Anxiety Disorders and Treatments

Bellringer Reflect on a stressful situation. Write a brief description of a recent situation that caused you stress. Summarize your mental, emotional and physical states at the time. Complete your stress logs for today!

Stress vs. Anxiety: Symptoms shortness of breath Shakiness muscle aches and tension tight chest racing heart choking sensations numbness or tingling feelings of unreality irritability insomnia restlessness sweating and nausea abdominal distress

Anxiety Disorders What we will cover today: OCD PTSD (Post-traumatic stress disorder) To be aware of: GAD (General Anxiety Disorder) Phobias

PTSD: As you watch, write… What are 3 symptoms of PTSD? What is a potential cause of the disorder? Why is it so problematic that it wasn’t diagnosed until 50 years after WWII? – – Language – imagery – duration disclaimer

PTSD: Symptoms 1.Re-experiencing – Flashbacks – Intrusive thoughts and images – Nightmares 2.Avoidance – People with PTSD avoid stimuli (situations and people) that remind them of a trauma in their past 3.Traumatic event: – Must cause extreme fear or sense of helplessness (murder, rape, war) 4.Hyperactivity – Anger, trouble sleeping, exaggerated startle response

PTSD: Causes? Brainstorm with a partner to come up with a short list of triggers for PTSD other than on the battlefield.

Causes of PTSD 1.Thought Suppression – Don’t think of a purple elephant – Also – internal attributions 2.Traumatic Event – Symptom as well as a cause

Think… What is this man’s maladaptive thought? How is it being treated? X5v4 X5v4

Exposure Therapy A method of therapy that involves gradually facing fears in a controlled and supportive manner. – The man’s afraid of dogs Expose him to a dog Don’t allow him to run or avoid it – Make the dog move closer – Make him pet it with support – Anxiety decreases with exposures PTSD – Simulations and images – Forced recollections

Mindfulness Based Therapy: A form of psychotherapy that focuses on staying in the moment, accepting things as they are and not- judging your thoughts. (MAN) – MOMENT: Forget about the past and the future. Be PRESENT – ACCEPTANCE: Don’t think about how your life should or could be. Accept that both good and bad are parts of life. – NO JUDGEMENT: When an intrusive thought crosses your mind, acknowledge it, and allow it to go on its way.

Mindfulness: Guided Practice Meditation The Game of 5 – Focus on 5 things in this room or on your body, that you don’t normally notice (the foot of a chair, the grain in the desk) – Observe and do not judge. Look at it with fresh eyes. What haven’t you noticed before?

Independent Practice Groups of 2 – Psychologist – Patient THE PATIENT’s JOB – Decide whether you have OCD or PTSD. Review the symptoms and act as though you suffer from the disorder. BE EMPATHETIC – this is not a sitcom. THE PSYCHOLOGIST’s JOB – Ask the patient questions to correctly diagnose your patient. EXIT TICKET – Patient – describe what you said to reveal your symptoms. Describe what your psychologist recommends for preliminary therapy. – Psychologist – describe what you heard that helped you diagnose them and how you planned to treat them.

Example Psychologist: How are you? What brings you in today? Patient: My friends told me I should talk to somebody. Psychologist: Why did they say that? Patient: I’ve been on edge for a while now. Lashing out. Starting fights. Psychologist: It sounds like you’re going through what must be a very difficult time. When did this behavior begin? Patient: It’s been a while now. Ever since I came back from Europe. Psychologist: Did anything happen while you were there? Anything bad that might have caused fear or distress? Patient: I was mugged pretty badly. Psychologist: Do you ever have dreams about the mugging? Or have trouble getting thoughts of the mugging out of your mind? TREATMENT: I would recommend a course of EXPOSURE THERAPY where we will go back and think through the experience in depth, confront what happened little by little and work up the strength to get past it together.

PTSD: Case Study

Meditation