Dealing with Anxiety and Related Disorders: Understanding, Coping, and Prevention

by Rudy Nydegger

Overview

This thorough discussion and analysis of anxiety and related disorders looks at case studies, specific diagnostic categories, and treatments.

Anxiety disorders are the most common and frequently misdiagnosed and undertreated of all mental health conditions. Dealing with Anxiety and Related Disorders: Understanding, Coping, and Prevention explains in accessible language the myths, misunderstandings, and realities of anxiety disorders, including often misdiagnosed somatoform and dissociative disorders.

Psychologist Rudy Nydegger approaches anxiety and related disorders, including panic disorder, social phobia, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and PTSD, with the most up-to-date and professionally sound information available. The history of and theories about anxiety disorders are thoroughly discussed, as are the most recent ideas and findings. Readers are provided with comprehensive information on each disorder—its description, clinical symptoms, dynamics, and available treatments, including alternative and experimental approaches. Ways in which patients can get help and help themselves are discussed, as are steps family members and friends can take when they know a loved one is struggling with an anxiety disorder. Detailed case studies illustrate both the disorders and the options for treatment.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780313384226
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Academic
Publication date:	11/28/2011
Pages:	248
Product dimensions:	6.20(w) x 9.30(h) x 0.80(d)

About the Author

Rudy Nydegger, PhD, is Professor of Management and Psychology at Union College and Union Graduate College in Schenectady, NY, as well as Chief of Psychology at Ellis Hospital.

Table of Contents

Preface xi

Acknowledgments xv

1 What Is Anxiety? 1

The Age of Anxiety 2

Diagnosing Anxiety Disorders 4

Diagnostic and Statistical Manual 5

Multiaxial Diagnoses 6

Myths about Anxiety 7

People Who Suffer from Anxiety Disorders 11

2 Living with Anxiety Disorders 15

Case 1: Betsy 15

Case 2: Dan 21

Case 3: Cheri 24

3 The Distribution and Effects of Anxiety Disorders: Costs, Gender, Age, and Specific Groups 29

Gender and Anxiety Disorders 30

Women and Anxiety 30

Men and Anxiety 31

Age and Anxiety 32

Children and Teens and Anxiety 32

Diagnosing and Treating Children and Teens 35

Anxiety Disorders in the Elderly 36

Treatment of Anxiety in the Elderly 39

Race, Ethnicity, and Anxiety Disorders 39

African Americans and Anxiety 40

Asian Americans and Anxiety 42

Hispanic Americans and Anxiety 44

Native Americans and Alaskan Natives and Anxiety 45

Homosexual Groups and Anxiety 46

Religious Groups and Anxiety 47

4 Theories of Anxiety Disorders 49

Biological Theories 49

Psychological Theories 54

Psychodynamic Approaches 54

Humanistic and Existential Approaches 56

Behavioral Approaches 58

Cognitive Approaches 61

Integrating the Different Theories 64

Who Is Vulnerable? 65

5 Physical Responses and Types of Anxiety Disorders I: Generalized Anxiety Disorder and Panic Disorder 69

Physical Responses to Stress and Anxiety 69

Responses of the Brain 69

Responses by the Heart, Lungs, and Circulatory System 70

Responses by the Immune System 70

Responses in the Mouth and Throat 71

Skin Responses 71

Metabolic Responses 71

Physical Responses When Stress or Anxiety Disappears or When It Continues 71

Other Sources of Anxiety-like Symptoms 72

Types of Anxiety Disorders I 73

Generalized Anxiety Disorder 73

Panic Disorder 76

6 Types of Anxiety Disorders II: Phobias, Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder 83

Phobias 83

Specific Phobias 85

Social Phobia 86

Posttraumatic Stress Disorder and Acute Stress Disorder 89

Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder 99

7 Treatments for Anxiety Disorders 107

Medical Treatments for Anxiety Disorders 109

Antidepressant Medications 110

Antianxiety (Anxiolytic) Medications 111

Additional Medications and Natural Substances 112

Pregnancy and Medications 115

Other Medical Forms of Treatment 116

Psychological Treatments of Anxiety Disorders 116

Other Psychosocial Treatment Approaches 119

8 Treatment Methods for Specific Anxiety Disorders and Patient Groups 125

Panic Disorder 125

Generalized Anxiety Disorder 126

Social Anxiety Disorder 127

Specific Phobia 128

Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder 130

Posttraumatic Stress Disorder 133

Other Considerations in Treating Anxiety Disorders 135

9 Living with Anxiety Disorders 139

Who Needs Treatment? 139

Where to Seek Treatment 140

Types of Mental Health Professionals 140

Is Treatment Working, and When Is It Completed? 145

What Patients Can Do to Help Themselves: Stress Management 147

10 Somatoform Disorders 151

Malingering and Factitious Disorders 152

Hypochondriasis 155

Somatization Disorder 158

Conversion Disorder 160

Pain Disorder 163

Body Dysmorphic Disorder 165

Othet Types of Somatoform Disorders 168

11 Dissociative Disorders 169

Background and History 169

Dissociative Disorders in General 171

Depersonalization Disorder 173

Dissociative Amnesia 173

Dissociative Fugue Disorder 175

Dissociative Trance Disorder 176

Dissociative Identity Disorder 176

Treatments for Dissociative Disorders 180

12 Making Sense of It All 183

Changing Conceptions of Anxiety and Related Disorders 183

Coping with Anxiety and Related Disorders 187

Being a Positive Voice for Good Mental Health 190

Making a Difference 193

Resources 195

References 199

Index 223