Can you be medically diagnosed with anxiety?

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You may start by seeing your primary care provider to check if your anxiety could be linked to your physical health. He or she can check for signs of an underlying medical condition that may need treatment.

If you have significant anxiety, you may need to contact a mental health professional. A psychiatrist is a physician who specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of mental illnesses. An anxiety disorder can be diagnosed and treated by a psychologist or other mental health practitioner (psychotherapy).

Your mental health professional may do the following to assist in the diagnosis of an anxiety disorder:

Give you a psychological evaluation

This entails talking about your thoughts, feelings, and behavior in order to narrow down a diagnosis and rule out any potential issues. Anxiety disorders can coexist with other mental health issues, such as depression or substance abuse, making diagnosis more difficult.

Compare your symptoms to the criteria in the DSM-5

To diagnose an anxiety disorder, many doctors utilize the criteria in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) issued by the American Psychiatric Association.

Treatment

Psychotherapy and medication are the two most common treatments for anxiety disorders. A mix of the two may be most beneficial to you. It could take some trial and error to figure out which therapies are the most effective for you.

Psychotherapy

Psychotherapy, often known as talk therapy or psychological counseling, entails working with a therapist to alleviate anxiety symptoms. It has the potential to be an effective anxiety therapy. For anxiety disorders, cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is the most effective form of psychotherapy. CBT is a short-term treatment that focuses on teaching you particular strategies to help you improve your symptoms and eventually resume activities you’ve avoided because of anxiety.

Medications

Depending on the type of anxiety illness you have and whether you also have other mental or physical health conditions, different drugs are used to assist reduce symptoms. Certain antidepressants are also used to treat anxiety disorders while medical marijuana for Anxiety is also commonly used.

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