GAD Generalized Anxiety Disorders Information & Support Group

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Treatments for General Anxiety Disorder

Treatments for GAD, (Generalized Anxiety Disorder) sometimes include medications and cognitive-behavioral therapy. If you have GAD, part of the treatment involved is that you will have to learn ways to cope with your anxiety and constant worrying.  You will need to discuss your problem thoroughly with your medical care professional and he/she will decide what is the best route to take for you.  Be open to suggestion because you may need  to see a counselor to discuss what is making you so tense.  In more severe cases of Generalized Anxiety Disorder, you may need to take medication to decrease anxiety levels.  These are things you will need to approach with your doctor because they will be able to recommend the treatment that would be best for you.

Unlike some mental disorders, there is a bright side to having Generalized Anxiety Disorder, it is not a life-long disease.  Patients with GAD can and do get better. If the patient is willing to go through the proper treatment, therapy, med program (if all three are required, that depends on the individual) it is possible to be cured of this disorder.

Results from a double-blind, placebo-controlled multicenter study indicate that patients with Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) receiving a mild anxiety medication experience a 60 percent reduction in anxiety symptoms. The study included 566 patients with GAD between 18 and 80 years of age. Patients receiving medication, a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor, showed significant reductions in tension, severity of illness, and disability.  Patients taking monoamine oxidase inhibitors should not take some medications, so make sure you discuss the meds you are already taking with the doctor that is helping you through your treatment with GAD.

If one medication is not successful in treating the symptoms there are others to try.  New medications are being tested are being developed to treat anxiety problems, there are also medications you can take that are not addicting for patients who had problems in the past with alcoholism and addiction to drugs. 

The doctor will usually start a patient on a low dose of medication and gradually increase or decrease as needed throughout treatment.  A lot of these medications have side effects but they do become tolerable and diminish with time, if side effects become a problem, make sure you tell your doctor about it, he/she may find it necessary to discontinue that particular medication, let it get out of your system and change it to something you can tolerate.  When the patient is nearly through with treatment, the doctor will taper the medication dosage gradually

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