Treating the Anxiety Disorder

Talking therapy has been applied within many clinical and non-clinical environments and has been successfully used as a treatment for many clinical disorders, personality conditions and behavioral problems. Known as cognitive behavioral therapy, it is highly effective for a number of disorders, such as anxiety, but is unlikely to be effective in treating psychiatric problems caused by drug or alcohol abuse.
The treatment of anxiety is based on a gradual exposure to the actual, feared stimulus. Through exposure to the stimulus, the response conditioned by fear can be extincted. A specific phobia, such as fear of spiders, can often be treated in such a way. The social anxiety, has often been treated with exposure coupled with cognitive restructuring, such as in group therapy. This therapy has been shown to be more effective than pharmacological treatments in the long term.