If you worry excessively about many aspects of your life, you may have generalised anxiety disorder. A range of self-help treatment options are available to reduce your anxiety and help you enjoy a less-stressed life.

What is generalised anxiety disorder?

People with generalised anxiety disorder (GAD) worry excessively about different areas of life, such as family, health, finances and work. People with GAD are plagued by these worries most days, often for months or even longer.

GAD produces symptoms like:

• feeling constantly ‘on edge’ and unable to relax
• muscle tension
• difficulty falling and staying asleep
• feeling tired or easily exhausted
• increased irritability, and
• trouble concentrating and focussing on a task.

Why do I feel this way?

GAD can be triggered by a stressful life event such as losing a job, relationship breakdowns, periods of prolonged stress or a combination of factors.

Other factors such as a family history of mental health problems, chronic physical health issues and certain personality types – such as being a perfectionist or having low self-esteem – can make it more likely that someone will develop GAD.

You are not alone

GAD is one of the most common anxiety disorders. About 6 per cent of Australians experience it at some point in their lives.

Some research suggests that GAD might be even more common in older veterans. At one stage or another, about 14 per cent of Vietnam veterans have been affected by it. Among current serving ADF members, only one in 100 have GAD.

Many people with GAD suffer from other mental health problems as well; over their lifetime, someone with GAD is about five times more likely than the average person to have depression, and twice as likely to have a problem with drugs or alcohol.

Anxiety and older veterans

Older people with anxiety often don’t do anything about it. Some don’t want to worry their family or friends, or they don’t believe in talking about mental health or admit they’re not coping.

Many older people suffer medical conditions that have symptoms similar to anxiety or take prescription medications that mask those symptoms. This makes it easy to miss or ignore the fact that anxiety is an issue.

A common anxiety problem among older adults is a fear of falling. This affects around 1-in-10 older people, and for many will mean they avoid physical activity and find it hard to take care of daily tasks like bathing or shopping.

The good news is that anxiety can be treated no matter your age.

What treatments can help?

One of the most effective treatments for GAD is cognitive behavioural therapy. Cognitive behavioural therapy recognises that the way we think and act affects the way we feel. Typically, during this therapy you will learn:

• relaxation techniques such as controlled breathing and muscle relaxation exercises
• a step-by-step problem-solving approach to help manage day-to-day problems so that they don’t seem so overwhelming
• strategies to challenge negative thoughts that might be triggering and maintaining your worry (like 'everything’s going wrong' or 'I can’t deal with this').

The High Res website and app offers a range of interactive cognitive behavioural therapy-based tools, self-help resources and videos that can help you manage some of the symptoms of anxiety. These tools can help manage your physical reactions such as rapid breathing and pounding heartbeat.

Self-help resources

There are a number of resources you could use on your own or preferably together with your therapist to help you address some of the symptoms of GAD.

• Try our Self-help tools
• Useful materials are available from beyondblue, the Clinical Research Unit for Anxiety and Depression and SANE.
• Mental Health Online is an internet-based treatment clinic affiliated with Australia’s Swinburne University.
• Adaa.org website-anxious about falling.

See also