About Dr.Peter Lambrou

When we talk about anxiety we are covering a lot of territory from phobic fears to chronic worry. The emotion of anxiety has many labels depending upon what version or cluster of symptoms you might experience. Acute fear ranks at the top of the intensity pyramid with a panic attack representing the zenith of that fearful state. The body becomes activated along a range of mental and physical signals that tell you you're uncomfortable and anxious.

Your body activates a specialized set of neural highways that stimulates the adrenal glands and brain neurotransmitters that prepare for either flight, fight, or to freeze - the natural options to life threats. Stress, triggered by either a real threat like a snake across your path or an imagined one like shadows resembling an intruder, produces anxious or fearful reactions. If such situations were only momentary your body would reset itself and be just fine, but if instead the perceived threats are more subtle and insidious, as are the stresses of modern life, then chronic anxiety may result.

Also, in some people an irrational fear develops where the mere thought of a situation, let alone the actual presence, results in a anxious response, such a phobias of animals, certain places (airplanes, elevators, freeways), or things (needles, blood) which cause a fearful and avoidance reaction.

Prevalence: Anxiety conditions are the most prevalent psychological conditions in America. Estimates are that 1 in 4 people will develop an anxiety condition at some time in their lives that is severe enough to deserve help. However, less than a fourth of people with serious anxiety or phobias will receive proper diagnosis and treatment.* American Psychological Association

Financial Impact: Anxiety - Panic - Phobias - PTSD and other anxiety conditions account for nearly 14 billion dollars of annual U.S. expenditures for psychiatric illness. * National Institutes of Mental Health

Causes: Anxiety disorders occur due to a combination of genetic and environmental factors. Recent scientific discoveries have identified up to 60 genes implicated in the development of a variety of anxiety conditions. Environmental factors such as an overload of stress also play a role, particularly in triggering an anxiety disorder in people with the genetic predisposition.

There are a number of anxiety disorders; below are the most common ones along with a brief description of each:

Generalized Anxiety - A condition characterized by chronic and excessive worry and nervousness.

Panic Disorders - Brief episodes or attacks of extreme and distressing symptoms that involve the body and mind which are so severe that fear of having such attacks becomes a preoccupation and often an avoidance from normal activities where a panic attack has occurred or might occur (called agoraphobia).

Social Anxiety -Worry and stress related to being in social situations often to the point that panic attacks may occur before or during social events such as work, play, education, and even small social events with other than family members.

Specific Phobias -The extreme fear and often avoidance of ordinary places, situations, or things such as elevators, blood or injections, or animals or insects. Panic attacks may occur for some sufferer before or during such encounters.

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder -A set of symptoms that may result from a situation or event in which a person is at risk of death or serious injury or where a person has witnessed such an event occurring to others. The symptoms produce elements of reliving of the trauma, over-active body reactions, and disconnection from self or aspects of life.

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder - A process of intrusive and unwanted thoughts that often lead to a specific set of behavior rituals that are intended to undo or stop the unwanted thoughts. For example, intrusive thoughts of contamination or disease may occur after touching the bottom of a shoe that lead a person to compulsively and excessively wash their hands.

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Treatment: Most anxiety disorders respond well to proper treatment that may include both medication and psychotherapy. While medications can help relieve symptoms, they do not cure the disorder. Psychotherapy, particularly cognitive and behavioral therapies can allow a sufferer to fully recover from the disorder. In some cases medication is helpful at the beginning of treatment to arrest the most severe symptoms and provide a window of opportunity for psychotherapy to become effective.

Prevention: Adequate stress management for individuals with a family history of one or another anxiety disorder may help prevent the development of a clinical disorder.

Social Factors: The fast pace of modern American life puts pressure to do more and rest less. High levels of change in the workplace, hectic family life, and the disconnection of extended family systems result in a loss of supportive relationships that can help with child-rearing, provide outlets for discussing problems, and prevent feelings of alienation or isolation.