Anxiety which is also known as ghabrahat in Hindi and Urdu, is a common mental health concern that affects millions of people worldwide and is still growing day by day. Why is it growing? The major reason is most people are not aware of this mental health disorder and another is having cultural barriers. The recognition rate is lower than 50% and less than 15% get the treatment of anxiety. These numbers highlight how much awareness is needed to inform people that this is not usual to have anxiety and if not treated on time then can turn into other diseases. So without wasting our time let's go to the main topic and understand what Ghabrahat actually is and its symptoms for effective treatment. So let's start it!
Ghabrahat or anxiety is not just the feelings of occasional worry or fear. No doubt we all have some type of anxiety at different times in which we face some stress or are not ready to face risks. But it is a persistent mental state in which a person feels excessive worry, apprehension, and physical symptoms that also affect their personal and professional life. In this state, people cannot face the stress and try to avoid this. The reasons behind this ghabrahat are not specific as it can be due to various reasons some people have chemical abnormalities in the brain, environmental stresses, or genetic problems.
When the main part of our body, which is the brain, does not work properly the feelings of ghabrahat start and it affects the other parts of the body as well. That’s why the symptoms of ghabrahat are both mental and physical. And when the body does not function properly it also affects our behavior and we avoid gatherings or any social place and depend on drugs such as alcohol, nicotine, or caffeine.
We think that Ghabrahat is only a feeling of fear that we are wrong, instead, it has different faces and each one has its own symptoms and treatments.
Ten million people face GAD which is characterized by an ongoing situation of mental and physical worry. People always feel headaches all the time that also disturb their sleep and cause insomnia.
This type of ghabrahat is totally different from others as people do not worry or think about something instead it is a sudden and intense panic attack that can be caused by anxiety, worries, or sometimes without any reason. The common symptoms are people have extra sweating, faster heartbeat rate, and trouble breathing.
Social anxiety is when people avoid gatherings which is sometimes common in most people. But it's not called social anxiety until you have intense feelings of shyness and talking with others, even sometimes with your friends, causes anxiety and fear.
OCD is the most destructive type of gabrahat in which people have obsessive thoughts like negative and fearful and compulsive behaviors in which they want some activity to do such as repeated checking or cleaning. People find it very difficult for this disorder to stop itself.
As the name shows stress after a trauma. When people face some type of risk or any particular accident in their life then some of them avoid these dangers but some experience life trauma. This trauma leads to flashbacks, nightmares, and more emotional responses.
You can't say that only medicines are the treatment of ghabrahat because different treatments include therapies, counseling, and lifestyle changes. For these treatments, you can take the help of an online psychologist.
Different therapies like CBT which is the most common and effective therapy to treat the ghabrahat help patients find and change their negative thoughts into positive ones. Then exposure therapy is also best for people who have intense fear. Their fears and sensitivity are gradually reduced. After that group therapy in which people share their experiences can cause ghabrahat in a very familiar and supportive environment. When people share their fears they get relief.
We can't rely only on therapies as in most cases different medicines are also effective. Some common and most useful medicines include antidepressants SSRIs like Prozac and Zoloft are commonly prescribed to balance neurotransmitters. Then some anti-anxiety drugs like Benzodiazepines provide short-term relief but also have side effects that's why they are not recommended for long-term use. Beta-blockers are also used to control physical symptoms like rapid heartbeat.
