Anxiety Disorders
WHAT IS ANXIETY?
Anxiety is a reaction to stress and is an important response to situations in life. Under normal circumstances, anxiety can help to motivate us, allow us to address and prioritize situations, or focus on things important to us. Living with an anxiety disorder means having persistent and excessive fear, stress, worry or anguish over everyday situations. Anxiety can become debilitating and interfere with work, school and interpersonal relationships.
TREATMENT OPTIONS
Medications and mental health counselling are two first-line treatment options for anxiety. Although these can be effective for many, some may not experience relief from their symptoms. In other cases, treatment is initially successful but may lose its effectiveness over time. Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) is a breakthrough treatment shown to be effective in treating symptoms of anxiety. TMS is a drug-free treatment method that, unlike medications, won't build tolerance or lose effectiveness over time.
TMS is still in the FDA-approval process for the treatment of anxiety and is not covered by major insurance solely for this condition. However, anxiety and depression can often be present at the same time. In comorbid cases of anxiety and depression, insurance will often cover treatment.
Contact our office to see what treatment options may be available to you.
SYMPTOMS OF ANXIETY
- Feeling nervous, restless or tense
- Having a sense of impending danger, panic or doom
- Having an increased heart rate
- Breathing rapidly (hyperventilation)
- Sweating
- Trembling
- Feeling weak or tired
- Trouble concentrating or thinking about anything other than the present worry
- Having trouble sleeping
- Experiencing gastrointestinal (GI) problems
- Having difficulty controlling worry
- Having the urge to avoid things that trigger anxiety