Generalised Anxiety Disorder

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What is generalised anxiety disorder?

Generalised anxiety disorder (GAD) is a condition which can lead you to become extremely anxious about different situations and issues rather than one specific event. It’s characterised by chronic, uncontrollable worrying.

 

People who suffer from Generalised anxiety disorder (GAD) feel anxious most days and often struggle to remember the last time they felt calm or relaxed. As soon as one anxious thought dissipates, another thought appears and takes hold for a completely different issue.

What are the symptoms of GAD?

There both psychological and physical symptoms of GAD and these are:

  • Restlessness
  • Feeling constantly ‘on edge’
  • Difficulty concentrating
  • Sense of dread
  • Fast, irregular heartbeat
  • Difficulties sleeping
  • Headaches
  • Excessive sweating
  • Shortness of breath
  • Dizziness
  • Irritability

Anxiety can manifest itself in lots of different ways and so this isn’t an exhaustive list. The most characteristic feature of Generalised anxiety disorder (GAD) is the experience of endless and persistent worries that can feel very overwhelming.

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Treatment for GAD

Treatment for GAD is through a combination of medication and therapy. To begin with, we’ll carry out an initial assessment to explore which therapeutic approach you’ll most benefit from.

 

In some cases, medication will be prescribed on either a short-term or long-term basis. Your GP or our Consultant Psychiatrist can advise about this.

Frequently asked questions

If your anxiety has begun to interfere in your everyday life and relationships and it’s leaving you feeling overwhelmed, it’s important to seek professional help.

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) and Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT).

By default, anxiety is characterised by a feeling of vulnerability in the world. When external events increase this feeling of threat, you may find that your anxiety symptoms get worse.

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Dr Elena Touroni

May 19, 2022 No Comments

Dr Elena Touroni is a skilled and experienced consultant psychologist with a track record of delivering high-quality services for individuals with all common emotional difficulties and those with a diagnosis of personality disorder. She is experienced in service design and delivery, the management of multi-disciplinary teams, organisational consultancy, and development and delivery of both national and bespoke training to providers in the statutory and non-statutory sector.

Having obtained a first degree in Psychology (BSc) at the American College of Greece, she completed her doctoral training at the University of Surrey. Dr Touroni is highly experienced in the assessment and treatment of depression, anxiety, substance misuse, personality disorder, eating disorders, obsessive compulsive disorder, adjustment disorder and relationship difficulties. She works with both individuals and couples and can offer therapy in English and Greek.

She is trained in several specialist therapeutic approaches such as Schema Therapy for individuals and couples, Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT), Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), Mindfulness-based approaches and Cognitive Analytic Therapy (CAT).

Dr Touroni has held a variety of clinical and managerial positions including as Head of Service in the NHS. Further she has held academic positions for the University of Surrey and the Institute of Mental Health lecturing on specialist postgraduate Masters and Doctorate programmes. As well as holding a variety of NHS positions, Dr Touroni is the co-founder of a private practice in Central London that has been a provider of psychological therapy for all common emotional difficulties including personality disorder since 2002.

Dr Touroni has a keen interest in developing preventative approaches for psychological well-being and has been involved in the co-creation of bespoke wellness retreats for transformative change for the past 5 years. She is the founder and one of two directors of The Chelsea Psychology Clinic.