We can help you feel less fearful and more confident
Anxiety disorders affect 20 percent of the population — which is one in five adults — causing mild to severe impairment. Most anxiety disorders respond very well to Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT). In fact, CBT is the treatment of choice for most anxiety disorders. Anxiety disorders often emerge in pre-adolescents, and earlier treatment can often result in improved outcomes and a better quality of life for the person.
What is Generalized Anxiety Disorder?
Generalized Anxiety Disorder, or GAD, is the disorder of the “worry-wart.” Individuals with GAD worry all the time about a variety of issues. They also feel their worry is out of control and is potentially damaging to them. Physical symptoms may result in addition to excessive worrying, such as muscle tension, an inability to relax, nausea, dizziness, fatigue, or insomnia. The individual with GAD usually feels like “something is wrong” all of the time.
What is Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD)?
OCD is a heterogeneous disorder, which means that it manifests very differently in each person. Once it strikes, it is hard for the person to overcome it by themselves. In OCD, obsessions are persistent, unwanted thoughts, impulses, doubts, or images that seem intrusive, inappropriate, senseless, and distressing. Typically, obsessions are about:
- Making a mistake or harming someone
- Contamination from germs
- Order and symmetry
- Violence and aggression
- Sex
- Religion and morality
- Fear of having a mental or physical disorder
- Aspects of your physical appearance
- Obsessions often involve rituals, which are things that the person does to lower their anxiety
What is Panic Disorder?
Panic strikes usually out of the blue and occurs in as often as five percent of the total population. These attacks can involve intense feelings of fear, tachycardia (rapid heart rate), breathing disturbances, and dizziness, and can last from a few seconds to a few minutes. Attacks can be so intense that some people think that that they are dying, having a heart attack, or going crazy. New forms of therapy can cure this condition in as many as 91 percent of the cases with no recurrence. Treatment of panic disorder tends to be short-term and very effective.
What is Social Anxiety?
Social anxiety is usually elicited by interactions with new people or new situations. Individuals with social anxiety are described as “shy.” However, social anxiety is often much more severe than simple shyness. It impacts the person’s work life, personal life, and their ability to function, causing social and occupational impairment. Anxious anticipation of events requiring social interaction are common and are often accompanied by feelings of panic and threat days in advance of the event. Substance abuse is often associated with social anxiety, using alcohol or recreational drugs in an attempt to lower anxiety levels. Treatment can significantly improve a person’s confidence and ability to function in social situations.