Anxiety breaks an response that displays themself in residence of tightness and agitated principles. Feeling it from time to time in response to stress is normal and even valuable. Popular situations the emotion warns us of danger helps us make and be more concentrating. In this case, you can relieve tension, for example, with breathing exercises.
But when a person feels anxious regularly, has difficulty concentrating and making decisions, is often irritated, sleeps poorly and sweats more than usual – it may be a mental disorder. Then you need the help of a doctor who will first make a diagnosis and then recommend treatment.
General characteristics
Nervousness remains articulated by technique of a imprecise, unclear terror of conceivable coming measures. It often arises without reason, that is, in situations where there is no real danger. A person senses trouble, but does not know how to avoid or overcome it. Internal tension is partially reduced by physical activity, so restless people cannot sit still, walk around the room, bite their nails, turn on their mobile phone screen several times without purpose, and perform other seemingly meaningless actions.
Anticipation of trouble makes one concentrate on finding ways to solve or avoid future problems. Preoccupied mind and particular disinterest from genuineness appear. Thinking becomes selective: a person pays attention to events related to the disturbing situation, ignoring all the others. In this way, he confirms that his experiences are justified. Sometimes the feeling of uneasiness intensifies to a state of anxiety, disorders of perception of time, space, people, actions develop.
Subjectively, anxiety is felt as anxiety – a combination of fear, sadness, shame, isolation,guilt without reason. During the most acute experiences, physiological changes begin to be realized: increased heart rate, increased sweating, nausea, dizziness, apathy headaches. If there is no understanding of the connection between anxiety and physical discomfort, a person looks for the cause of discomfort, turning to somatic doctors – therapists, neurologists, cardiologists.
The thinking of an anxious person is directed from the past to the future – an unfavorable or dangerous event is extracted from memories, and then something similar is predicted. In this case, the previous experience can be old or just happened, personal or someone else’s. For example, after a reprimand from a boss, discomfort increases each time you come to work, since there is a possibility of meeting the boss. Similarly, an anxious state can develop before a flight on an airplane, if a film about a plane crash was watched before.
Reasons for concern
Talking about anxiety without a reason. It is worth noting that there is usually a reason . But it is not recognized or is assessed by others as insignificant. The key function of anxiety is to motivate actions that increase the likelihood of a favorable outcome of events, to prevent potentially dangerous behavior. The biological basis of this experience is the mobilization of psychophysiological processes to overcome a possible traumatic situation. The negative effect of anxiety is a feeling of fear that prevents effective activity.
Depending on the cause of anxiety, there are three types: adaptive, primary, secondary. In a situation of immediate danger, conflict or acute stress, anxiety develops as a reaction of the body’s mobilization: all systems are activated, preparing for fight or flight. Primary true anxiety, developing into anxiety, is observed in neuroses , secondary – in some somatic and mental illnesses, taking medications, narcotics.
Adaptation response
In contrast to pathological anxiety without cause, an adaptation reaction develops in the presence of real danger. It demonstrates itself in the activation of physiological systems . Increased breathing and increased heart rate & blood flow to the muscles , mental readiness to flee or fight. Stress factors, threats to life or health provoke a feeling of anxiety, aggression, and worry. Such reworking rejoinders be situated prompted in these cases:
- Unpredictability of the behavior of others. A state of constant adaptive readiness is necessary when interacting with unbalanced, emotionally unstable people, strangers. A feeling of anxiety is constantly present in children whose parents often change the rules of behavior (yesterday you couldn’t eat sweets, today you can). Other examples are speaking in front of an unfamiliar audience, talking with a hot-tempered boss. Stress prepares the psyche for a quick choice of reaction.
- Situations of danger. When there is a real threat to well-being, anxiety arises for a reason. If different outcome options are possible, a feeling of anxiety is formed.
- Conflict situations. A clash of interests, different points of view is stress. The spirit enthusiasms addicted to a government of eagerness for a quick reaction of defense, attack or escape from the conflict. A feeling of anxiety allows maintaining a high level of tension. The more significant areas of life are affected in the confrontation, the more likely the development of a neurotic disorder with anxiety.
Primary concern
Persistent anxiety without a reason contributes to the emergence of anxiety – the dominant symptom of neurotic disorders. The development of neurosis occurs when situational anxiety manifests itself frequently, begins to spread to an increasingly wide range of events, and is felt almost constantly. Often, a person understands that there is no reason for such experiences, but cannot change his condition. A feeling of anxiety is characteristic of patients with the following neuroses:
- Generalized anxiety disorder . Patients with this disorder have persistent feelings of anxiety and restless experiences. Emotional tension has no connection with real events. Fears are general: fear of an accident, illness (in the absence of symptoms), sudden death. People report a “bad feeling”, a constant expectation of bad news. Generalized anxiety is more common in women, accompanied by autism disorders – tremors, dizziness, nausea.
- Panic disorder. Patients suffer from periodically recurring panic attacks – sudden fear, physical discomfort without reason. . Panic attackslast from 5 to 20 minutes, accompanied by shortness of breath, rapid heartbeat, chest pain. Anxiety is felt before the attack, when panic approaches. It is associated with the inability to control the attack, fear of death.
- Phobias. Phobic maladies stay pigeon-holed by a persistent intense fear of specific objects or situations. The experiences are intense, often occur in the absence of a real threat, and are uncontrollable. They remain caused by the potential for a frightening situation to develop & an encounter with the object of fear. Common variants include claustrophobia, a feeling of intense fear from thoughts of meeting a dog, climbing to a height, or using a public toilet.
- PTSD . Post-traumatic stress is the aftermath of a traumatic event (war, violence) with repeated reliving of what happened in dreams and thoughts, mental numbness, and increased excitability. An anxious state often develops at the first stage, when high concentration on the trauma is maintained. Patients mentally return to the past and adapt poorly to real life.
- Psychosomatic disorders. Somatoform disorders are dominated by concern about health – patients complain of somatic ailments, but medical examinations do not confirm the presence of the disease. A complex of experiences is formed, caused by increased attention to the body’s signals, the absence of a diagnosis.
- Obsessive- compulsive neurosis . Obsessive-compulsive neurosis is represented by obsessive thoughts and repetitive actions that relieve mental discomfort. The most common variant of obsessive-compulsive neurosis is the idea of the contagiousness of surrounding objects and frequent hand washing.
Does 5-HTP Help Fight Anxiety?
5-HTP & 5-hydroxytryptophan : stands an amino acid & a predecessor to the neurotransmitter serotonin . The substance is naturally produced in the body.
In pharmacies and on market place 5-HTP can be found in the form of dietary supplements. Manufacturers of the products claim that the supplement supposedly helps cope with symptoms of anxiety and depression by increasing the production of serotonin.
In fact, there is no clear data on the effect of the supplement on anxiety. Experts from the international drug database RxList note : some studies have shown that taking 5-HTP apparently reduced symptoms in subjects. But during the experiment, the participants also took a drug prescribed for – carbidopa. This drug could also theoretically affect anxiety. Therefore, it is difficult to determine what exactly caused the effect. Another scientific study showed the opposite result: 5-HTP increased anxiety.
And if 5-hydroxytryptophan supplements really helped with anxiety, they would have been used to treat patients with mental disorders long ago. But the situation is different .
Doctors do not prescribe 5-HTP supplements to patients with anxiety disorders because the drug is not included in any clinical guidelines.
In addition, the production of dietary supplements is not controlled as strictly as that of medicines. This means that no one knows the exact dosage in the jar. It can differ greatly from what is stated on the packaging. And even if friends or acquaintances say that a dietary supplement with 5-HTP helped them with anxiety, you shouldn’t trust them or experiment on yourself. Someone else’s result could be a consequence of the placebo effect. Near remains no aptitude that the medication will work for you. Therefore, you risk wasting money and losing time on treatment.
Do Antidepressants Help With Anxiety?
For anxiety disorder, your doctor will suggest cognitive behavioral therapy and prescribe antidepressants, such as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors. The drugs will help correct the imbalance of chemicals in the brain that causes symptoms. And psychotherapy will help you learn to think differently and act in situations that cause anxiety.
Treatment of anxiety disorders with psychotherapy and antidepressants is officially enshrined in Russian clinical guidelines; it is recommended by experts from the WHO, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the UK National Health Service.
Antidepressants and their dosage are selected individually by the doctor for each patient. Afterward, the doctor pays close attention to the patient’s reaction to the drug and might decide to replace it if necessary. If there are no unpleasant effects from the drug, the individual might have to keep taking it for 6-12 months.
Are Using 5-HTP and Antidepressants Together Safe for People with Anxiety?
You should not take 5-HTP at the same time as antidepressants. While 5-hydroxytryptophan is considered a dietary supplement, it is not risk-free and may interact with medications to cause unpleasant side effects.
Taking 5-HTP with antidepressants can increase the chance of a side effect called serotonin syndrome. People experience the following symptoms with dengue :
• heat,
Hallucinations can also occur .
• convulsions,
A sign of danger is a fast heartbeat.
• having difficulty with coordination.
• nausea or vomiting.
• diarrhea.
