Anxiety: I'm anxious to begin!

Hello, Beautiful World!

Even though I've only just started blogging, I'm in love with it and am so excited to be able to post again :) Without further ado, welcome back and let's begin with a quick tale of my Week 1 journey! 😆

This week, I began my on-site internship at A New Beginning! I'm so grateful to be able to work with a team of such lovely, kind therapists. They made me feel so welcome, and are so inspiring 💕 I got a more in-depth understanding of how the office works, signed some confidentiality papers (I know, I'm doing more adult, paperwork things... makes me actually feel 18 haha), and was introduced to the whole team. Although I couldn't sit-in for their whole staff meeting on Tuesday for confidentiality reasons, being a part of their conversation showed me just how kind, compassionate, and supporting these powerful women are 😊.

Me feeling like a professional grown-up

Getting to the main point, my disorder for the week was anxiety (could you guess from the title of this post? 😉 I tried to be punny, but let me know if you guys would rather have better/different titles haha). Before I get to the details, I'd like to start off by giving some statistics on anxiety disorders:

• Impacting 40 million Americans (18% of the US population), anxiety disorders are the most common mental health issue.*
• Estimates are also deemed to be much higher, almost 30% of the population, because many people do not seek out professional help, do not know they are suffering from anxiety, or are improperly diagnosed.**
• Although anxiety disorders can be easily and effectively treated, only approximately one-third of those suffering from anxiety receive treatment.*
• Research demonstrates that behavioral treatment, with or without medications, is an extremely effective treatment for most people diagnosed with an anxiety disorder.***

After reading about these statistics, the main question that lingered with me throughout the week was: if behavioral therapy with the guidance of a therapist is so beneficial, why are many people not pursuing treatment for their anxiety disorder(s)?

Before meeting with Taana Abbitt, a clinical therapist at A New Beginning who specializes in anxiety disorders, I did my own research. After creating a survey to send out to friends and cousins (some who have taken AP Psychology, and some who haven't), which included multiple-choice, short-answer, and true/false questions regarding their preconceived notions on anxiety disorders, I also investigated through movies that depicted anxiety disorders and/or anxiety in general. I made a list of all of the ways people perceived and presented anxiety disorders, and went in for an hour-long meeting with Taana to see a more clinical point-of-view.

Taana Abbitt, MSW, LMSW

Starting off the meeting by asking her what misconceptions patients generally came into the clinic with in terms of anxiety disorders, I learned that many people feel that it's unusual to have anxiety (shocking right, considering the statistics on anxiety?!). Even though it is very common to experience anxiety based on peoples' situations/history and is easily treated, people come in nervous, embarrassed, and ashamed, thinking that there is something wrong with them because they are experiencing anxiety symptoms. Why is it that, despite so many people facing them, anxiety disorders are considered uncommon? This quite literally blew my mind away. From here, Taana told me more about anxiety as a disorder, using the questions in my survey as a basis.

Some misconceptions:

• Myth: Anxiety disorders come about in two ways: passed genetically or environmentally learned (learned response)
• Truth: Yes, but anxiety disorders can also be triggered by traumatic events.
• Myth: If you have anxiety, you should avoid things that stress you because it will trigger an anxiety attack.
• Truth: It's actually the exact opposite (except for with phobias). When people have a fear of something, anxiety tells them to avoid that thing; when that urge to avoid is listened to, it reinforces the fear, making it harder every time to face the fear. Instead, with the guidance and help of a psychologist, they need to carefully expose themselves a little at a time to what they're afraid of and tolerate the anxiety. When repeated, the anxiety will subside because they'll see that they can face the fear. 
• Myth: If one lives a healthy lifestyle (exercise, eat right, etc.), (s)he won't have anxiety.
• Truth: Although self-care can reduce anxiety, it does not prevent the anxiety disorder or make it disappear. 

Some things that can be myths or truths, depending upon the case:

• Anxiety attacks can, but do not have to be triggered by something to occur. They often are triggered by something, but it can be hard to identify and be aware of the trigger. When people come into therapy sessions, however, therapists often can help make sense of it and help identify the trigger. 
• Medicine can sometimes be very effective in helping to treat anxiety disorders. Anxiety and panic attacks may be so overwhelming at times that behavioral techniques are not effective, especially when first learning them. Many people experience the most relief when they use a combination of medication and therapy.
• Anxiety disorders are not always caused by chemical imbalances in the brain; they could be caused by experiences that are perceived as traumatic to the individual (including emotional trauma), meaning it overwhelms their ability to cope with and process the event.

Some thing that is deemed to be a myth, but is actually true:

• Symptoms, although many, tend to be the same among those with anxiety disorders:
• Common anxiety or panic attack symptoms include: elevated heart rate, shortness of breath, sense of dis-ease, muscle tension, adrenaline rush (could lead to a sick feeling and/or nausea), sense of detachment from body, dry mouth, and a sense that time has slowed down/stopped

Since the media plays a huge role in how we perceive things, I also asked Taana about she felt regarding the portrayal of anxiety disorders in Inside Out, What about Bob?, and YouTube. 

• Inside Out:
• Although it is animated, the portrayal of anxiety and fear is pretty accurate. Yay, Disney!!!

• What about Bob?
• This movie is more of a depiction of a personality dependent disorder than an anxiety disorder. Bob doesn't respect or seem aware of appropriate boundaries 😂. Someone with an anxiety disorder would not be as bold, demanding, or persistent in general because (s)he would be too anxious and/or worried to ask for help (which is very unlike Bob-> please refer to the gif below😶)

• YouTube:
• YouTubers, such as Zoella and Meghan Rienks, are openly showing the reality of living with anxiety disorders, building a support community by creating more awareness in the public. 

Going back to my original questions, if behavioral therapy is so beneficial, why are many people not pursuing treatment for their anxiety disorder(s)? Why is it that, despite so many people facing them, anxiety disorders are considered uncommon? The simplest, one-word answer is: shame. In the US especially, we face a cultural problem that creates much shame around mental health issues. That mental health issues are something to hide. Something one should be able to fix on his or her own. We treat mental health issues like a secret, and this only reinforces the idea that something is wrong with a person who is diagnosed with them. We're creating all of these social stigmas because of our culture of invulnerability. Why is it that only one-third of those diagnosed with anxiety disorders receive treatment? Because they feel alone. They feel that they have to fix their problem on their own. But they can't. Anxiety disorders are easy to treat, but they are difficult to self-treat. With YouTubers having taken the initiative, we the people need to connect, spread awareness, and create a community where we can realize that these mental health issues that we deem so unusual are actually very common.

I hope you guys like my Week 1 post! Thank you all for following me on this journey, and showing me so much support!

Lots of love 💗,

--Saleena 

Sources: 

*Facts & Statistics | Anxiety and Depression Association of America (2016, August). Retrieved October 24, 2016, from https://www.adaa.org/about-adaa/press-room/facts-statistics
**Anxiety Effects on Society Statistics (2015, June). Retrieved February 7, 2017, from http://www.anxietycentre.com/anxiety-statistics-information.shtml
***Beyond Worry: How Psychologists Help With Anxiety Disorders (2016, October). Retrieved February 8, 2017, from http://www.apa.org/helpcenter/anxiety.aspx