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Common Mental Health Problems
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3 matches: anxiety, panic, stress |
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Anxiety Disorders affect about 40 million American adults age 18 years and older (about 18%) in a given year,causing them to be filled with fearfulness and uncertainty. Unlike the relatively mild, brief anxiety caused by a stressful event (such as speaking in public or a first date), anxiety disorders last at least 6 months and can get worse if they are not treated. Anxiety disorders commonly occur along with other mental or physical illnesses, including alcohol or substance abuse, which may mask anxiety symptoms or make them worse. In some cases, these other illnesses need to be treated before a person will respond to treatment for the anxiety disorder. Effective therapies for anxiety disorders are available, and research is uncovering new treatments that can help most people with anxiety disorders lead productive, fulfilling lives. If you think you have an anxiety disorder, you should seek information and treatment right away. Anxiety disorders are categorized as follows: Each anxiety disorder has different symptoms, but all the symptoms cluster around excessive, irrational fear and dread. |
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Common Mental Health Problems
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1 match: stress |
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New York Times
August 17, 2009  If after a few months’ exposure to our David Lynch economy, in which housing markets spontaneously combust, coworkers mysteriously disappear and the stifled moans of dying 401(k) plans can be heard through the floorboards, you have the awful sensation that your body’s stress response has taken on a self-replicating and ultimately self-defeating life of its own, congratulations. You are very perceptive. It has.
Click to read the full article. |
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Common Mental Health Problems
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1 match: anxiety |
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If you think you have an anxiety disorder, the first person you should see is your family doctor. A physician can determine whether the symptoms that alarm you are due to an anxiety disorder, another medical condition, or both. If an anxiety disorder is diagnosed, the next step is usually seeing a mental health professional. The practitioners who are most helpful with anxiety disorders are those who have training in cognitive-behavioral therapy and/or behavioral therapy, and who are open to using medication if it is needed. You should feel comfortable talking with the mental health professional you choose. If you do not, you should seek help elsewhere. Once you find a mental health professional with whom you are comfortable, the two of you should work as a team and make a plan to treat your anxiety disorder together. Remember that once you start on medication, it is important not to stop taking it abruptly. Certain drugs must be tapered off under the supervision of a doctor or bad reactions can occur. Make sure you talk to the doctor who prescribed your medication before you stop taking it. If you are having trouble with side effects, it’s possible that they can be eliminated by adjusting how much medication you take and when you take it. Most insurance plans, including health maintenance organizations (HMOs), will cover treatment for anxiety disorders. Check with your insurance company and find out. If you don’t have insurance, the Health and Human Services division of your county government may offer mental health care at a public mental health center that charges people according to how much they are able to pay. If you are on public assistance, you may be able to get care through your state Medicaid plan. |
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Common Mental Health Problems
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1 match: anxiety |
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There is a high prevalence of long-term benzodiazepine use among elderly persons (persons aged 65 years or older), who account for 12.5 percent of the general population. This topic merits attention given that this segment of the population is expected to grow and given that elderly persons are particularly prone to adverse reactions to benzodiazepines. In this column we review the literature on the extent of benzodiazepine use and dependence among elderly persons and specific problems that arise. Click to continue Practical Geriatrics: Use of Benzodiazepines Among Elderly Patients by Olivera J. Bogunovic, M.D. and Shelly F. Greenfield, M.D., M.P.H. on Psychiatric Services (online). |
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