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They are a group of mental illnesses, and the distress they cause can keep you from carrying on with your life normally.

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Everyone feels anxious now and then. It's a normal emotion. For example, you may feel nervous when faced with a problem at work, before taking a test, or before making an important decision.

Anxiety disorders are different, though. They are a group of mental illnesses, and the distress they cause can keep you from carrying on with your life normally.

For people who have one, worry and fear are constant and overwhelming, and can be disabling. But with treatment, many people can manage those feelings and get back to a fulfilling life.

Types of Disorders

Anxiety disorder is an umbrella term that includes different conditions:

Panic disorder. You feel terror that strikes at random. During a panic attack, you may also sweat, have chest pain, and feel palpitations (unusually strong or irregular heartbeats). Sometimes you may feel like you're choking or having a heart attack.

Social anxiety disorder. Also called social phobia, this is when you feel overwhelming worry and self-consciousness about everyday social situations. You fixate about others judging you or on being embarrassed or ridiculed.

Specific phobias. You feel intense fear of a specific object or situation, such as heights or flying. The fear goes beyond what's appropriate and may cause you to avoid ordinary situations.

Generalized anxiety disorder. You feel excessive, unrealistic worry and tension with little or no reason.

Symptoms

All anxiety disorders share some general symptoms:

Panic, fear, and uneasiness

Sleep problems

Not being able to stay calm and still

Cold, sweaty, numb or tingling hands or feet

Shortness of breath

Heart palpitations

Tense muscles

Causes

Researchers don't know exactly what brings on anxiety disorders. Like other forms of mental illness, they stem from a combination of things, including changes in your brain and environmental stress, and even your genes. The disorders can run in families and could be linked to faulty circuits in the brain that control fear and other emotions.

Diagnosis

If you have symptoms, your doctor will examine you and ask for your medical history. She may run tests to rule out medical illnesses that might be causing your symptoms. No lab tests can specifically diagnose anxiety disorders.

Continued

If your doctor doesn't find any medical reason for how you're feeling, she may send you to a psychiatrist, psychologist, or another mental health specialist. Those doctors will ask you questions and use tools and testing to find out if you may have an anxiety disorder.

Your doctor will consider how long and how intense your symptoms are when diagnosing you. She'll also check to see if the symptoms keep you from carrying out your normal activities.

Treatments

Most people with the condition try one or more of these therapies:

Medication: Many antidepressants can work for anxiety disorders. They include escitalopram (Lexapro) and fluoxetine (Prozac). Certain anticonvulsant medicines (typically taken for epilepsy) and low-dose antipsychotic drugs can be added to help make other treatments work better. Anxiolytics are also drugs that help lower anxiety. Examples are alprazolam (Xanax) and clonazepam (Klonopin). They're prescribed for social or generalized anxiety disorder as well as for panic attacks.

Psychotherapy: This is a type of counseling that addresses the emotional response to mental illness. A mental health specialist helps you by talking about how to understand and deal with your anxiety disorder.
Cognitive behavioral therapy: This is a certain type of psychotherapy that teaches you how to recognize and change thought patterns and behaviors that trigger deep anxiety or panic.

Managing Symptoms

These tips may help you control or lessen your symptoms:

Cut down on foods and drinks that have caffeine, such as coffee, tea, cola, energy drinks, and chocolate. Caffeine is a mood-altering drug, and it may make symptoms of anxiety disorders worse.

Eat right, exercise, and get better sleep. Brisk aerobic exercises like jogging and biking help release brain chemicals that cut stress and improve your mood.

Sleep problems and anxiety disorder often go hand in hand. Make getting good rest a priority. Follow a relaxing bedtime routine. Talk to your doctor if you still have trouble sleeping.

Ask your doctor or pharmacist before taking any over-the-counter meds or herbal remedies. Many contain chemicals that can make anxiety symptoms worse.

Sources

SOURCES:

American Psychological Association.

National Institute of Mental Health.

Anxiety Disorders Association of America: "Medications."

Mayo Clinic: "Anxiety."

Twin Research and Human Genetics: "Common Psychiatric Disorders and Caffeine Use, Tolerance, and Withdrawal: An Examination of Shared Genetic and Environmental Effects."

Anxiety and Depression Association of America: "Physical Activity Reduces Stress."

Revista Brasileira de Reumatologia (Brazil): "Effects of physical exercise on serum levels of serotonin and its metabolite in fibromyalgia: a randomized pilot study."

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All About Anxiety Disorders: From Causes to Treatment and Prevention

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Everyone feels anxious now and then. It's a normal emotion. For example, you may feel nervous when faced with a problem at work, before taking a test, or before making an important decision. Anxiety disorders are different, though. They are a group of mental illnesses, and the distress they cause can keep you from carrying on with your life normally.

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Anxiety disorders can affect anyone at any age, and they are the most common mental health problem. Sometimes, anxiety disorders are triggered by a specific event or stressful life experience. Anxiety disorders may be more likely to occur when we have certain ways of looking at things (like believing that everything must be perfect) or learn unhelpful coping strategies from others.

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We all feel nervous or worried at times. This anxiety can be a helpful feeling when it motivates us or warns us of danger. An anxiety disorder, on the other hand, causes unexpected or unhelpful anxiety that seriously impacts our lives, including how we think, feel, and act.

What are anxiety disorders?

Anxiety disorders are mental illnesses. The different types of anxiety disorders include:

Phobias

A phobia is an intense fear around a specific thing like an object, animal, or situation. Most of us are scared of something, but these feelings don't disrupt our lives. With phobias, people change the way they live in order to avoid the feared object or situation.

Panic disorder

Panic disorder involves repeated and unexpected panic attacks. A panic attack is a feeling of sudden and intense fear that lasts for a short period of time. It causes a lot of physical feelings like a racing heart, shortness of breath, or nausea. Panic attacks can be a normal reaction to a stressful situation, or a part of other anxiety disorders. With panic disorder, panic attacks seem to happen for no reason. People who experience panic disorder fear more panic attacks and may worry that something bad will happen as a result of the panic attack. Some people change their routine to avoid triggering more panic attacks.

Agoraphobia

Agoraphobia is fear of being in a situation where a person can't escape or find help if they experience a panic attack or other feelings of anxiety. A person with agoraphobia may avoid public places or even avoid leaving their homes.

Social anxiety disorder

Social anxiety disorder involves intense fear of being embarrassed or evaluated negatively by others. As a result, people avoid social situations. This is more than shyness. It can have a big impact on work or school performance and relationships.

Generalized anxiety disorder

Generalized anxiety disorder is excessive worry around a number of everyday problems for more than six months. This anxiety is often far greater than expected-for example, intense anxiety over a minor concern. Many people experience physical symptoms too, including muscle tension and sleep problems.

Other mental illnesses

Some mental illnesses are no longer classified as anxiety disorders, though anxiety or fear is a major part of the illnesses.
Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
Obsessive-compulsive disorder is made up of unwanted thoughts, images, or urges that cause anxiety (obsessions) or repeated actions meant to reduce that anxiety (compulsions). Obsessions or compulsions usually take a lot of time and cause a lot of distress.
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
Post-traumatic stress disorder can occur after a very scary or traumatic event, such as abuse, an accident, or a natural disaster. Symptoms of PTSD include reliving the event through nightmares or flashbacks, avoiding reminders of the traumatic event, and feeling unsafe in the world, even when a person isn't in danger.

Who do they affect?

Anxiety disorders can affect anyone at any age, and they are the most common mental health problem. Sometimes, anxiety disorders are triggered by a specific event or stressful life experience. Anxiety disorders may be more likely to occur when we have certain ways of looking at things (like believing that everything must be perfect) or learn unhelpful coping strategies from others. But sometimes there just doesn't seem to be a reason.

What can I do about them?

Many people who experience an anxiety disorder think that they should just be able to 'get over it' on their own. Others may need time to recognize how deeply anxiety affects their life. However, anxiety disorders are real illnesses that affect a person's well-being. It's important to talk to a doctor about mental health concerns. Some physical health conditions cause symptoms of anxiety. A doctor will look at all possible causes of anxiety.

Normal, expected anxiety is part of being human. Treatment should look at reducing unhelpful coping strategies and building healthy behaviours that help you better manage anxiety.

Each anxiety disorder has its own specific treatments and goals, but most include some combination of the following strategies:

Counselling

An effective form of counselling for anxiety is cognitive-behavioural therapy (or 'CBT'). CBT teaches you how your thoughts, feelings, and behaviours work together. A goal of CBT is to identify and change the unhelpful patterns of thinking that feed anxious thoughts. CBT can help you identify problem behaviours and replace them with helpful strategies. It's often the first treatment to try for mild or moderate problems with anxiety.

Medication

Some people also find antianxiety or antidepressant medication helpful. Medication can help with the physical feelings of anxiety. It may also make anxious thoughts less frequent or intense, so it can be easier to learn helpful coping strategies. Some people take medication until their anxiety is controlled enough to try therapies like CBT.

Support groups

Support groups-in person or online-may be a good place to share your experiences, learn from others, and connect with people who understand.

Self-help strategies

Many different skills can help people manage anxiety, such as stress management, problem-solving, and relaxation. Mindfulness-developing awareness of the present moment without judgement-may also help. Practices that support wellness, such as eating well, exercising, having fun, and connecting with others, are also important.

How can I help a loved one?

Supporting a loved one who is experiencing an anxiety disorder can be difficult. You may not understand why your loved one feels or acts a certain way. Some people who experience an anxiety disorder feel like they have to do things a certain way or avoid things or situations, and this can create frustration or conflict with others. You may feel pressured to take part in these behaviours or adjust your own behaviours to protect or avoid upsetting a loved one. Support can be a delicate balance, but you should expect recovery-in time.
Here are some general tips.

Remind yourself that the illness is the problem-anger, frustration, or behaviours related to anxiety are nobody's fault.

Be patient-learning and practicing new coping strategies takes time.

If your loved one is learning new skills, offer to help them practice.

Listen and offer support, but avoid pushing unwanted advice.

Set boundaries and seek support for yourself, if needed.

If other family members are affected by a loved one's anxiety disorder, consider seeking family counselling.

Do you need more help?

Contact a community organization like the Canadian Mental Health Association to learn more about support and resources in your area.

Founded in 1918, The Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA) is a national charity that helps maintain and improve mental health for all Canadians. As the nation-wide leader and champion for mental health, CMHA helps people access the community resources they need to build resilience and support recovery from mental illness.

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We all feel nervous or worried at times. This anxiety can be a helpful feeling when it motivates us or warns us of danger. An anxiety disorder, on the other hand, causes unexpected or unhelpful anxiety that seriously impacts our lives, including how we think, feel, and act. What are anxiety disorders?

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This is a picture of a brain of someone with anxiety. In the brain it has words as to what people with anxiety would think about.

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This is what anxiety feels like to people.

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 Eleven different "types" of anxiety and related disorders.

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 Eleven different "types" of anxiety and related disorders.

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Agoraphobia.
Body Focused Repetitive Behaviours.
Generalized Anxiety Disorder.
Health Anxiety.
Hoarding Disorder (HD).
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder.
Panic Disorder.
Posttraumatic Stress Disorder.
Separation Anxiety.
Social Anxiety Disorder.
Specific Phobias.

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Do I Have An Anxiety Disorder?
As discussed throughout this website, anxiety is useful in certain situations, some of the time. But how do you know when the signs of anxiety you experience might be significant enough to qualify for an anxiety disorder? An appointment with your family physician or a trained mental health professional is a good first step. However, in preparation for that visit, or to decide whether a visit is needed, it can help to understand what professionals look for in diagnosing an anxiety disorder.

To begin with, there are eleven different "types" of anxiety and related disorders, and each anxiety disorder has a list of commonly occurring symptoms clustered into 4 areas:

Next, anxiety specialists have identified that when people experience anxiety more often (e.g. most days, and for months at a time), and more intensely than others, it can create significant disruption in their lives. This disruption can interrupt or even stop adults from participating in a variety of experiences such as attending higher education, pursuing meaningful work, joining social, athletic or recreational clubs, being in relationships, and more. Finally, it is this combination of factors that increase the chances of being diagnosed with an anxiety disorder.

It is common for adults to experience anxiety symptoms of more than one anxiety disorder. This means as you read the definitions below, it would be fairly common to say, "Yes! This sounds like me, but so does this other description!" Fortunately, the helpful approaches outlined throughout this website can be used for multiple anxiety problems, so that even if you have 2, 3, or more disorders, many of the same tools can be used for all of them.

Individuals with this disorder experience fear using public transportation, being in open spaces, being in enclosed spaces, standing in lines, being in a crowd, and/or being outside of the home alone. They fear these situations because escape from them might be difficult in the event they develop panic or other embarrassing symptoms. They actively avoid the situations, endure it with a lot of distress, or will only go with another person.
Body Focused Repetitive Behaviours
Body-Focused Repetitive Behaviours, or BFRBs, are a cluster of habitual behaviours that include hair pulling (called Trichotillomania), skin picking (called Skin Excoriation), nail biting, nose picking, and lip or cheek biting. In both Trichotillomania and Skin Excoriation, the individual experiences ongoing and repetitive engagement in either pulling out of one's hair or skin picking (dependent on the disorder), resulting in noticeable hair loss, or skin abrasions or lesions. This occurs despite extensive efforts to stop these behaviours. In both disorders there is significant impairment or disruption in routine life functioning for the individual.
Generalized Anxiety Disorder
Individuals with this disorder worry excessively and uncontrollably about daily life events. These worries include potential negative events in the future, minor matters, a loved one becoming ill or dying, work issues, and world events, such as natural disasters.
Health Anxiety
Although health anxiety is not a disorder, there are several disorders defined by excessive anxiety related to somatic or physical symptoms, or having an illness or condition. In adults, these health worries are excessive, ongoing, and uncontrollable, and often result in frequent visits to medical professionals and reassurance seeking from loved ones all due to exaggerated fears of being ill.

Individuals with this disorder experience ongoing and significant difficulty getting rid of possessions regardless of their value; and strong urges to save and/or acquire, often non-essential, items, that if prevented leads to extreme distress. As a result, living space becomes severely compromised with extreme clutter. In addition, the individual experiences significant impairment in social, occupational, and other important areas of functioning.
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder
Individuals with this disorder have obsessions, or unwanted ugly thoughts that make them anxious, and/or they engage in compulsions (repetitive behaviors or mental acts) in an attempt to reduce a feeling of anxiety. Some compulsions may include repeated hand-washing, checking, tapping, or mental routines (such as counting backwards from 100). An example of an intrusive thought is "I might get sick and die from touching a bathroom door".

Individuals with this disorder experience unexpected and repeated panic attacks, followed by at least 1 month of worry about having additional attacks. They may also fear of something bad happening as a result of the panic attack, such as going crazy, losing control or dying.
Posttraumatic Stress Disorder
Individuals with this disorder have directly experienced, witnessed or heard about a frightening traumatic event. Not everyone who has these experiences develops the disorder. Those who have the disorder also experience symptoms that may include upsetting vivid memories, nightmares, and/or flashbacks of the trauma, avoidance of reminders of the trauma, negative impact on their thoughts and mood (e.g. depression, fear of life being cut short), and changes in their reactivity (e.g. more easily startled).
Separation Anxiety
Individuals with this disorder have excessive anxiety about being separated from a primary attachment figure, such as a spouse, boyfriend/girlfriend, or family member. As a result of routine periods of separation, the adult may experience constant worry about being apart from this person/s, have nightmares, be unable to leave the home to go to work, struggle with physical complaints, and other symptoms all of which significantly impacts their life.
Social Anxiety Disorder
Individuals with this disorder have an intense fear of social and/or performance situations and excessive concern about social embarrassment or humiliation. They may avoid social activities like going to parties, performing, speaking in front of others, or dating.

Individuals with this disorder experience persistent and excessive fears of an object or situation, which significantly interferes with life and is beyond voluntary control. Some common phobias include fear of spiders, rodents, snakes, flying, heights, and injections.

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Do I Have An Anxiety Disorder? As discussed throughout this website, anxiety is useful in certain situations, some of the time. But how do you know when the signs of anxiety you experience might be significant enough to qualify for an anxiety disorder?

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This is a chart that shows the differences and similarities of depression and anxiety.

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The Danger of Suppressing Sadness Connection.

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The Danger of Suppressing Sadness Connection.

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Anxiety connects to this article because Caulfield would be a natural candidate for pharmaceutical intervention, joining a rising number of adolescents whose moodiness, anxiety and rebelliousness are being interpreted as warning signs of chemical imbalances.

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1. Anxiety disorder doesn’t mean the person is mentally inferior or deficient. So don’t view them as such.
2. Anxiety disorder isn’t something a person can “just snap out of.”
3. Reassure her that she’s going to be okay.
4. Stay calm, and help him to calm down.
5. Encourage her to do something about her anxiety condition.

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Anxiety disorder can have a profound negative impact on those who experience it. It can also have a negative impact on loved ones and colleagues - people who are close to and/or work with someone who is experiencing anxiety disorder - such as a spouse, mate, partner, children, boy or girl friend, parents, grandparents, in-laws, relatives, friends, co-workers, and so on.

Even though anxiety disorder can take a heavy toll on the sufferer, loved ones and colleagues can be affected, as well, when anxiety disorder becomes established. These loved ones and colleagues are referred to as 'affected others.'

Anxiety disorder sufferers can be affected physically, psychologically, emotionally, and spiritually. Many find their lives dramatically impacted as a result. Even though there may not be any physical evidence of an illness, anxiety disorder can be fraught with distressing and debilitating sensations and symptoms, as well as cause severe lifestyle restriction and often what seems like insurmountable physical and mental health challenges. These challenges often leave the individual frightened, confused, frustrated, and at their wits end.

Anxiety disorder sufferers can experience many distressing sensations, symptoms, thoughts, feelings, and emotions as their bodies and minds are burdened with unhealthy anxiety. For a comprehensive list of common sensations and symptoms associated with anxiety disorder, see the Anxiety Symptoms section. If you are a member of our Recovery Support area, see the Symptoms chapter (Chapter 9).

People who experience anxiety disorder are generally intelligent, creative, compassionate, and determined. But they can easily become inward-focused, frightened, short-tempered, confused, discouraged, distant, uncaring, child-like, and seemingly hypochondriac once an anxiety disorder becomes established.

While anxiety disorder can be hard to understand from a non-sufferer's perspective, it can be even harder to understand as a sufferer. While sufferers may look fine on the outside, they often experience a raging battle on the inside, and a battle that only someone who personally experiences anxiety disorder will fully understand.

Anxiety disorder can produce a wide range of physical, psychological, and emotional sensations and symptoms, which are not imagined, from a very few, to all of them. These sensations and symptoms can also come in episodes where they are nonexistent or slight one moment and then full on and overwhelming the next.

Anxiety disorder often impacts many systems, organs, and glands in the body, including the nervous system (which includes the brain), endocrine system, respiratory system, reproductive system, cardiovascular system, digestive system, and so on. In addition to the biological sensations and symptoms, most sufferers also experience distressing thoughts and emotions.

The severity of the condition generally determines the degree and frequency of sensations and symptoms. For example, those with milder forms of anxiety disorder may experience intermittent and erratic episodes of mild to moderate sensations and symptoms. Those with a more severe condition can experience persistent, entrenched, and debilitating sensations and symptoms. Some anxiety disorder sufferers experience their condition as an ebb and flow, while others may experience it as a constant nightmare filled with fear, persistent symptoms, bizarre thinking, and erratic emotions.

Most sufferers don't want to be sick and would give anything to feel normal again. But because of the nature of anxiety disorder, they often feel trapped in a battle with confusion, fear, and despair, and with seemingly no way out.

Anxiety disorder is a real condition that can affect a person on many levels. Their struggle is real!

Most anxiety disorder sufferers don't want to have issues with anxiety. They are not doing it for attention. They would rather feel normal and live a normal life than have to deal with anxiety issues.

Most anxiety disorder sufferers would like to feel normal again, and just as fast as affected others would prefer. But overcoming anxiety disorder is a process that takes time, and often much more time than most people expect.

So during the recovery process, there are a number of things we can do to help the sufferer overcome his or her struggle with problematic anxiety.

15 Ways To Help Someone With Anxiety Disorder:

If you are an affected other, your help can play an important role in an anxiety disorder sufferer's recovery. Here are 15 ways you can help:

1. Anxiety disorder doesn't mean the person is mentally inferior or deficient. So don't view them as such.

Anxiety disorder also doesn't mean he or she has a ' chemical imbalance', biological problem with the brain, or genetic problem. Click on the respective links for more information.

Issues with anxiety are caused by overly apprehensive behavior, which are learned ways of coping with life. Behaviors are learned during our formative years (generally considered to be from birth to age 8 or so). Most anxiety disorder sufferers learned their overly apprehensive behavior directly or indirectly from a parent(s) or those who raised them and/or greatly influenced them when growing up.

In an online poll we conducted, 93 percent of respondents said they had a parent or parents who worried a lot.

So it's not that anxiety disorder sufferers deliberately chose to adopt overly apprehensive behavior as a way of coping with life, but that they adopted that style of behavior thinking it was normal. Most are greatly surprised to find out they have issues with anxiety when anxiety begins to cause problems in their lives.

In order to overcome anxiety disorder, anxiety disorder sufferers need to learn healthy ways of coping with life, which then eliminates issues with anxiety. To that end, overcoming anxiety disorder requires getting the right information, help, and support.

Rather than believing anxiety disorder sufferers are trapped in a condition they can't do anything about, know that with the right information, help, and support, they can overcome a struggle with anxiety disorder...and for good.

While the road to lasting recovery generally isn't easy or quick, lasting success can be attained through effort and perseverance. Therefore, there is no reason to feel sorry for the person who struggles with anxiety disorder. Offer empathy and support rather than sympathy.

2. Anxiety disorder isn't something a person can "just snap out of." Because anxiety is caused by behavior, it takes the right information, help, support and hard work to overcome issues with anxiety. There are NO shortcuts or "quick fix cures" once anxiety disorder has become established.

While self-help information can be beneficial, often full and lasting recovery requires the assistance and support of an experienced anxiety disorder coach/counsellor/therapist. So it's unrealistic to think a person can just snap themselves out of a struggle with anxiety disorder.

With this understanding, you can be more supportive and help the person get the help he needs. And then, support him as he works through to lasting success.

3. Reassure her that she's going to be okay. Anxiety can create one of the strongest responses the body can experience. This strong response can create intense emotions, feelings, sensations, and symptoms. This is why in the midst of high anxiety, a person can feel like she is going to lose her mind, have a complete breakdown, or die.

Fortunately, even though anxiety can feel powerful, it alone is not dangerous and doesn't lead to a mental collapse, breakdown, or death. Once the person calms down, all of these strong emotions, feelings, sensations, and symptoms diminish and eventually disappear.

So when a person is having an episode of high anxiety, reassuring her she's going to be okay can help her calm down, which will lead to the cessation of the strong feelings of anxiety.

4. Stay calm, and help him to calm down. Anxiety disorder is predicated on fear. This fear can be rational or irrational. Fear activates the stress response, which can cause a number of physiological, psychological, and emotional changes in the body. These changes can produce some profound anxiety sensations and symptoms. Often it's these sensations and symptoms that anxiety disorder sufferers react to with more fear.

Regardless of whether the fear is rational or irrational, or whether the sensations and symptoms are strong, we can always find ways of calming ourselves so that the body shuts off the stress response, which leads to feeling better.

If your loved one or colleague is struggling with an episode of anxiety, encourage him to calm down and settle himself. As he calms down, he will feel better...but in time. It can take up to 20 minutes or more for the body to recover from an activated stress response.

Remaining calm yourself can provide an example for him. Encouraging him to calm down can also help himself calm down. Keeping calm is one of the 'silver bullets' for anxiety.

5. Encourage her to do something about her anxiety condition. Being empathetic and supportive is helpful. But if she isn't working at overcoming anxiety disorder, your empathy and support may only enable her to remain stuck.

Anxiety disorder is only resolves when a person works at it. Anxiety disorder seldom resolves on its own.

So be an encourager, not an enabler. Encourage your loved one to seek the necessary help. And then, encourage and support her as she works at making healthy behavioral change.

6. Encourage him to seek professional help. Anxiety disorder is caused by unhealthy behavior. While self-help information can be beneficial, a professional anxiety disorder counsellor/therapist is almost always required to overcome problematic anxiety because many of these behaviors are invisible, and therefore, unknown to the sufferer. Unless the sufferer is professionally trained in anxiety disorder resolution, it's unrealistic to think he would be able to identify, successfully address, and help himself back to lasting anxiety disorder-free health (if he knew what to do, he wouldn't be struggling with anxiety issues).

For more information about why anxiety counselling/therapy is important, see our " Two Levels of Anxiety Disorder Recovery."
NOTE: We don't recommend seeking the assistance of a psychiatrist, as it is our experience that many psychiatrists approach anxiety disorder inappropriately. Too often it has taken clients longer to overcome anxiety disorder because of the poor treatment they received from a well-intentioned psychiatrist.
Click the following link for more information about the best type of help for anxiety disorder.

7. Support her in her decision to seek counselling/therapy. Traditionally, society has had a dim view of counselling/therapy. Fortunately, this view is changing...and quickly. More people today are seeking professional help for psychological and emotional challenges than ever before. That's generally because the negative stigma associated with seeking professional help is diminishing, as well as, more and more people are seeing the benefits of counselling/therapy.

Moreover, professional counselling/therapy skillsets are improving as independent research on their effectiveness improves (not to mention that independent research is disproving long-held notions of chemical and biological causes of behavioral issues).

For example, independent research led to disproving the 'chemical imbalance' cause of anxiety, and has supported the effectiveness of counselling/therapy. Because of the recent strides in research and resulting techniques, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is now recognized as the 'gold standard' for anxiety disorder resolution.

If your loved one wants to pursue counselling/therapy for her anxiety disorder, encourage her to proceed and support her as she continues. Overcoming anxiety disorder takes time and effort, and as a result, can be discouraging. Encouraging her to continue can help her work through times of discouragement. Lasting success occurs for those who persevere.

You can also ask her to share with you what is being talked about. Oftentimes, reflecting on counselling/therapy sessions is a great way to internalize new information. If she doesn't want to be specific about private details, that's fine. There can still be a lot to reflect on in general terms, which can still be helpful.

8. Be available. Let your loved one know he can talk with you anytime and without fear of judgment. Also let him know that you aren't going to change the way you think of him because he is dealing with anxiety issues. You are there to support him in whichever way he believes he needs. Letting him know he can count on you can make a positive difference in his recovery.

9. Be patient. Anxiety disorder sufferers can sound like a broken record - rehashing the same topics and fears over and over again. While you might understand the nature of their struggle and see it clearly, the sufferer doesn't. He's rehashing the same issues because he has established a fear about them. His rehashing is his way of trying to come to terms with his fears.

During times like these, listen and reassure patiently. Over time, the on going reinforcement can be helpful in extinguishing long-held fears. Again, be patient. He will get there in time.

10. Learn everything you can about anxiety disorder, then help her by providing ongoing information, support, and reassurance. They say that knowledge is power. This is particularly true with anxiety disorder. If you want to help an anxiety disorder sufferer, become an expert on the condition. The more you know about anxiety disorder, the better help you can be.

If you are truly interested in learning about anxiety disorder, we have many public pages that provide an overview of anxiety disorder. A good place to start is the Anxiety 101 section and our Anxiety Symptoms section. Better yet, become a Recovery Support member and learn the complete details of anxiety disorder, how it affects the body, and what can be done to overcome it for good.

Oftentimes, anxiety disorder sufferers can become so mired in their struggle that they have difficulty seeing the forest for the trees. A knowledgeable support person can help them find their way and reassure them that everything is going to be okay.

Ongoing guidance and reassurance can play a pivotal role in recovery, especially with anxiety disorder recovery.

11. Empathize, don't patronize. Try to be as supportive, loving, and empathetic as you can. Sufferers typically feel bad enough about what is going on in their life. They don't want your sympathy, but do appreciate your understanding, compassion, and the necessary time to get their condition under control.

12. Celebrate the small victories along the way to lasting success. Overcoming anxiety disorder takes work...and often a lot of work. On the way to lasting success, there are often a great many little steps and victories. Celebrate them. Make a big deal about them. Doing so can be very encouraging to the sufferer.

For example, attending the first counselling/therapy session is a victory in itself. Experiencing 'eureka' and 'ah ha' moments are also other reasons to celebrate. Staying the course with counselling/therapy is another. Overcoming a long-held fear is another. And so on.

Overcoming anxiety disorder is a process that unfolds in many little steps. Since progress is often slow, it can be discouraging along the way. Celebrating and making a big deal about each victory along the way can help the person remain encouraged, which can also keep the person working the process.

People who don't succeed do so not because they can't succeed, but because they give up before meaningful progress is made.

13. Affirm him. Encourage him. Help him to feel better about himself. Low self-esteem is often associated with a struggle with anxiety. Your encouragement can help him see himself more positively.

14. If depression is involved, take suicidal comments seriously. Call for emergency help if you believe the person is serious about taking his or her own life. It's best to err on the side of safety.

15. Above all, continually offer hope! Anyone can overcome anxiety disorder with the right information, help, and support. So freedom from problematic anxiety is attainable, even though it can be a lot of work. Your continued reassurance can help him or her get through the drudge of recovery. Once he or she has recovered, you'll recognize the true value of the hope you provided.

As we mentioned, there aren't any 'miracle' or 'quick-fix' cures for anxiety disorder. Overcoming it requires getting the right information, help, and support, and then doing the work required. But success is attainable for anyone willing to do the work.

Your help in this process can make a significant difference, especially when you know how to help. The above tips help you help your loved one.

For 35 additional tips, members can read the "How To Help Someone Who Is Experiencing Anxiety Disorder" section in Chapter 14 in the Recovery Support area.

Return to our anxiety tips page.

Authors: Jim Folk, Marilyn Folk, BScN. Last updated April 29, 2017.

anxietycentre.com: Information, support, and coaching/counseling/therapy for problematic anxiety and its sensations and symptoms, including 15 ways to help someone with anxiety disorder.

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15 Ways To Help Someone With Anxiety Disorder

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Anxiety disorder can have a profound negative impact on those who experience it. It can also have a negative impact on loved ones and colleagues - people who are close to and/or work with someone who is experiencing anxiety disorder - such as a spouse, mate, partner, children, boy or girl friend, parents, grandparents, in-laws, relatives, friends, co-workers, and so on.

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This ted talk talks about how to overcome with anxiety.

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Overcoming Anxiety | Jonas Kolker | TEDxTheMastersSchool