Anxiety Treatment

Behavioral Health Services in Northern California

Anxiety Treatment In Chico, CA

Anxiety disorder can affect and interfere with daily life, affecting a number of things like personal health, work, social settings or routine life. According to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America, generalized anxiety disorder affects over 6.8 million adults translating to around 3% of the U.S. population. With professional help and medical treatment, anxiety disorder can be treated with prescription medication or behavioral therapy. Find out what anxiety treatment is best for you with Therapeutic Solutions in Chico, CA.

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What To Know About Anxiety Disorder

There are multiple causes and plenty of co-existing mental health conditions that can potentially be at the root of an anxiety disorder’s development. Because of this, there is no one-size-fits-all treatment option that is an appropriate method for all of them.

The most effective types of anxiety treatments are individually tailored to each patient’s unique circumstances. Most comprehensive care options that behavioral health facilities offer may include proper evidence-based methods, but it is crucial to understand that what may work for one person may not work for another. The importance of choosing the best suitable treatment is a decision that should be made closely and carefully with a doctor and or therapist.

Treatment Options

Whether the issues that someone is struggling with include incapacitating phobias, intense panic attacks, overwhelmingly obsessive thoughts, or constant worries, it should be extremely comforting to know that continuing to live with these increased amounts of anxiety and fear do not have to be permanent. Decades of research and many studies have shown that specific anxiety-based treatments and therapy options are oftentimes found to be the most effective options to improve mental health conditions.

These vital treatment decisions are typically based on the severity of symptoms being experienced and how the anxiety disorder may affect the individual’s ability to function during their regular daily routines. Industry professionals agree that psychotherapy variations and the use of medications are the primary and most frequently used treatments for generalized anxiety.

A little more general information regarding these two treatment options include:

Psyhcotherapy

Psychotherapy, also known as psychological counseling or talk therapy, is a method where the patient works closely with their therapist to decrease the side-effects and other symptoms caused by an anxiety disorder.

Cognitive-behavioral therapy, or CBT, has become the most popular and practical choice for treatment in this category. CBT is primarily a shorter-term therapeutic option designed to teach the patient new specific or unique skills that are meant to directly manage the worrisome thoughts and feelings. During cognitive-behavioral therapy, the goal is for the patient to start feeling comfortable enough to slowly start to participate in situations or activities that they had previously made efforts to avoid because of their anxiety.

A couple of the more commonly used psychotherapy options that are used include:

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Prescription Medications

The different medications that are often written to alleviate an anxiety disorder’s side-effects can typically only be obtained by a written prescription from a licensed healthcare professional. Although most primary care physicians are able to provide an anxiety disorder diagnosis, they may also recommend in some of the more severe cases that the individual consult a psychiatrist to help determine what the best course of action would be for their specific situation.

Below are the most frequently prescribed medications that are used to treat anxiety disorder. As with all other prescription meds, you are encouraged to speak with your doctor about the risks and benefits, along with any possible side-effects that they may cause. They include:

Benzodiazepines

There are some instances where a therapist would recommend, or a doctor would prescribe a medication from the benzodiazepine family to provide the much-needed relief from the anxiety symptoms. This type of medication is used mostly for helping with acute anxiety, typically on a short-term basis.

Benzodiazepines are also known to be addictive and habit-forming. Using these drugs is not a smart choice for individuals who are struggling or who have struggled in the past with drug or alcohol abuse. Common benzodiazepine drugs include:

Antidepressants

An antidepressant is a unique type of medication used to treat clinical depression and moderate to severe anxiety disorder. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) claims that in 2014, approximately 12.7 percent of individuals in the United States aged 12 and older have experience taking some form of antidepressant. A couple of the more common antidepressant medications that are used today include: