Doctor Discusses Anxiety Treatment Options

A viewer is asking how to treat anxiety. Doctor Lacy Anderson has suggestions that may help.

If you are looking for natural remedies, exercise and meditation have been known to help anxiety.  

Counseling and psychotherapy can also help tremendously with anxiety. 

For those that are willing to try medication, there are several medications that can help. Some medications increase serotonin levels in the brain which can help quite a bit. This is great for people that have daily anxiety. 

Some people only get anxious during certain situations like public speaking, flying on a plane, or around Oklahoma – storm anxiety. There are rescue medications that can be taken as needed if you only have anxiety during certain situations. Antihistamines like vistaril can be taken as needed and are not addictive. They can be taken every day safely. Beta blockers are great for test anxiety or for public speaking because they will keep you calm without slowing your thought processes. Benzodiazepines like Xanax or valium are the strongest sedatives but can be very addictive if taken daily.

Contact your primary care physician to talk about which of these options could be right for you.