2: Anxiety Disorders Flashcards
Why is anxiety thought to be normal?
- Xp by most people
- bodily changes are our natural FoF response
What are the 6 different subtypes of anxiety disorder?
- Phobias
- Panic disorder
- GAD
- OCD
- PTSD
- Acute stress disorder
What are the 2 separate categories of phobia?
- Specific phobias
2. Social phobias (AKA Social anxiety disorder)
What is a specific phobia?
- where there is a persistent + excessive fear of a particular object/ situation
What is thought to be the lifetime prevalence of specific phobias?
12-20%
What are the 5 separate subtypes of specific phobias?
- Animals
- Natural environment
- Blood-injection-injuries
- Situational (enclosed space, flying)
- Other types
What is the fear of blood called?
Haematophobia
What is the fear of germs called?
Microphobia
What is the fear of Heights called?
Acrophobia
What is the fear of Snakes called?
Ophidiophobia
What is the fear of Water called?
Aquaphobia
Who seem to be at a greater risk of specific phobias, men or women?/
WOMEN
- animal + situational phobia
- no difference in blood-injection-injuries
Fredrikson et al (1996)
What fears are thought to be the most prevalent?
varies between height, dental + spider
What is a social phobia (social anxiety disorder)?
individual has an intense + persistent fear of being under scrutiny or embarrassing themselves in social situations
- negative opinions of themselves + possible outcome of social situations
What are the most common social phobias (APA, 2011)
- Fear related to meeting new people
- Speaking in public
- Using public bathrooms
What is the lifetime revalance of social phobias?
12.1%
What are safety behaviours?
anxiety relieving strategies employed by those suffering from social phobias
Give examples of social phobias and safety behaviours
- Taking to strangers - babbling - speak quickly, rehearse sentences
- Drinking in front of others - losing control - use both hands + grip tightly
- Eating in public - vomiting - eat small amounts
What are the different way phobias are thought to be aquired?
- Biological
- Preparedness theory
What is the preparedness theory?
- suggests humans have an innate tendency to be afraid of certain objects/ situations that could potentially harm us
- avoiding = better chance of survival
What is a problem with the preparedness theory?
Cannot explain phobias associated with modern living
- fear of elevators/ costumed characters
What other biological theories are there other than preparedness theory?
- relating to heightened sensitivity of brain regions involved in fear network
= Amygdala
= Medinal prefrontal cortex
= Thalamus
What evidence is there to suggest that sharing of negative information can result in phobias/ increased fear (Rachman, 2002)?
children given more negative comments about animals = more likely to fear than neutral/ positive info
Why is Agoraphobia related to panic disorder?
= fear or market place
- but actually fear of having a panic attack in these situations
- more frequent in women
What are the different treatments available for phobias?
- Bio-based
- anitaxniety
- antidepressants - Psychological based
- Emotion
- Cognition
- Behavioural
- CBT
- Psychoeducation
What are the 2 main types of medication used to treat phobias by altering neurotransmitter systems?
- Antianxiety - Anxiolytics
- benzodiazepines - Antidepressants
- SSRI
- good for social phobias
What are the 2 ways in which the physiological reaction produced by fears are treated with (Emotions)?
- Relaxation technique
- muscle tension
- reduced reactivity to phobic stimuli - Breathing techniques
- help control for hyperventilation
- reduce phobic reactivity