Anxiety disorders Q&As
Published by Bupa's health information team, May 2009.
Answers to questions about anxiety disorders
This section contains answers to common questions about this topic. Questions have been suggested by health professionals, website feedback and requests via email.
- How long will it take for medicines or psychotherapy to improve my anxiety disorder?
- Are there any medicines that can be used to treat anxiety disorders in children and teenagers?
- My GP says I may have trichotillomania. What is it and is there any way to treat it?
How long will it take for medicines or psychotherapy to improve my anxiety disorder?
There is no instant way to prevent anxiety, but with time, medicine or psychotherapy should improve your symptoms. Antidepressants usually take about two to four weeks before they start having any effect. Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), a type of talking therapy, can also take a few weeks before you feel the improvements.
Explanation
If you have an anxiety disorder, your GP may suggest that you need medicine to help with the symptoms. Before deciding that you need medicine, your GP will consider how severe your symptoms are, whether you have other illnesses as well, and how much your anxiety disorder is affecting your every day life.
If your GP thinks that medicine is needed to treat your anxiety disorder, he or she will choose the best medicine for your particular problem, taking into account other illnesses and also the possible side-effects associated with each medicine. It's important that you understand that medicines for anxiety don't work immediately and that your symptoms may even get worse for a short time. In some cases, you may need to take your medicine for a long time to prevent the symptoms returning. Antidepressants are often used to treat anxiety disorders. Antidepressants usually take about two to four weeks before they start having any effect.
Always ask your GP for advice and read the patient information leaflet that comes with your medicine.
CBT is a type of talking therapy, or psychotherapy, carried out by a specially trained therapist. CBT is based on the idea that negative thinking results in negative reactions. It involves assessing the reasoning behind your thinking and then gradually exposing you to the situation that causes anxiety in order to change your behaviour.
CBT typically lasts for three to six months and involves weekly sessions lasting up to an hour each. The number of sessions will depend on the type of problem and your commitment to the CBT process. For some people symptoms can get worse in the short term and so it's important that you don't lose heart if this happens to you. You may need more CBT sessions to make sure that your anxiety doesn't come back. During the session, you and your therapist will work together to understand your problems and how to develop new strategies for tackling them.
Further information
- Mind
0845 766 0163
www.mind.org.uk
Sources
- Baldwin DS, Anderson IM, Nutt DJ, et al. Evidence-based guidelines for the pharmacological treatment of anxiety disorders: recommendations from the British Association for Psychopharmacology. J Psychopharmacol 2005; 19:567-596. http://jop.sagepub.com
- Making sense of antidepressants. Mind. www.mind.org.uk, accessed 24 July 2008
- Making sense of cognitive behaviour therapy. Mind. www.mind.org.uk, accessed 24 July 2008
Are there any medicines that can be used to treat anxiety disorders in children and teenagers?
Sometimes anxiety disorders affect children and teenagers. Many of the medicines that can be used to treat anxiety disorders in adults aren't suitable for children. Some antidepressants can be used to treat anxiety disorders, including obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and social phobia, in children and teenagers. Your doctor will want to think carefully about the benefits and side-effects before prescribing an antidepressant to a child or teenager.
Explanation
Certain anxiety disorders such as social phobia and OCD can affect children and young adults, causing them considerable distress. Many of the medicines that are used to treat anxiety disorders in adults haven't been tested in children and so they can't be used.
Some antidepressants, including selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitors (SSRIs), and clomipramine (Anafranil), have been found to help children and young adults deal with OCD. Paroxetine (Seroxat) may help children and young adults with social phobia. These medicines are only available on prescription from your doctor. If your doctor is thinking about prescribing these medicines to children or teenagers, he or she will want to consider the benefits and side-effects of each medicine. Your doctor may suggest a course of psychotherapy called cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), or talking therapy, before prescribing antidepressants for an anxiety disorder in a child or a teenager.
CBT is a type of talking therapy, or psychotherapy, carried out by a specially trained therapist. CBT is based on the idea that negative thinking results in negative reactions. It involves assessing the reasoning behind your thinking and then gradually exposing you to the situation that causes anxiety in order to change your behaviour.
CBT typically lasts for three to six months and involves weekly sessions lasting up to an hour each. The number of sessions will depend on the type of problem and your commitment to the CBT process. For some people symptoms can get worse in the short term and so it's important that you don't lose heart if this happens to you. You may need to have more CBT sessions to make sure that your anxiety doesn't come back. During the session, you and your therapist will work together to understand your problems and how to develop new strategies for tackling them.
Always ask your doctor for advice and read the patient information leaflet that comes with your child's or teenager's medicine.
Further information
- Royal College of Psychiatrists
020 7235 2351
www.rcpsych.ac.uk
Sources
- Baldwin DS, Anderson IM, Nutt DJ, et al. Evidence-based guidelines for the pharmacological treatment of anxiety disorders: recommendations from the British Association for Psychopharmacology. J Psychopharmacol 2005; 19:567-596. http://jop.sagepub.com
- Making sense of cognitive behaviour therapy. Mind. www.mind.org.uk, accessed 24 July 2008
My GP says I may have trichotillomania. What is it and is there any way to treat it?
Trichotillomania is a medical disorder where people have an obsessive urge to pull out their own hair, causing considerable hair loss. The most effective way to treat trichotillomania is with a type of psychotherapy known as habit-reversal therapy.
Explanation
Trichotillomania is a medical disorder in which people have an obsessive urge to pull out their hair. It affects around one in every 100 people and can be very distressing. Some doctors say that trichotillomania is a type of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), but others think that it's a separate condition.
Two different approaches to help people with trichotillomania have been tried - antidepressants and habit-reversal therapy. When these different approaches were compared, habit-reversal therapy was found to be the best way of dealing with the condition. One antidepressant called clomipramine (Anafranil) did help a little, but other antidepressants didn't help at all.
If your GP prescribes a medicine, always ask him or her for advice and read the patient information leaflet that comes with your medicine.
Habit-reversal therapy is a type of cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) or talking therapy carried out by a specially trained therapist. CBT is based on the idea that negative thinking results in negative reactions. It involves assessing the reasoning behind your thinking and then gradually exposing you to the situation that causes anxiety in order to change your behaviour.
Habit-reversal therapy has four different stages.
- Self-monitoring - where you keep a record of your hair-pulling behaviour.
- Awareness training - where you learn to recognise the situations that make you pull out your hair.
- Stimulus control - where you learn to avoid situations that make you pull out your hair, or use techniques to stop you from doing it.
- Stimulus-response intervention - where you start doing different activities, such as taking a walk or relaxing, instead of hair pulling.
Further information
- UK and Ireland Trichotillomania Support Group
www.trich.co.uk
Sources
- Bloch MH, Landeros-Weisenberger A, Dombrowski P, et al. Systematic review: pharmacological and behavioral treatment for trichotillomania. Biol Psychiatry 2007; 62:839-846. http://journals.elsevierhealth.com
Related topics
- Antidepressants
- Beta-blockers
- Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT)
- Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
This information was published by Bupa's health information team and is based on reputable sources of medical evidence. It has been peer reviewed by Bupa doctors. The content is intended for general information only and does not replace the need for personal advice from a qualified health professional.
Publication date: May 2009
