Regaining Control of Your Life Through Evidence-Based Anxiety Treatment

Anxiety is a necessary part of life; it’s the fight-or-flight response that happens when you’re scared. Sometimes, however, anxiety becomes overwhelming, taking over every aspect of your life.

Generalized anxiety disorder is a prevalent mental health issue that causes intense feelings of worry or fear, even when the environment doesn’t warrant it. Symptoms are often overwhelming, sometimes feeling like a heart attack.

If you feel like your life is spiraling out of control from chronic anxiety, Pacific Phoenix Psychiatry & TMS has evidence-based treatments to help. Dr. Elia R. Gonzalez-Rodriguez offers compassion and treatments like TMS therapy and medication management to help you control anxiety attacks.

Signs anxiety is out of control

Anxiety is a mental health disorder that causes severe fear and mood changes. It sometimes goes hand-in-hand with depression.

Some anxiety is necessary, like before a big speech or first date. But when anxiety symptoms begin to take over everyday life, it becomes an issue. The following are symptoms that your anxiety is out of control:

• Increased anxiety attacks
• Feelings of your heart racing or palpitations
• Obsessing or continuous thought loops
• Difficulty sleeping
• Increased fatigue and restlessness
• Mood changes and irritability
• Trying to control the uncontrollable
• Ignoring what you need and avoidance

If you have any of these signs, seek treatment immediately. The sooner you get treatment, the faster you can relieve these symptoms.

Our evidence-based treatments

We are happy to offer evidence-based treatments that have helped millions of people with anxiety. Our team takes a proactive approach and offers various treatments to alleviate anxiety symptoms.

Some of the effective treatments we offer for people with anxiety include the following:

Medications

Therapy and lifestyle changes help for some, but they don’t always alleviate anxiety completely. Medications are an excellent way to even out neurotransmitters that may be out of whack with anxiety.

Common evidence-based medications for anxiety include Benzodiazepines, Selective-Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs), and Serotonin Norepinephrine Reuptake Inhibitors, or SNRIs.

Mindfulness techniques

Mindfulness techniques like meditation help keep the brain in the present, rather than worrying about the past or future. Science News Today reports that brain scans have shown that regular mindfulness activities reduce activity in the brain’s fear center – the amygdala.

Even a few minutes of meditation every day can significantly reduce anxiety symptoms. Exercises like yoga and walking are also great ways to clear your mind and diminish symptoms.

TMS Therapy

TMS stimulates the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex to help strengthen its control over the amygdala (the brain's fear center), reducing excessive worry and the fight-or-flight response.

What can I expect after treatment?

Treatment for anxiety is a multidisciplinary approach that takes time and patience. However, it’s very successful when you use evidence-based tools and treatments.

We listen carefully to your concerns and triggers to form a customized treatment plan. Typically, a plan includes medications, psychotherapy, and lifestyle therapies for the best results.

During treatment, the medications help to even out essential neurotransmitters that lead to anxiety. Psychotherapy allows us to understand your fears and triggers to give you the tools to overcome anxiety.

It may take several weeks, months, or years to beat anxiety – but often, it’s a lifelong condition. However, with the proper therapies and lifestyle changes, you can overcome your fears.

Find out more about our evidence-based anxiety treatments by contacting our Pacific Phoenix Psychiatry & TMS team to schedule your appointment or sending us a message through our website.