Phobias Slideshow Pictures Depression Slideshow Pictures Take the PTSD Quiz

Medical Author:

Roxanne Dryden-Edwards, MD

Roxanne Dryden-Edwards, MD

Dr. Roxanne Dryden-Edwards is an adult, child, and adolescent psychiatrist. She is a former Chair of the Committee on Developmental Disabilities for the American Psychiatric Association, Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland, and Medical Director of the National Center for Children and Families in Bethesda, Maryland.

View Full Profile

Medical Editor:

Melissa Conrad Stöppler, MD, Chief Medical Editor

Melissa Conrad Stöppler, MD, Chief Medical Editor

Melissa Conrad Stöppler, MD, is a U.S. board-certified Anatomic Pathologist with subspecialty training in the fields of Experimental and Molecular Pathology. Dr. Stöppler's educational background includes a BA with Highest Distinction from the University of Virginia and an MD from the University of North Carolina. She completed residency training in Anatomic Pathology at Georgetown University followed by subspecialty fellowship training in molecular diagnostics and experimental pathology.

View Full Profile

Medical Treatment

Treatment depends on the cause of the anxiety.

• When the cause of anxiety is a physical ailment, treatment is directed toward eliminating that ailment. For example, if your thyroid gland were overactive and causing anxiety, the treatment might involve surgery and various thyroid-regulating medications.

• When the cause is psychological, the underlying cause needs to be discovered and, if possible, eliminated or controlled. For example, if the cause is difficulty in a marriage, the doctor may suggest marital counseling. Withdrawal from a substance of abuse is often addressed with drug-abuse treatment.

• Sometimes, the cause cannot be identified. In such cases, the only treatment option is control of symptoms.

• In the past, anxiety was treated with drugs in a class known as benzodiazepines. This class of medications is currently used much less often to treat anxiety due to the possibility of addiction. Examples of medications from this group include:
  
  
  • Diazepam (Valium)
    
    
  • Alprazolam (Xanax)
    
    
  • Lorazepam (Ativan)
    
    
  • Clonazepam (Klonopin)

• Another anti-anxiety drug that is not a benzodiazepine is buspirone (BuSpar).
  
  
• Neurontin is an antiseizure medication that has been found to be helpful in treating anxiety for some people, but little organized research has indicated whether or not it is effective in addressing anxiety disorders.
  
  
• Drugs of the SSRI class (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors that are also used to treat depression) are sometimes prescribed and include the following:
  
  
  • Sertraline (Zoloft)
    
    
  • Paroxetine (Paxil)
    
    
  • Fluoxetine (Prozac)
    
    
  • Escitalopram (Lexapro)
    
    
  • Citalopram (Celexa)
    
    
  • Venlafaxine (Effexor): This medication has chemical properties of the SSRI class as well as blocking the reuptake of norepinephrine, another neurotransmitter.

• In addition, psychotherapy may be useful. Helping the anxiety sufferer combat whatever unrealistic beliefs that may underlie the anxiety (cognitive therapy) or developing ways to manage worries (behavioral therapy) are psychotherapeutic approaches that are often used.