Psychotherapy for Generalized Anxiety Disorder

Uhlenhuth et al.carried out a study among internationally recognised experts in treating anxiety and depression; 67% of the expert panel selected pharmacotherapy combined with psychotherapy. The role for psychotherapy in the treatment of moderate GAD is promising. Some studies confirm that cognitiveherapy might be an interesting alternative in GAD treatment

The aim of cognitive-behaviour therapy is to help the patient recognise and alter patterns of distorted thinking and dysfunctional behaviour and, by these processes, to alleviate the suffering and interference that the disorder causes. Cognitive-behaviour treatment includes cognitive therapy, behaviour therapy and relaxation. A range of relaxation techniques are available, among others Schultz’s autogenic training, Jacobson’s progressive relaxation, Caycedian sophrology. Relaxation has to be presented as a skill to be learned through repeated daily practice.

An important trend emerging in studies that provide long-term outcome data is the substantial reduction in the use of anxiolytic medication in treated patients with GAD. As a result, Brown et al. have suggested that cognitive-behaviour therapy may offer an approach for discontinuing these medications in the long-term treatment of patients with GAD. Because the benefits of cognitive-behaviour treatment appear to be maintained at long-term follow-up assessment, cognitive-behaviour treatment may provide a long-term and cost-effective solution to GAD.

Controlled studies of cognitivebehavioural treatments for GAD have found these techniques to produce greater improvement than no treatment and to yield maintained gains up to two years later, despite chronicities of several years.

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