Anxiety

1. Anxiety Disorders
Mental Health Nursing-NUR 413
Lecture 8

2. Outline
 What is Anxiety?
 What are the different types of anxiety
disorders?
 What are the causes?
 What are the treatments?

3. Anxiety Disorders
 Anxiety is a feeling of apprehension or fear. The source of
this uneasiness is not always known or recognized.
 Anxiety disorders are a group of psychiatric conditions that
involve excessive anxiety.
 Anxiety may be differentiated from fear in that the former
is an emotional process, whereas fear is cognitive.
 More common in women than men
 Also occurs in children

4. Anxiety Disorders (cont.)
 Anxiety disorders most common type of all psychiatric
illnesses
 Anxiety provides the motivation for achievement, a
necessary force for survival.
 May be considered abnormal if
 Anxiety is out of proportion to the situation that is
creating it
 Anxiety interferes with social, occupational, or
other important areas of functioning

5. Types of Anxiety Disorders
 Generalized anxiety disorder
 Panic Disorder
 Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder
 Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
 Social Phobias
 Specific Phobias

6. Generalized anxiety disorder
 Feelings of constant apprehension and a
general tendency to be worried about any areas
of life (for example, health, work, and finances).
 This constant worry affects daily functioning and
can cause physical symptoms.

7. Panic disorder
Characterized by recurrent panic attacks,
onset of which are unpredictable,
 Symptoms: sweating, palpitations, shortness
of breath, chest pain, dizziness, feeling light-
headed, abdominal pains and a fear of losing
control or dying.

8. Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD)
 Recurrent obsessions (thoughts) or compulsions
(actions) that are severe enough to be time-
consuming or to cause marked distress or significant
impairment
Examples:
 Cleaning. Repeatedly washing their hands, showering, or
constantly cleaning their home
 Checking. Individuals may check several or even
hundreds of times to make sure that doors are locked

9. Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
 A reaction to a serious traumatic event (such
as a car accident, natural disaster, physical
abuse or sexual abuse) in which the person
was extremely afraid or seriously injured.

10. Social Phobias
 Excessive fear of situations in which the person
might do something embarrassing or be
evaluated negatively by others
 Examples:
public speaking
attending and participating in class
meeting new people
eating, drinking, or writing in public
using public bathrooms
shopping

11. Specific Phobias
 Marked, persistent, and excessive or unreasonable
fear when in the presence of, or when anticipating,
an encounter with a specific object or situation
 Examples:
Animal type. ex: fear of spiders
Natural environment type. ex: fear of water
Blood injection, injury type. ex: fear of blood

12. Causes of anxiety disorders
 Caused by a combination of biological, psychological
and social factors.
 May develop as a result of a major stressor such as
the death of a loved one, divorce and loss of a job
 There also appears to be a major genetic component

13. Treatment Modalities
 Individual psychotherapy
 Cognitive therapy
 Group/family therapy
 Psychopharmacology
 Antidepressants
 Anxiolytics
 Antihypertensive
 Others