Can Generalized Anxiety Disorder Be Overcome?

Your heart is pounding so loud that you can't hear the voice of the person speaking to you. Your body trembles, and you wonder if you are about to faint. Suddenly a feeling of dread washes over you, taking every rational thought from your mind, like the ocean sweeping sand from the shore. Your eyes dart about the room looking for a way of escape. Somehow you form the words to excuse yourself and you quickly exit through the nearest door. Once outside, you wonder if these panic attacks will ever end, or if you will ever have a normal life. You think it is impossible, but uncontrollable anxiety does not have to overtake your life.

As a teen and into my mid-twenties, I suffered from Generalized Anxiety Disorder, or G.A.D., a psychiatric condition defined by excessive worry and often accompanied by panic attacks ("Do you worry too much?", 2007, p. 6). Everyone experiences normal anxiety in their life, like the nervousness felt before giving a speech, taking a Drivers-Ed test, or moving to a new town. People with G.A.D., however, are faced with extreme, often unrealistic, fears. Picture yourself accidentally cutting someone off in traffic. Within a few moments the act is a distant memory. A G.A.D. sufferer may dwell on those ten seconds for the rest of their day, creating all sorts of possible futures in their mind. They may worry uncontrollably that the person they cut off was a police officer who will track them down and arrest them. They will typically recognize that this is an unlikely, even absurd, worry but can do little to suppress it ("Anxiety Disorders", 2006, ¶51).

Like others who suffer from this condition, I went untreated for years, knowing that something was wrong, but feeling alone. I thought I was just wired wrong and had a difficult time talking about it. The problem is that, left untreated, anxiety can take over your life. During high school, when most of my friends were working, I could not get past my fears to apply for a job. I worked from home, helping my parents with their business, until I was 21. I finally forced myself to apply for a retail position, and although I did well with the company, each day was a struggle. Anxiety began eating at me like a cancer. I avoided going to college and my relationships suffered. I endured migraine headaches, body aches and fatigue, all common side-effects of G.A.D. ("Do you worry too much," 2007, p. 6).

For years I was tortured by these problems, not knowing that simple, effective treatments were available. Mild anxiety can be treated with relaxation techniques. For moderate anxiety, cognitive behavioral therapy may help. For instance, imagine a woman who is suffering from anxiety. She is in the midst of imagining some future event, thinking of everything that could go wrong, no matter how unlikely. Her physiological responses are starting to speed up as adrenaline is released and she is on her way to a full blown panic attack. Instead of letting this anxiety ridden thought process continue its full course, she employs the cognitive behavioral technique her therapist has taught her. She closes her eyes and takes several deep breaths. Then she listens to the sounds around her. She hears the television in the next room, a car stopping at the corner outside, and the hum from her refrigerator. She lets herself feel her surroundings. She puts her hand on the cool marble of her kitchen counter, she digs her toes into the area rug under her feet, feeling its soft Berber loops. Finally, she opens her eyes and looks around. She sees the bright light illuminating the island and the shadows cast from the barstools beside it. Using all of her senses, she has brought herself back to the present moment and her worries about the future have faded.

This type of mental exercise alone may not work for everyone; a combination of treatments may be necessary. For example, when I finally sought help my therapist prescribed a mild anti-depressant to alleviate some of my symptoms until I could master techniques like mindfulness meditation, breathing exercises, and positive self-talk.

Once I learned that I was not alone in my struggle and that there was help available, my life drastically changed. My relationships became stronger and I developed more confidence. I enrolled in college and have even been called a leader in one of my courses. The migraines and fatigue are gone and I feel an enormous sense of release. I am finally free from the terror that once held me captive. I am a living testament that the horror of uncontrollable anxiety does not have to be a way of life; through proper treatment it can be conquered!
References

Anxiety disorders. (2006) National Institute of Mental Health. Retrieved May 19, 2007, from http://www.nimh.nih.gov/publicat/anxiety.cfm

Do you worry too much?. (2007) Harvard Health Letter, 32(3), 6-7. Retrieved May 19, 2007, from Academic Search Premiere database.