06 Anxiety and Related Disorders Free Online FlashCards

When does anxiety become a clinical concern?

Anxiety is a clinical concern when fear or worry is persistent or disproportionate, difficult to manage, and interferes with daily functioning.

What characterizes generalized anxiety disorder?

Generalized anxiety disorder involves difficult-to-control worry that extends across several areas of life.

How should a nurse respond during acute panic?

Use a calm voice, brief concrete statements, and a steady presence; reduce stimulation, offer simple choices, and stay with the person if possible.

How can CBT help with anxiety?

CBT helps change unhelpful thought and behavior patterns; exposure-based CBT supports gradual, planned contact with feared situations or sensations to reduce avoidance.

How do the timing criteria for ASD and PTSD differ?

Acute stress disorder may be diagnosed when significant symptoms occur from 3 days to 1 month after trauma; PTSD involves symptoms lasting more than 1 month with distress or impaired functioning.

What are the four broad PTSD symptom clusters?

PTSD symptoms include intrusion or re-experiencing, avoidance, negative changes in thoughts or mood, and increased arousal or reactivity.

What is a core trauma-informed approach to care?

Explain care before actions or touch, ask permission, offer choices, and avoid pressuring the person to recount trauma. These steps support safety and control.

Name three trauma-focused psychotherapies for PTSD.

Evidence-based PTSD psychotherapies include cognitive processing therapy, prolonged exposure, and eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR).

How do obsessions and compulsions differ in OCD?

Obsessions are recurrent, unwanted thoughts, urges, or images that cause distress. Compulsions are repetitive behaviors or mental acts used to reduce distress or prevent a feared outcome.

What happens during exposure and response prevention (ERP)?

In ERP, the person gradually faces a trigger while practicing not performing the usual compulsion.

What defines somatic symptom disorder?

Somatic symptom disorder involves one or more distressing physical symptoms together with excessive thoughts, anxiety, or time and energy devoted to them. Symptoms are not assumed to be fabricated.

What are priorities in nursing care for somatic symptom disorder?

Validate the person’s experience, assess new or changing symptoms appropriately, and support coordinated regular follow-up. Aim to improve function and quality of life even if symptoms do not disappear completely.