Anxiety Disorders
Anxiety disorders represent a broad psychiatric category with diverse clinical manifestations.
Starting from the assumption that anxiety is a physiological and “normal” experience (it protects from potentially dangerous situations) when it exceeds a certain “threshold” it can be defined as pathological, certainly when it compromises the quality of life of the patient and becomes maladaptive.
Pathological anxiety can manifest itself in the form of feelings of generalized worry (everything becomes unbearable), or of panic (brief periods in which one experiences the sensation of “going crazy” with important physiological correlates), or in the form of thoughts that invade the mind (obsessions). Very often it is accompanied by physical correlates called “somatizations”. The subject has objectively important organic disorders (stomach ache, muscle tension, headache, etc.) that however have no medical justification except anxiety. These aspects often distress the subject, who is not believed but can also be invalidated by the somatization symptom.
The causes of anxiety disorders are multifactorial: biological, psychological and social aspects can contribute significantly to the development of symptoms.
In biological terms we hypothesize a neurotransmitter dysregulation (chemical, in particular serotonin and norepinephrine) determined both by genetic aspects and any major traumatic events. In psychological terms it is possible to identify a certain “insecurity” present from a young age that favours the development of a more significant disorder in adulthood. Environmental aspects play a decisive role especially if there are traumatic events or significant losses that the subject is unable to process.
The treatment is very variable depending on the extent of the disorder and its manifestations: in some cases a good psychotherapeutic course is sufficient to support the person in learning anxiety management strategies (cognitive behavioural therapy), in other cases it is necessary to deepen aspects of the person’s life history to understand the deep origins of the disorder (psychodynamic psychotherapy).
In other cases the use of pharmacological therapy appears indispensable to contain acute disabling symptoms (such as panic) although it should be carefully suggested by specialists given the risk of dependence on certain categories of psychotropic drugs (benzodiazepines).
Anxiety disorders represent a broad psychiatric category with diverse clinical manifestations.
Starting from the assumption that anxiety is a physiological and “normal” experience (it protects from potentially dangerous situations) when it exceeds a certain “threshold” it can be defined as pathological, certainly when it compromises the quality of life of the patient and becomes maladaptive.
Pathological anxiety can manifest itself in the form of feelings of generalized worry (everything becomes unbearable), or of panic (brief periods in which one experiences the sensation of “going crazy” with important physiological correlates), or in the form of thoughts that invade the mind (obsessions). Very often it is accompanied by physical correlates called “somatizations”. The subject has objectively important organic disorders (stomach ache, muscle tension, headache, etc.) that however have no medical justification except anxiety. These aspects often distress the subject, who is not believed but can also be invalidated by the somatization symptom.
The causes of anxiety disorders are multifactorial: biological, psychological and social aspects can contribute significantly to the development of symptoms.
In biological terms we hypothesize a neurotransmitter dysregulation (chemical, in particular serotonin and norepinephrine) determined both by genetic aspects and any major traumatic events. In psychological terms it is possible to identify a certain “insecurity” present from a young age that favours the development of a more significant disorder in adulthood. Environmental aspects play a decisive role especially if there are traumatic events or significant losses that the subject is unable to process.
The treatment is very variable depending on the extent of the disorder and its manifestations: in some cases a good psychotherapeutic course is sufficient to support the person in learning anxiety management strategies (cognitive behavioural therapy), in other cases it is necessary to deepen aspects of the person’s life history to understand the deep origins of the disorder (psychodynamic psychotherapy).
In other cases the use of pharmacological therapy appears indispensable to contain acute disabling symptoms (such as panic) although it should be carefully suggested by specialists given the risk of dependence on certain categories of psychotropic drugs (benzodiazepines).
