SSRIs are being used more and more as treatment for anxiety disorders.
They have shown to be effective without the severity of side effects associated with previous treatments such as benzodiazepines and other more toxic medications.
What are Anxiety Disorders Anxiety is a rather broad term that actually describes several mental ailments.
Some of the more common anxiety disorders are as follows:
Generally it takes two to four weeks before the SSRI begins to be fully effective.
There have also been some patients that have reported having an increase in their anxiety symptoms during this phase of the treatment.
As such, many doctors continue the use, or advise the use of benzodiazepines during the initial phase of the treatment just for the purpose of alleviating symptoms until the SSRI takes effect.
SSRIs and How They Treat Anxiety Disorders SSRIs have different effects and different dosing strategies based upon the differing anxiety disorders.
They have shown to be effective without the severity of side effects associated with previous treatments such as benzodiazepines and other more toxic medications.
What are Anxiety Disorders Anxiety is a rather broad term that actually describes several mental ailments.
Some of the more common anxiety disorders are as follows:
- Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD)
- Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD)
- Panic Disorder
- Phobias
- Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
Generally it takes two to four weeks before the SSRI begins to be fully effective.
There have also been some patients that have reported having an increase in their anxiety symptoms during this phase of the treatment.
As such, many doctors continue the use, or advise the use of benzodiazepines during the initial phase of the treatment just for the purpose of alleviating symptoms until the SSRI takes effect.
SSRIs and How They Treat Anxiety Disorders SSRIs have different effects and different dosing strategies based upon the differing anxiety disorders.
- Children's Anxiety Disorders: There is much controversy concerning children and the use of SSRIs.
Currently, Prozac (Fluoxetine) is the only SSRI approved for use with children, and it has shown to help children with depression and OCD. - Generalized Anxiety Disorder: There has been a relatively small amount of research performed concerning GAD and its treatment with SSRIs.
In adults, what little is known has been positive particularly with Paxil and Zoloft. - Obsessive Compulsive Disorder: SSRIs have been used extensively in treating OCD and are generally the first line of defense against this disorder.
Symptoms in adults are generally reduced by 30 to 40 percent in a majority of patients. - Panic Disorder: There is much left to discover as to how an SSRI may treat panic disorders.
There have been some positive results, but it appears that it comes at the expense of higher doses of the SSRI. - Phobias: SSRIs have produced good results in the treatment of anxiety due to phobias, but the threat of relapse is always looming.
This means longer treatment is generally needed and sometimes the SSRI is combined with another drug or type of therapy to help prevent relapse. - Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder: PTSD can be gotten in a variety of ways, which seems to affect the results of its treatment with a SSRI.
Currently, Paxil and Zoloft are the only SSRIs approved by the FDA to treat anxiety due to PTSD.
Child abuse victims do not have the same results as battered or raped women and both have different results than those who have been in combat.