What is generalised anxiety disorder (GAD)?

Most people feel anxious and worried from time to time, especially when faced with stressful situations like taking an exam, speaking in public, playing competitive sport or going for a job interview. This sort of anxiety can make you feel alert and focused, helping you get things done faster or perform at your best.

People with GAD, however, feel anxious and worried most of the time, not just in specific stressful situations, and these worries are intense, persistent and interfere with their normal lives. Their worries relate to several aspect of everyday life, including work, health, family and/or financial issues, rather than just one issue. Even minor things such as household chores or being late for an appointment can become the focus of anxiety, leading to uncontrollable worries and a feeling that something terrible will happen.

Distinguishing GAD from other mental health issues

Anxiety is a common symptom of many mental health conditions, like depression and various phobias. GAD is different from these conditions in several ways.

People with depression may occasionally feel anxious, and people who have a phobia worry about one particular thing. But people with GAD worry about a number of different topics over a long period of time (six months or more), or they may not be able to identify the source of their worry.

What are the causes and risk factors for GAD?

• A family history of anxiety

• Recent or prolonged exposure to stressful situations, including personal or family illnesses

• Excessive use of caffeine or tobacco, which can make existing anxiety worse

• Childhood abuse

What are the symptoms of GAD?

• Persistent worrying or anxiety about a number of areas that are out of proportion to the impact of the events

• Overthinking plans and solutions to all possible worst-case outcomes

• Perceiving situations and events as threatening, even when they aren't

• Difficulty handling uncertainty

• Indecisiveness and fear of making the wrong decision

• Inability to set aside or let go of a worry

• Inability to relax, feeling restless, and feeling keyed up or on edge

• Difficulty concentrating, or the feeling that your mind "goes blank"

• Physical signs and symptoms may include:

• Fatigue

• Trouble sleeping

• Muscle tension or muscle aches

• Trembling, feeling twitchy

• Nervousness or being easily startled

• Sweating

• Nausea, diarrhea or irritable bowel syndrome

• Irritability

Symptoms in children and teenagers

Children and teenagers may have similar worries to adults, but also may have excessive worries about:

• Performance at school or sporting events

• Family members' safety

• Being on time (punctuality)

• Earthquakes, nuclear war or other catastrophic events

A child or teen with excessive worry may:

• Feel overly anxious to fit in

• Be a perfectionist

• Redo tasks because they aren't perfect the first time

• Spend excessive time doing homework

• Lack confidence

• Strive for approval

• Require a lot of reassurance about performance

• Have frequent stomachaches or other physical complaints

• Avoid going to school or avoid social situations

Relaxation techniques, meditation, yoga, exercise, and other alternative treatments can help you manage your anxiety, however if self-help doesn't seem to be enough, therapy could be the next step.

A number of types of treatment can help with GAD. Supportive and interpersonal therapy can also be useful. Cognitive behavioral treatment (CBT) has been more researched and specifically targets thoughts, physical symptoms and behaviors including the over-preparation, planning and avoidance that characterizes GAD.

It helps you to understand the nature of anxiety itself, to be less afraid of the presence of anxiety, and to help youe make choices independent of the presence of anxiety.

Other anxiety disorders, depression, or substance abuse often accompany GAD, which rarely occurs alone; co-occurring conditions must also be treated with appropriate therapies.

Look out for my next blog post series 3/5 which will be on Social Anxiety.

With love,

Jacqui Zdrvkovski,

REFERENCES:

http://www.anxietyaustralia.com.au/anxiety-help/anxiety-attacks-anxiety-disorders/

https://www.beyondblue.org.au/the-facts/anxiety/types-of-anxiety/gad