetite or overeating, have problems concentrating, remembering details or making decisions, experience relationship difficulties and may contemplate, attempt or commit suicide. Insomnia, excessive sleeping, fatigue, aches, pains, digestive problems or reduced energy may also be present.
As a result, the treatment for Depression can be broadly classified into two types i.e. Medical treatments or psychological treatments.
Medical Treatments:
In my opinion medical treatments which primarily are anti depression pills and tablets should be a last resort for the patient, and only after all psychological treatment options have been exhausted. As a result, anti depressant medications alter the chemical balance of the body, and have known side effects. Consequently, these should be administered under the guidance of a qualified and experienced psychiatrist and should always be coupled counseling by a an experienced psychologist.
Psychological Treatments:
Talk therapy help you change your mind and thinking processes to re-calibrate your ability to deal with the problems and concerns of day to day life. These Psychological treatments will help your recognize those thoughts and actions which are detrimental to your well-being and to remove them from your life.
The key Psychological Treatments are as follows:
Cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT):
CBT effectively shifts your mind away from negative and un-helping thinking toward a positive, realistic, problem-solving mindset.
Interpersonal therapy (IPT):
When people are facing depression due to problems in relationships. Thus, IPT equips the patient on identifying and resolving those problems in relationships which lead to depression.
Behavior therapy:
It Helps in modifying behaviour to focus on activities that are rewarding, pleasant and satisfying. Thus, steering away from the behaviour that was causing depression.
Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT):
MBCT is a psychological therapy which involves mindfulness meditation. Thus, the patient is taught to use meditation as a form of relaxation and a tool for moving away from those trigger points that lead to depression.
In conclusion, an experienced psychologist will transparently use some or all of these Psychological Therapies to help their patients on the road to recovery.
