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  • What We Treat
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    • Addiction Guide
      • Adderall Guide | Side Effects
      • Alcohol Addiction
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      • How can counseling help depression?
      • Treatments for Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD)
    • Bipolar Disorder
      • Bipolar Disorder: Symptoms, Causes, Diagnosis, Treatment
      • Is bipolar disorder genetic and triggered later on?
      • Is cognitive therapy effective for bipolar disorder?
    • Children & Adolescents Guide
      • 10 Warning Signs of Teenage Mental Illness
      • Munchausen Syndrome
      • How Does Social Media Affect Teenagers’ Mental Health?
      • Oppositional Defiant Disorder
      • Spotting Types of Depression in Children
      • Teen Suicide
      • Top Tips For Parents
      • Video Game Therapy for ADHD
      • What is a Residential Mental Health Facility for Teenagers Like
      • Why Is Mental Health on the Rise Amongst Teenagers?
    • Is Social Media Ruining Our Self-Esteem? 
    • Mental Health Guide
      • COVID Counseling to Battle Mental Health Issues
      • Guide to Anxiety Medication
      • Disruptive Mood Dysregulation Disorder
      • High Functioning Depression | Signs | Symptoms
      • How Can We Prevent Mental Illness in Youth?
      • How Do You Help Someone with Avoidant Personality?
      • How Does Online Counseling Work for Mental Health?
      • How Can a Mental Health Counselor Help
      • Mental Breakdown
      • Schizoid Personality Disorder
      • Postpartum Depression
      • Types of Mood Disorders
      • The Toll of Grief and How to Cope with It
      • What are The Major Affective Disorders?
      • What Cognitive Psychology Teaches Us About How We Think
      • What Is Clinical Mental Health Counseling
      • What are mental health symptoms you should never ignore?
      • What is Bipolar II Disorder? Symptoms and Treatment
      • What is the Difference Between Manic and Hypomanic?
      • What is schizoaffective disorder?
      • Is seasonal affective disorder (SAD) a mental illness?
      • What is substance induced mood disorder?
      • Is Depression a Permanent Mental Disorder?
      • What is the prognosis for Major Depressive Disorder?
    • Marriage Counseling | Benefits
    • Pandemic Related Issues
      • COVID Counseling to Battle Mental Health Issues
      • Work Stress Post-Pandemic
      • Shocking Growth of Anxiety During the Pandemic
    • Relationship Issues
      • How to deal with toxic relationship?
      • How does a toxic relationship affect your mental health?
      • What is gaslighting in a relationship?
      • What is the best way to help a partner who has trust issues?
      • What’s the best way to work out relationship problems?
      • 10 ways to improve communication in relationships
    • Spirituality in Addiction Treatment  
    • Therapy
      • Can I See a Psychiatrist Without a Referral?
      • DBT Therapy for Adolescents
      • DCBT- Digital Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
      • Deep Brain Stimulation to Treat OCD
      • Do I Need a Referral to See a Therapist?
      • Family Therapy: Definition, Types, Techniques, and Efficacy
      • How Can Interpersonal Psychotherapy (IPT) Help Mental Disorders?
      • EMDR Therapy for Mental Health Conditions
      • Psychiatrist vs. Psychologist
      • Is Therapy Covered by Health Insurance?
      • Psychodynamic Therapy vs CBT
      • Psychotherapy
      • SMART Recovery
      • What Can Psychologists Treat
      • What is Group Therapy
      • What is Internal Family Systems Therapy
      • What Is the Role of the Counselor in Family Therapy
      • What Is Psychoanalysis
    • Trauma Bonding With Intimate Partner Violence
    • Teen Mental Health
      • Can a Minor Go to Therapy Without Parents Permission?
      • Teen Co-Occurring Disorders
      • What are the signs of depression in adolescents?
      • warning signs of suicide in adolescents
      • Mental Health Benefits of Exercise in Teens
      • How is the pandemic affecting mental health in teenagers?
    • Types of Disorder
      • Anti-Social Personality Disorder
      • Autism Spectrum Disorder
      • Avoidant Personality Disorder
      • Bipolar Disorder Symptoms | Causes | Diagnosis
      • Diagnosing and Treating an Adjustment Disorder
      • Histrionic Personality Disorder
      • Intermittent Explosive Disorder
      • Paranoid Personality Disorder
    • Veterans Guide
      • Functional Medicine for Military
      • Service Dogs Help Veterans with PTSD
    • Process Addiction
      • Gambling addiction
      • How do you know if you have an addictive personality?
      • What is Impulse-Control Disorder?
      • Process Addiction

SHOCKING GROWTH OF ANXIETY During the Pandemic

The coronavirus pandemic was one of the most devastating events in recent history. Learn how anxiety has grown during the pandemic and who is being affected by it the most.

What is Anxiety?

Itis the body’s response to stress. Everyone can feel anxious about a particular event in their life, such as the first day of college, a job interview, or giving a public presentation. However, if a person’s feelings of anxiety are extreme and persist for an extended period, then they may be suffering from an anxiety disorder.

Anxiety disorders have cause problems in many parts of someone’s life, such as relationships with friends and family, school performance, and job satisfaction. Anxiety is the most common mental health issue in America, with over 40 million people suffering from an anxiety disorder at any given time.1I

Types of Anxiety Disorders

There are many different types of anxiety disorders, including:

GAD

Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) is long-lasting and excessive worry about everyday things, such as work deadlines and chores, and it can persist for months at a time. It can also cause physical symptoms like tension headaches, high blood pressure, dizziness with low energy levels, and difficulty concentrating.

It is estimated that 5.7% of U.S. adults experience a GAD at some time in their lives.2 However, GAD can often go unnoticed as people may not experience any symptoms until the condition becomes highly severe or even debilitating. Most people who have GAD also have other mental health problems such as depression or social phobia.

Social Anxiety

Social anxiety is the fear of social situations. The most noticeable symptom of a social anxiety disorder (SAD) is feeling that you might do something embarrassing or humiliating when meeting new people or speaking to others.

People SAD may worry about how they look, what others think of them, and whether people will judge them harshly. SAD is one of the most widespread mental health disorders in America today. Around 12.1% of U.S. adults experience a SAD at some time in their lives.3

Eco-Anxiety

In recent years, the term eco-anxiety has come to describe a concern about all of the environmental changes that are happening in our world and their effect on humanity. Some people who experience eco-anxiety may find that their worries or fears lead them to adopt an extreme approach such as eating only organic food, not flying on airplanes, or being vegan.

Eco-anxiety is not just a modern phenomenon. People have been worried about environmental change for centuries, but it has increased in recent years with all the new information and awareness that we have access to today.

The Rates of Anxiety

Testing for Anxiety

Doctors may perform a physical exam to assess whether any medical condition or medication contributes to the symptoms. You may be asked to discuss your symptoms, their frequency, and in what situations they appear.

Your doctor may determine a diagnosis based on the Criteria listed in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5). Self-report questionnaires about symptoms of social anxiety are another effective way of making a diagnosis.

Before and After the Pandemic

From January to June 2019, only one in ten adults reported symptoms of anxiety or depressive disorder. 4

That number grew to about four in ten adults who are suffering from anxiety or depressive disorder during the pandemic.

Who was Affected the Most?

Young Adults

During the pandemic, 56% of young adults reported symptoms of anxiety and/or depressive disorder. 4

The closures of universities and loss of income are some of the reasons for the rise of mental health issues in young adults during the pandemic.

Unemployed

During the pandemic, 53% of adults in households with job loss or lower incomes reported higher rates of symptoms of mental illness compared to 32% of adults in households without a job or income loss. 4

Research shows that job loss can lead to increased depression, anxiety, distress, and low self-esteem.

Women with Children

Women with children are more likely to experience anxiety or depressive disorder than men with children (49% vs. 40%).4

Mothers may be at risk for poor mental health as many are experiencing challenges with the closings of schools and lack of childcare.

People of Color

Around 41% of Non-Hispanic White adults reported symptoms of anxiety and/or depressive disorder. To compare, 48% of Non-Hispanic Black adults and Hispanic or Latino adults (46%) reported symptoms of anxiety and/or depressive disorder.4

Communities of color have historically experienced challenges getting access to mental health care. The pandemic has had a greater effect on the health of communities of color than Non-Hispanic White adults.

Essential Workers

It is estimated that 42% of essential workers are likely to report symptoms of anxiety or depressive disorder, compared to 30% of non-essential workers.4

Essential workers are at greater risk of contracting the coronavirus than non-essential workers.

Access to Mental Health Care

Shocking Growth of Anxiety During the Pandemic| PacificBeachHealth

Problems Before the Pandemic

Access to mental health care was a concern even before the pandemic. In 2018, only 44% of 6.5 million nonelderly adults who experienced severe psychological distress reported seeing a mental health professional. Adults with serious mental health issues were more likely not to be insured than adults without severe psychological distress (20% vs. 13%) or able to afford mental health care or counseling (21% vs. 3%).4

Problems During and After the Pandemic

Looking at history, disasters have a longer-lasting impact on people’s mental health than their physical health. In other words, the mental health issues due to the pandemic will likely continue well beyond the coronavirus outbreak. According to projections based on the social isolation measures and economic downturn, deaths due to suicide, alcohol, or drug misuse may continue by 2029.4

What the United States Has Done to Help

The Consolidated Appropriations Act

The Consolidated Appropriations Act is a $4.25 billion spending bill for mental health and substance use services. The funding is the largest amount behavioral health groups have received in a spending bill, representing the rising awareness of the impact the pandemic has on people’s mental health.

CARES Act

The CARES Act is a stimulus bill that allocates funding for mental health and substance use services. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration will receive $425 million to address mental health and substance use disorder needs due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Mental Health Treatment

Types of Therapy Used

CBT

According to studies, CBT therapy is both efficacious and effective in the treatment of anxiety disorders. 5 It can be used in conjunction with medication as an adjunct treatment or alone when appropriate. Typically, it includes exercises aimed at changing maladaptive thoughts and behaviors.

Exposure Therapy

Exposure therapy is a technique in behavior therapy to treat anxiety disorders. It is a type of CBT that involves exposing the patient to gradual increases in anxiety-causing stimuli, such as people or social situations.

Ecopsychology

The field of ecopsychology is a relatively new one as it has only been around for about fifty years. It is an interdisciplinary and transdisciplinarity field that focuses on studying the emotional bond between humans and the earth. It takes a holistic stance on the emotional connection between humans and considers its role in human behavior, health, culture, spirituality, and creativity.

Medications

Gabapentin

Gabapentin is an anticonvulsant medication found to be effective in the treatment of anxiety disorders. Gabapentin works by stabilizing brain signaling and thus reducing excessive activity in the central nervous system.

Hydroxyzine

Hydroxyzine is a popular antihistamine drug that can be used to treat anxiety disorders. It works by blocking the effects of histamines in the brain and reduces symptoms of panic attacks, obsessive-compulsive disorder, social phobia, and post-traumatic stress disorder.

Propranolol

Propranolol is a beta-blocker that can be used as an anti-anxiety agent. It has been found to have the same calming effect on people who suffer from anxiety disorders and phobias but do not respond well to other medications like benzodiazepines or hydroxyzine.

Resources

  1. https://adaa.org/understanding-anxiety/facts statistics#:~:text=Anxiety% 20disorders%20are%20the% 20most,of%20those%20 suffering%20receive%20 treatment
  2. https://www.nimh.nih.gov/ health/statistics/ generalized anxiety-disorder#:~:text=Prevalence %20of%20Generalized% 20Anxiety%20Disorder% 20Among%20Adults,-Based%20on%20diagnostic& text=An%20estimated%202. 7%25%20of%20U.S.,than% 20for%20males%20(1.9%25)
  3. https://www.nimh.nih.gov/ health/statistics/social-anxiety-disorder
  4. https://www.kff.org/coronavirus-covid-19/issue-brief/the-implications-of-covid-19-for-mental-health-and-substance-use/
  5. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/ pmc/articles/PMC3263389

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