Anxiety Flashcards
neurotransmitters involved in anxiety
< GABA
possibly epi & norepi
causes of anxiety
gentics neurotransmitter imbalance learned response traumatic experiences untreated depression
anxiety disorders
GAD panic disorder specific phobias social phobias OCD PTSD
generalized anxiety disorder
excessive anxiety about everyday problems occuring more days than not for 6+ months with 3+ of the following symptoms: restlessness fatigue difficulty concentrating irritability muscle tension sleep disturbance
GAD
affects twice as many women as men
highest risk between childhood & middle age
panic disorder
main symptom - recurrent panic attacks
3x more common in women
panic attack symptoms
must have 4+: difficulty breating chest pain feeling of terror choking or smothered feeling tingling/numbness fear of losing control/dying dizziness sweating nausea chills/hot flashes
1+ panic attack is followed by 1+ months of:
persistant concern of additional panic attaccks
persistant worry about implications of attack or consequences
significant change in behavior r/t attacks
specific phobias
marked & persistant fear of a particular object of situation
person realizes fear is excessive
combination of avoidance, anticipations, & anxiety interferes with their ability to function
social phobia
fearful of social situations often accompanied by other anxiety disorders or depression
affects men & women equally
usually begins in childhood/early adolescence
obsessions
recurrent & persistant thoughts, impulses, or images experienced as intrusive & inappropriate tha cause marked anxiety or stress
compulsions
repetitive behaviors
PTSD
person has been exposed to a traumatic event in which they:
- experienced, witnessed, or was confronted w/ an event involving actual/threatened death to self/others
- responded w/ fear, helplessness, horror
PTSD criteria
traumatic event is persistantly re-experienced in 1+ ways:
- recurrent/intrusive distressing recollections of the event including images, thoughts, or perceptions
- recurrent dreams of the event
- flashback episodes
- intense distress & physical symptoms at the panic level
- persistant avoidance of stimuli associated w/ trauma
- persistant symptoms of increased arousal
somatoform disorders
physical symptoms w/o a physiological basis
- physical symptoms are precipitated by a psychological event
- symptoms not controllable
- primary & secondary gain
primary gain
anxiety reduction through the focus on physical symptoms - able to deny psychological stress
secondary gain
increased attention to pt, pt is able to relax more
somatization disorder
many physical complaints; often search many years for tx
- onset generally before 30
conversion disorder
impaired physical health w/o a physical problem
pain disorder
experiences pain where there is no physical basis
- disrupts daily activities
hypochondriasis
pt is preoccupied w/ the fear that something is seriously wrong, regardless of negative test results
dissociation
the mind separates certain memories or thoughts from conscious awareness
- they may surface at a later time
dissociative fugue
a person who suddenly travels to another area and has no memory of their identity
DID (multiple personality)
2+ distinct personalities (alters)
inablility to recall info about past, esp traumatic events
