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Patients diagnosed with anxiety disorders have a number of effective treatment options. In many cases, a combination of psychotherapy and medications may be the best treatment. In other cases, one form may be more beneficial than another. For example, certain phobias respond only to psychotherapy.

Many antidepressant medications are approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of anxiety disorders. These drugs are usually effective, even in patients who are not depressed. However, they sometimes take several weeks to become effective, so patients should not become discouraged if they do not see immediate improvement.

Patients should be aware that a physician may need to adjust the dosage or change medications to achieve the best results with minimal side effects. In addition, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has advised that antidepressants may increase the risk of suicidal thinking in some patients and all people being treated with them should be monitored closely for unusual changes in behavior. However, in most cases, the benefits of such medications outweigh the potential risks.

Anti-anxiety medications may also be prescribed. They are generally used only for short periods of time, because some patients may develop a tolerance to some of these drugs. This means that over time, it takes increasing dosage levels to achieve the same effect from the drug, which may lead to drug dependency. However, patients with panic disorder may take the drug for as long as six months to a year.

Patients should not stop using antidepressant or anti-anxiety medications unless under close supervision of a physician, because this may cause withdrawal symptoms.

Beta-blocker medications – which are typically used to treat heart conditions – are effective in treating some anxiety disorders, particularly social phobia. Patients who experience severe and disabling anxiety and are aware that they soon will be in an anxiety-provoking situation – such as giving a speech – may be prescribed beta blockers to reduce symptoms such as a pounding heart or trembling hands.

Psychotherapy is particularly effective for anxiety disorders such as social phobia and panic disorder. It is likely to take the form of behavioral therapy and cognitive therapy, or a combination of the two (cognitive-behavioral therapy). In behavioral therapy, the patient learns to change specific actions and to use different techniques to stop harmful behavior. The patient may learn relaxation techniques such as deep breathing and may be gradually exposed to situations that are frightening and in which the patient can test new coping skills.

Cognitive therapy involves learning new skills to react differently to situations that typically trigger anxiety. Patients also learn more about negative thought patterns that increase anxiety and ways to redirect such thinking.