Everyone who has diabetes worries about diabetes related concerns. Worrying about your blood sugars or about the possibility of developing complications is as normal as worrying about your job, your marriage, and your children. A clinical anxiety disorder, like clinical depression, is different from this kind of normal worry. It makes the worrying so intense, so uncomfortable, and so long-lasting that you may hardly be able to function.
Clinical anxiety symptoms
A clinical anxiety disorder would probably be diagnosed if you are uncontrollably anxious for at least six months and if you worry excessively about a number of events or activities (such as work or school performance or your diabetes management), and if during that period you had at least three of the following symptoms for more days than you did not:
- Restlessness or feeling keyed up or on edge
- Easily growing tired
- Difficulty concentrating or mind going blank
- Irritability
- Muscle tension
- Sleep disturbance(difficulty falling or staying asleep,
or restless, unsatisfying sleep)
You probably noticed that some of these symptoms are identical to those of clinical depression. There is an overlap, because some psychological problems share similar symptoms and because some people suffer from more than one disorder. This again brings up an important point: if you have any signs of a clinical psychological disorder, get help. What particular disorder you may be suffering from matters less than the fact that you are suffering.
Very little is known about the rate of anxiety disorder among people with diabetes, but studies conducted at the Johns Hopkins Diabetes Center suggest that it is as common as depression among people with diabetes and that both anxiety disorder and depression occur at a much higher rate among people with diabetes than among those without diabetes.
Very little is known about the rate of anxiety disorder among people with diabetes, but studies conducted at the Johns Hopkins Diabetes Center suggest that it is as common as depression among people with diabetes and that both anxiety disorder and depression occur at a much higher rate among people with diabetes than among those without diabetes.
Fortunately, there are things you can do to help yourself if you have an anxiety disorder, including some you can do on your own. First, identify the fears that are creating your disorder. Then see if you can do anything to relieve those fears.
If you are afraid you may develop complications, ask your health care provider for the facts about exactly where you stand and what you can do to minimize your risk. If you are anxious about the effect your diabetes may be having on your family life, try talking out these fears with your loved ones.
If these self-help efforts are not enough—and they may not be if your anxieties have a real hold on you— get professional help. All the guidelines for depression counseling we offered above apply here as well. There are also medications you can take which may help relieve your anxiety disorder. Commonly prescribed anti-anxiety drugs include Ativan (lorazepam), BuSpar (buspirone), Serax (oazepam), Tranxene (clorazepate), and Xanax (alprazolam).
About Author : Bispo is a health & wellness enthusiastist writer with interests around anxiety and depression.
Image Source 1
