Anxiety Disorder Therapy Includes More Than Just Medicines

All of us feel anxious at some time or the other. It is a natural reaction of the body to stress. When you are stressed your body displays stress symptoms such as increased heart beat rate, faster breathing, sweating, numbness of the fingers and toes, palpitations, dizziness, lightheadedness, and so on. It is when these symptoms occur for no visible external cause should one check if one is suffering from anxiety disorder or panic disorder. The two are slightly different though similar disorders and only an experienced psychiatrist will be able to diagnose the exact disorder correctly.

However, whichever disorder you are diagnosed with, you can now go to the next step – that is a cure for your disorder. Do not worry too much as this stress related disorder is prevalent among a large section of the population – and plenty of cures are available. In anxiety disorder therapy apart from medications they prescribe activities that reduce stress. Some such activities that are prescribed include meditation, regular exercise, deep breathing exercises, yoga, Tai Chi, music therapy, and so on. One is also advised to cultivate a hobby and spend more time with loved ones – both family and friends. If one is fond of animals one should spend more time with pets as well. Another great way to reduce stress in modern day life is to learn how to manage time effectively and efficiently. All these steps taken in conjunction with the prescribed medication will help reduce stress and do away with the anxiety disorder.

For panic disorder medications to work effectively they have to be taken regularly under the guidance of a medical practioner until the disorder is cured. Here also stress reducing steps and exercises need to be taken. Along with that counseling of the patient is required. The patient is also taught positive visualization techniques. When the patient is completely cured, the medicines are withdrawn gradually. This means that the dosage is gradually reduced by the doctor. This ensures that there are no withdrawal symptoms. It is essential that this procedure is followed for both panic disorder and anxiety disorder medications. In both cases doctors typically prescribe anti-depressants that should not be withdrawn abruptly.

A person affected with anxiety disorder or panic disorder tries to avoid situations where they fear that the symptoms will occur. This prevents them from leading normal productive lives. These medications and treatments listed above help them to lead normal productive lives. They no longer live in fear of a sudden panic attack. This is of enormous relief to them.

Sometimes, the symptoms recur even after the patient has been fully cured. Such relapsed patients need to be treated again and counseled again as well.

As is clear from the above description, a combination of medicines and stress reduction therapies and exercises are needed to cure a person of anxiety disorder or panic disorder. The key is stress management and the key to stress management is time management. Effective time management principle when applied to a person’s life can drastically reduce stress and the occurrence of disorders such as these.

Regular exercise is also a great mood enhancer and very effective in reducing stress levels apart from its other benefits. A person undergoing a lot of stress in their life should try to simplify their life as much as possible. There are numerous self help guides available on the Net, that tell one how to simplify one’s life and how to say no to unnecessary demands on one’s time and effort.

Learning to delegate effectively is yet another way in which one can reduce stress levels.

To sum up, a person suffering from anxiety disorder or panic disorder should take effective steps to reduce stress by meditating, exercising, doing yoga, managing time more effectively, and by delegating more efficiently. These steps along with regular counseling and regular intake of the prescribed medications can sure one of these disorders. It is best to follow the doctor’s orders in toto, rather than ignore parts of it. This way the cure will be faster and will last forever.

Remember that the patient should stay calm and collected and should not be stressed unnecessarily. The family members of the patient need to be supportive. The patient should be taken in full confidence about the nature of the disorder and what the medicines can hope to achieve. This will result in better compliance from the patient.