Online Casebook

Anxiety Disorders Association of America. web 15 March 2014 <www.adaa.org>. This is a national website that has helpful information for people suffering from anxiety disorders. There are several links to more information and resources. It gives details about the diagnosing of anxiety disorders. Generalized Anxiety Disorder known as GAD is diagnosed when a person worries excessively about a variety of everyday problems for at least 6 months. Women are twice as likely to be affected then men. It affects 3.1% of the U.S. population. This website was created as a place for all people to learn more about anxiety disorders. It also gives the resources such as links to therapist and symptom checkers. There are multiple sources in this website. It is a professional organization devoted to the diagnosis and treatment of anxiety disorders. The main goal is to have one site for people to access all the information they need on the subject.

Dreisbach, Shaun. "Why are Anxiety Disorders Among Women on the Rise?" Glamour 15 October 2010. Web 15 March 2014. Shaun Dreisback wrote an article titled "Why are Anxiety Disorders among Women on the Rise?" for the October, 2010 issue of Glamour Magazine. In this article Dreisback states that women are twice as likely to suffer from an anxiety disorder as men are. He goes on to say that women wait a long time from the onset of their symptoms until they seek treatment. Women tend to worry more about safety, relationships and financial stresses. Sometimes worry becomes so severe that it is debilitating. That is when it becomes an anxiety disorder and needs treatment. Anxiety disorders have steadily increased over the past 7 decades and it doesn't matter whether it is in good economic times or bad. The everyday stresses of society can overwhelm a person Dreisbach wrote this article to point out the different reasons anxiety may be more prevalent in women. Women who are suffering from an anxiety disorder would be the likely target for this article. This article was published in a magazine that is geared towards younger woman. That is why it is focus' on women and anxiety rather than men or children. While this author is not a professional mental health expert, he does refer to credible resources in his article. It is not an article strictly based on his opinion. He uses verifiable information. This article is relevant to my research paper because it goes into depth about the reasoning behind the increase in anxiety disorders in women. It also touches on why men and women react differently to the everyday stresses in life.

Maurer, Sabine. "Neuroses Can be Cured." 16 May 2011. Points of View Reference Center. Web 15 Mar. 2014. Sabine Maurer wrote an article titled Neuroses can be Cured found in the Points of View Reference center Database dated May16, 2011. Her opinion is that even though anxiety disorders are on the rise they can be cured. Maurer states that mental disorders are the fourth most frequent cause of unfitness for work and the reason for one in three early retirements. She also says that some mental disorders can be caused from trauma experienced as a child that has not been dealt with. Current relationships can also be a cause of anxiety. The time it takes to cure certain mental disorders depends on the type of treatment and how long before the treatment began after the onset of symptoms. I think that this article was written for people who are suffering from mental disorders and for professionals who treat them. It gives hope to people that they can be treated and cured with the right treatment plan. This article will give me insight into the treatment of anxiety disorders and the probability of curing them versus just treating them. This may be the way to stop the rise in anxiety disorders.

National Institue of Mental Health. web 15 March 2014 <www.nimh.nih.gov>. The National Institute of Mental health has created a website that has helpful information on several different mental health disorders. Anxiety disorders are only one of the disorders that are covered in this website. It discusses the diagnosis, treatment, causes, symptoms and different ways of dealing with anxiety disorders. The reason that this website was developed was for people to be able to locate accurate information when searching for mental health disorder literature. This website is written to be informative. It is not an opinion piece. There are many contributors to the website. It is a credible website because it is a written by a government agency. This page will give me an overall look at anxiety disorders and how they are diagnosed and treated. It also gives reasons why people have anxiety disorders. Mental disorders are complex and the more information I can gather can paint a more clear picture into the real reason anxiety disorders are on the rise and what we can do to alleviate the problem.

Horwitz PhD, Allan V.; Jerome C. Wakefield DSW PhD. All we Have to Fear: Psychiatry's Transformation of Natural Anxieties into Mental Disorders. New York, New York: Oxford University Press Inc., 2012. Print.

Dr.Allan V Horwitz, PhD and Dr. Jerome C. Wakefield DSW PhD wrote the book All we Have to Fear: Psychiatry's Transformation of Natural Anxieties into Mental Disorders. They have a theory that anxiety has risen over the last few decades because natural anxieties are being turned into mental disorders and treated with medication when it should not be. They think that some of our anxieties are good and should not be treated. It is only when certain criteria are met that anxiety should be considered a mental disorder. The reasons Dr.'s Horwitz and Wakefield wrote this book is to counterclaim that anxiety disorders are really on the rise. They in fact believe that they are not on the rise but simply over diagnosed. With proper screening people can be more accurately diagnosed. This book was written for professionals in the field and also people who may be looking for alternative treatments. The authors of this book are both doctors in the psychology field. They wrote the book in 2012 so it is current information. This book will help me to have a different opinion on whether or not there truly is a rise in anxiety disorders or if there is just possibly too many people being misdiagnosed. It also discusses the impact that drug manufacturers have had on the treatment of mental health disorders. They are making huge profits from selling drugs to help people with anxiety, even if they don't really need the medicine.

Snyderman, Dr. Nancy. "Anxiety in America." n.d. Today.com. 15 March 2014 <www.today.com/video/today/48723291>. Dr. Nancy Snyderman did a report on Today.com titled "Anxiety in America" on August 20, 2012 explaining the reasons that acute anxiety disorders are on the rise. Since 1980 the diagnosis of anxiety disorders has increased 1200% and affects 117,000,000 people and is the most common mental illness. She speculates that the disorder is on the rise because of our stressful and fast paces lifestyles. In today's society our expectations for ourselves are so high that we can't live up to them. It's those times that cause us the most anxiety. When that anxiety gets to the point that it is disruptive to our life we may be suffering from an anxiety disorder. Dr. Snyderman's purpose for this video is to make people aware that our lifestyles could be the main culprit in the rise of anxiety disorders in America. The audience is anyone who may be dealing with an anxiety disorder or who have had one in the past. Dr. Nancy Snyderman is the NBC News Chief Medical Editor. She also talks with the Director of Columbia University's Department of Psychiatry to obtain relevant information. This video is useful in my research project because it shows some more reasons why anxiety disorders may be on the rise in America. Stressfull lives, unmet expectations and financial stressors are just a few. It gives statistics on the rate of increase in the disorder as well. This video correlates the other information that I have found that shows that there is indeed a rise in the diagnosis of anxiety disorders.

Thompson, Mar. "Anxiety Disorders on the Rise in the Ranks." Time.com 05 November 2013, 15 Mar. 2014 ed.: 1. Mark Thompson wrote an article for Time.com on November 5, 2013 titled "Anxiety Disorders on the Rise in the Ranks" He shares some startling facts about how rapidly the rise of anxiety disorders have increased over the last 10 years in our armed forces. He points to a report from the Pentagon showing that the rate of reported cases of anxiety disorders has risen 327% between the years 2000 and 2012. The report only covers active members of the armed forces and doesn't include people who have already left service. The numbers would probably be even higher if they were also included. Some of the reasons that he believes have attributed to the rise is traumatic brain injuries, wars that have lingered on with no resolve and the increase in post-traumatic stress disorder. I believe that Thompson wrote this article to point out how war affects the mental health of our soldiers. He wrote the article for everyone who is not in the armed forces to help them understand the long term effects of war. He also wrote it for the troops who may feel that they are suffering alone with their anxiety. Time is a nationally known news source that is diligent in reporting on current affairs. Thompson refers to an official report from the Pentagon regarding the health of the servicemen and woman of our country. The information in this article is important to my research paper because it shows specific statistics in how anxiety disorders have been on the rise in regards to our military. It points out different reasons for the findings of the report from the pentagon such as lingering wars, post-traumatic stress disorder and suicide. The large increase in diagnosis in the military will help translate why Americans in general are dealing with more anxiety disorders.