Health Behavior Report: Generalized Anxiety Disorder and Public Health

This report provides a detailed overview of Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD), a prevalent public health issue. It begins with an introduction and an overview of GAD, including its characteristics and impact on individuals' lives. The report then explores the prevalence of GAD, highlighting the statistics and demographics affected. It delves into the various causes and factors contributing to GAD, such as genetic predisposition, stressful situations, and substance use. The consequences of GAD are discussed, including increased healthcare costs and decreased productivity. The report then examines the current interventions and treatments for GAD, such as pharmacological treatments and cognitive behavioral therapies. It also provides suggestions for addressing the issue, including family support and increased accessibility to health services. Finally, the report concludes by summarizing the key findings and emphasizing the need for effective and timely interventions to manage GAD and improve public health outcomes. The report also highlights the gaps in current approaches and suggests future interventions, such as screening programs and improved access to healthcare.

Running Head: HEALTH BEHAVIOR
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Health Behaviour
12/2/2018

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Contents
Introduction...........................................................................................................................................2
Overview of Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD)..............................................................................2
What has been done...............................................................................................................................3
Suggestions............................................................................................................................................4
Conclusion.............................................................................................................................................4
References.............................................................................................................................................6

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Introduction
The report brings about the discussion on the topic, ‘Generalized Anxiety disorder’,
and the aspects related. Generalized anxiety disorder is one of the most common health issues
within every country in the individuals. The disorder is associated to be the result of various
factors, and impacts which will be discussed in the later part of the report.
Overview of Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD)
Generalized Anxiety disorder (GAD) refers to an anxiety disorder which is related
with certain characteristics of excessive, uncontrollable tenseness about any event or
activities. Physical symptoms often accompany as individuals such as tiredness, headaches,
numbness in hands, irritability, difficulties in concentration, breathing problems and several
others. GAD affects the quality of life of an individual in every aspect including social,
family, school, and work (Stein & Sareen, 2015).
Prevalence/ Magnitude of GAD
It has been found that the issue of anxiety disorders are the most common mental
illness; across several countries, approximately 40 million populations have been affected by
the anxiety disorder in United States. Moreover, the disorder is differently prevalent across
various gender, ethnic, and social groups. In the U.S. adults affected with GAD, their
condition ranged from mild to serious in the previous year. Prevalence and incidence of the
disorder is higher in women (3%) than man (1.5%) (Baxter et al., 2014).

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(Source: National Institute of Mental Health, 2018)
The graph above has represented about the prevalence of the depressive episode in
2015, in context to the mental health issue of GAD, during different age-groups amongst
diverse population in the U.S.
The diagram below depicts the high prevalence of the anxiety disorder among adults, during
their onset of childhood, and in the later period of life.
Source: (Anxiety, Panic and health, 2018)

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Causes /Factors leading to GAD
Anxiety disorder, as a common public health issue is caused due to several reasons or
factors such as genetic or substance-induced. Genes or the family history has been found as
the one of the common causes of the generalized anxiety disorder. In addition to the genes, or
family history, there are some other causes such as stressful situations, occurring due to
family illness or personal health issue, leads to GAD. Substance induced causes include
person with excessive use of tobacco, alcohol, or caffeine; also termed as risk factors causing
anxiety (Bandelow & Michaelis, 2015).
Consequences
Anxiety disorder leads to increases healthcare costs, and hamper the economic growth
of the nation. GAD-related medications and the therapies provided to the patients in the
hospitals often leads to an increase in the costs of the health cares. As it has been also found
that in U.S people with the disorder have decreased productivity, and there has been a
constant rise in the economic burden (Berger et al., 2011).
(Source: Anxiety Centre, 2018)

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The pie-chart above has stated well about the consequences of the anxiety disorder in
the population of United States. It has been represented that 30% of the adult population has
been suffering from the issue of anxiety disorder in North America, which has affected their
state of wellbeing. In addition, the percent of population who will receive treatment is only
one third which is a very less number.
What has been done
To discover what has been done till to address the public health issue of GAD, it has
been found that there has been pharmacological treatments used already to treat anxiety
disorders in individuals. Anxiety management therapies involve education, relaxation
training, and the exposure to the individual which helps the person in overcoming the fears or
unnecessary tension for anything (Cuijpers et al., 2016). Cognitive behavioural therapies
(CBT) or cognitive restructuring is one of the techniques which have been used by the
communities and health organisations where at first the expert or the therapist first identifies
all the thoughts which make the person afraid, in those anxiety-provoking situations
(Bystritsky et al., 2013).
Afterwards, the therapist or expert tells the person verbally to involve himself in some
alternative thoughts which would be a rational response in those fear-provoking situations. In
this way, the person will gain confidence to deal with such situations patiently, and gradually
he will be able to deal with the disorder in an effective manner (Herzig-Anderson et al.,
2012).
Behavioural psychotherapies are widely used for treating anxiety disorders, and self-
exposure treatment requires that professionals make the anxious patient deliberately involved
in the fear provoking situations, to make him come out of the trauma. According to the
aspects of the socio-ecological model in context to the anxiety disorder, there has been
contribution of several healthcare organisations, individuals, families in supporting the people
facing the problem of anxiety disorder. The patients or individuals found to be dealing with
the anxiety disorder are provided with the doctors or the therapists social skills training,
which helps them to improve their social interaction with people. An assumption has been
analysed based on this technique that people are anxious in the social situations partly
because these people lack in the behaviour or skills required to interact socially within the
community (Salihu et al., 2015).

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Suggestions
Anxiety disorder has been major public health issue across different regions and
countries, which requires to be treated effectively timely. Thus, there can be certain
suggestions or recommendations in context to the generalized anxiety disorder. These
suggestions include that the families or other members must provide support or help to the
patients, and develop an open and healthy relationship with them. They must engage in
exploring the reasons of the worries efficiently, and develop an intervention to deal with
them. In addition, they should perform the responsibility by providing the patient,
information regarding the available local and self-help organisations which would help them
to deal and recover from this order. As per the above discussion disclosed about what has
been done or the programs which has been already implemented. The strategies or programs
implemented include assessment of the stressful situations, symptoms, effect of the programs
on the person or the society (Khoury et al., 2015).
There have been certain gaps in the structuring of the problems, and dealing with the
disorder, which mainly includes the gap of education to the people from low or poor
background in the society; as they are unable to get access to better health, and the facilities
of therapists. Gaps in the treatment or medications provided to the people from rural areas
were one of the major issues. From the above description about the causes, consequences,
and what has been already done the gaps were found in the planning activities undertaken by
healthcare organisations; as they focused only on the urban population while people from
rural areas were neglected. Due to ineffective planning and inactive behaviour of health
professional’s people continued to be affected by anxiety disorder. Thus, the research
findings has stated about things which were done, and the interventions which were taken by
people, i.e. health professionals and the people/patients within society. However, there has
been no discussion about the ways to increase accessibility to the health services, and
reducing the treatment gap between the individual patients from both rural and urban areas in
the community.
Future intervention which can be applied in the cases of anxiety disorders may
include identifying the components of PHC (primary health care) at first, and then
accomplishing the goals to deal with anxiety disorder patients. The program before
implementation will include a survey to be conducted in every community which consist of
the activities of screening of individuals found with the disorder. I will conduct a survey and
select individuals found with disorder, and then assure them with effective medications and

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therapies on a regular basis. Therefore, I will lead to the last step of evaluation of the program
by taking a feedback from those patients weekly so that they can suggest any further changes
if any required in the program.
Conclusion
To conclude the above discussion it has been analysed that the issue of generalized
anxiety disorder (GAD) is widely prevalent in all the communities amongst individuals at
every age. The fact sheet above discussed about the causes, consequences on the person’s
health and the interventions or suggestions which would help people to deal with their
anxiety or mental health illness.

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References
Anxiety Centre. (2018). Anxiety effects on Society Statistics. Retrieved from:
https://www.anxietycentre.com/anxiety-statistics-information.shtml
Anxiety, Panic & Health. (2018). Adult separation Anxiety Disorder. Retrieved from:
https://anxietypanichealth.com/reference/separation-anxiety-disorder-adult/
Bandelow, B. & Michaelis, S. (2015). Epidemiology of anxiety disorders in the 21st
century. Dialogues in clinical neuroscience, 17(3), 327.
Baxter, A. J., Vos, T., Scott, K. M., Ferrari, A. J. & Whiteford, H. A. (2014). The global
burden of anxiety disorders in 2010. Psychological medicine, 44(11), 2363-2374.
Berger, A., Edelsberg, J., Bollu, V., Alvir, J. M. J., Dugar, A., Joshi, A. V. & Oster, G.
(2011). Healthcare utilization and costs in patients beginning pharmacotherapy for
generalized anxiety disorder: a retrospective cohort study. BMC psychiatry, 11(1),
193.
Bystritsky, A., Khalsa, S. S., Cameron, M. E. & Schiffman, J. (2013). Current diagnosis and
treatment of anxiety disorders. Pharmacy and Therapeutics, 38(1), 30.
Cuijpers, P., Cristea, I. A., Karyotaki, E., Reijnders, M. & Huibers, M. J. (2016). How
effective are cognitive behaviour therapies for major depression and anxiety
disorders? A meta‐analytic update of the evidence. World Psychiatry, 15(3), 245-258.
Herzig-Anderson, K., Colognori, D., Fox, J. K., Stewart, C. E. & Warner, C. M. (2012).
School-based anxiety treatments for children and adolescents. Child and Adolescent
Psychiatric Clinics, 21(3), 655-668.
Khoury, B., Sharma, M., Rush, S. E. & Fournier, C. (2015). Mindfulness-based stress
reduction for healthy individuals: a meta-analysis. Journal of psychosomatic research,
78(6), 519-528.
National Institute of Mental Health. (2018). Major Depression in Adults. Retrieved from:
https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/statistics/prevalence/major-depression-among-
adults.shtml/index.shtml

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Salihu, H. M., Wilson, R. E., King, L. M., Marty, P. J. & Whiteman, V. E. (2015). Socio-
ecological model as a framework for overcoming barriers and challenges in
randomized control trials in minority and underserved communities. International
Journal of MCH and AIDS, 3(1), 85.
Stein, M. B. & Sareen, J. (2015). Generalized anxiety disorder. New England Journal of
Medicine, 373(21), 2059-2068.