Anxiety Disorders Are Common. Here’s What Everyone Should Know About Them

How common are anxiety disorders and are there some populations more at risk than others? What are some symptoms people may have? How often should anxiety screenings occur – and what do they entail? What treatments are available?

CNN Medical Analyst Dr. Leana Wen, an emergency physician and professor of health policy and management at the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health answers these questions in an interview.

How common are anxiety disorders?

Dr. Leana Wen: According to the US Preventive Services Task Force draft recommendations, the lifetime prevalence of anxiety disorders is 26% for men and 40% for women. That means about 1 in 4 men and 4 in 10 women will develop an anxiety disorder at some point during their lifetime.

How do you define anxiety?

Wen: Anxiety is a normal reaction to stress. Everyone feels some level of nervousness to situations in their lives.

Anxiety disorders are characterized by a persistent, excessive fear or anxiety that affects a person’s ability to function. They can lead to people avoiding situations – social engagements, professional functions, appointments or even daily errands for example – and affecting their jobs, education and personal relationships. Anxiety disorders include an array of diagnoses, including generalized anxiety disorder, panic disorder, social anxiety disorder and specific phobias.

Are there some populations who might be at greater risk for anxiety?

Wen: The presence of another mental health condition increases the likelihood of a person developing anxiety disorders. For example, depression and anxiety often overlap. One large study found that 67% of people with depression also had an anxiety disorder. There is an association, too, between anxiety disorders and smoking and alcohol use. Stressful life events such as job loss, bereavement or pregnancy could also increase the likelihood of anxiety disorders.

What are some symptoms of anxiety disorders?

Wen: People with anxiety disorders can experience a wide array of symptoms – being restless and uneasy, feeling a sense of panic or doom, having difficulty concentrating or sleeping and experiencing panic attacks. Panic attacks are characterized by heart palpitations, shortness of breath or cold and tingly hands.

It’s important to note that a lot of people with anxiety disorders may have other physical symptoms.

CNN: How often should doctors be screening patients for anxiety?

Wen: The task force draft recommendations don’t specify. That’s because there isn’t yet enough research to say that anxiety screening needs to occur at a certain time interval. The national task force calls for a “pragmatic approach” that “might include screening all adults who have not been screened previously and using clinical judgment in consideration of risk factors, comorbid conditions and life events to determine if additional screening of high-risk patients is warranted.”

What treatments are available for people diagnosed with an anxiety disorder?

Wen: Like depression and some other mental health diagnoses, anxiety disorders can be treated through pharmacotherapy, psychotherapy, or both. Pharmacotherapy involves medications, while psychotherapy includes cognitive behavioral therapy that is done through working with a psychologist or other mental health specialist. Often, clinicians recommend lifestyle changes too, including meditation, exercise and reducing alcohol intake and smoking.

Wen: The task force specifies that the evidence is strongest in supporting routine anxiety screening in adults under 65.

That does not mean that kids or older adults shouldn’t be screened for anxiety. It’s good practice for clinicians to be on the lookout for anxiety symptoms or concerns in all their patients, regardless of age – and for patients, regardless of age, to raise the possibility of anxiety symptoms to the attention of their healthcare provider.

Excerpted from “Anxiety Disorders Are Common. Here’s What Everyone Should Know About Them” published on CNN online. Read the full article for more details.

Source: CNN | Anxiety Disorders Are Common. Here’s What Everyone Should Know About Them, https://www.cnn.com/2022/10/07/health/anxiety-mental-health-depression-screening-prevention-health-wellness | © 2022 Cable News Network

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