Anxiety "The Stepchild"
Anxiety disorders are serious medical illnesses that affect approximately 19 million American adults. These disorders fill people's lives with overwhelming anxiety and fear. Unlike the relatively mild, brief anxiety caused by a stressful event such as a business presentation or a first date, anxiety disorders are chronic, relentless, and can grow progressively worse if not treated.
Considering the prevalence and disabling effects of anxiety disorders, we wanted to devote some energy to this diagnostic category. Subjectively, it seems that anxiety disorders are generally regarded as the stepchild to depression. This seems the case in our clinical experience and in terms of societal awareness. There have been some pharmaceutical advertisements on television promoting Paxil and it’s positive outcomes treating social anxiety and in various medical and mental health trade journals you will find articles touting current research or new medications related to the treatment of anxiety disorders, but in the larger scope of increasing public-awareness clearly much more is written about depression, the symptoms, the individual and social effects and the various and emerging treatments for that illness. Not to minimize the seriousness of depression; in any given 1-year period, 9.5 percent of the population, or about 18.8 million American adults, suffer from a depressive illness. And to that end, we applaud all that is and has been done to understand and combat this illness.
NIMH (National Institute of Mental Health) compiles statistics on illness such as depression and anxiety. On face value, the statistical prevalence of anxiety disorders vs. depressive disorders is nearly equal (19 million vs. 18.8 million), respectively. If we “breakdown” the larger category of anxiety disorders, not unlike depressive disorders, we can begin to see more specifically the types and significance of each.
Specific phobias affect an estimated 6.3 million adult Americans and are twice as common in women as in men. A specific phobia is an intense fear of something that poses little or no actual danger. Some of the more common specific phobias are centered on closed-in places, heights, escalators, tunnels, highway driving, water, flying, dogs, and injuries involving blood.
Social phobias affect about 5.3 million adult Americans. Women and men are equally likely to develop social phobia. Social phobia, also called social anxiety disorder, involves overwhelming anxiety and excessive self-consciousness in everyday social situations.
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) affects about 5.2 million adult Americans. Women are more likely than men to develop PTSD. Post-traumatic stress disorder is a debilitating condition that can develop following a terrifying event. Often, people with PTSD have persistent frightening thoughts and memories of their ordeal and feel emotionally numb, especially with people they were once close to.
Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) affects about 4 million adult Americans and about twice as many women as men. Generalized anxiety disorder is much more than the normal anxiety people experience day to day. It's chronic and fills one's day with exaggerated worry and tension, even though there is little or nothing to provoke it.
Obsession-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) afflicts about 3.3 million adult Americans. It strikes men and women in approximately equal number. Obsessive-compulsive disorder, or OCD, involves anxious thoughts or rituals you feel you can't control. If you have OCD, you may be plagued by persistent, unwelcome thoughts or images, or by the urgent need to engage in certain rituals.
Considering the prevalence and disabling effects of anxiety disorders, we wanted to devote some energy to this diagnostic category. Subjectively, it seems that anxiety disorders are generally regarded as the stepchild to depression. This seems the case in our clinical experience and in terms of societal awareness. There have been some pharmaceutical advertisements on television promoting Paxil and it’s positive outcomes treating social anxiety and in various medical and mental health trade journals you will find articles touting current research or new medications related to the treatment of anxiety disorders, but in the larger scope of increasing public-awareness clearly much more is written about depression, the symptoms, the individual and social effects and the various and emerging treatments for that illness. Not to minimize the seriousness of depression; in any given 1-year period, 9.5 percent of the population, or about 18.8 million American adults, suffer from a depressive illness. And to that end, we applaud all that is and has been done to understand and combat this illness.
NIMH (National Institute of Mental Health) compiles statistics on illness such as depression and anxiety. On face value, the statistical prevalence of anxiety disorders vs. depressive disorders is nearly equal (19 million vs. 18.8 million), respectively. If we “breakdown” the larger category of anxiety disorders, not unlike depressive disorders, we can begin to see more specifically the types and significance of each.
Specific phobias affect an estimated 6.3 million adult Americans and are twice as common in women as in men. A specific phobia is an intense fear of something that poses little or no actual danger. Some of the more common specific phobias are centered on closed-in places, heights, escalators, tunnels, highway driving, water, flying, dogs, and injuries involving blood.
Social phobias affect about 5.3 million adult Americans. Women and men are equally likely to develop social phobia. Social phobia, also called social anxiety disorder, involves overwhelming anxiety and excessive self-consciousness in everyday social situations.
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) affects about 5.2 million adult Americans. Women are more likely than men to develop PTSD. Post-traumatic stress disorder is a debilitating condition that can develop following a terrifying event. Often, people with PTSD have persistent frightening thoughts and memories of their ordeal and feel emotionally numb, especially with people they were once close to.
Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) affects about 4 million adult Americans and about twice as many women as men. Generalized anxiety disorder is much more than the normal anxiety people experience day to day. It's chronic and fills one's day with exaggerated worry and tension, even though there is little or nothing to provoke it.
Obsession-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) afflicts about 3.3 million adult Americans. It strikes men and women in approximately equal number. Obsessive-compulsive disorder, or OCD, involves anxious thoughts or rituals you feel you can't control. If you have OCD, you may be plagued by persistent, unwelcome thoughts or images, or by the urgent need to engage in certain rituals.
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