About Anxiety - CBD For Anxiety
Anxiety is a natural emotional reaction to stressful events. It is often described as feeling fearful, tense, or nervous about something in the future.
You may experience anxiety when you are scheduled to give a public speech, take an exam, go out on a first date, or go to a job interview.
However, when feelings of anxiety are acute and long-lasting, it may be a sign that you have an anxiety disorder.
What are Anxiety Disorders?
Anxiety disorders are a common form of mental illness that affect people all around the world.
These issues are characterized by extreme fear and nervousness that negatively affect your daily activities.
If you have an anxiety disorder, the intense emotions you feel may be disproportionate to the event that is making you nervous.
For example, a person with anxiety issues may prefer to drop out of school than give a report in front of his or her class.
There are several types of anxiety disorders. These include panic disorder, social anxiety disorder, illness anxiety disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder, phobia, separation anxiety disorder, and posttraumatic stress disorder.
Approximately 40 million adults in the United States experience anxiety issues each year. Almost 12% of Canadian adults report that they have problems with anxiety.
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What Causes Anxiety?
At present, there is no known cause of anxiety. However, many researchers believe genetic, environmental and neurobiological factors play a role in the development of the issue.
Studies show you are more likely to develop an anxiety disorder if:
- Your parents and grandparents had anxiety issues
- You experience a lot of stress
- You abuse drugs and/or alcohol
- You have chemical imbalances in your brain
- You experienced trauma in the past
- You have a serious physical illness
- You have a personality type that is prone to anxiety
Common Symptoms of Anxiety
An anxiety attack will cause you to have an overwhelming feeling of distress, worry, or fear. This feeling also tends to get stronger as the stressful event gets closer.
However, different people may have different symptoms when they experience an anxiety attack. Some of the more common symptoms of an anxiety attack include:
- Excessive sweating
- Feeling extremely
- nervous
- Panic
- Trembling
- Shortness of breath
- Restlessness
- Dry mouth
- Confusion
- Feeling numb
- Feeling dizzy
- Getting chills
- Getting hot flashes
Although symptoms of anxiety can be difficult to contend with, the condition is actually highly treatable. One of the most effective natural treatments for anxiety disorders today is CBD.
CBD for Anxiety
Although extreme anxiety can be devastating, many anxiety disorders are highly treatable. Common treatments include therapy and anti-anxiety medications such as Valium, BuSpar and Xanax.
However, therapy can become very expensive over time and some medications may be addictive. This has led some researchers and clinicians to explore the anti-anxiety effects of CBD and its use in the treatment of anxiety disorders.
CBD is safe, all-natural, and more affordable than traditional treatments. But does it actually work for people with anxiety issues? Consider the evidence below:
- A 2010 preliminary report on the effect of CBD when treating generalized social anxiety disorder shows CBD affects the limbic and paralimbic brain areas and is “associated with significantly decreased subjective anxiety.”
- A 2012 meta-analysis explored the use of cannabidiol (CBD) as an anxiolytic (or anti-anxiety) drug. The researchers concluded that CBD does have an anxiolytic effect and “was shown to reduce anxiety in patients with social anxiety disorder.”
- A 2016 case report highlights that CBD oil may be used as a treatment for pediatric anxiety and sleep issues associated with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
- A 2017 literature review shows CBD has anti-anxiety effects in both animals and humans. The reviewers concluded that CBD can be used to reduce fear and may be an effective treatment for anxiety-related and substance abuse disorders.
- A 2017 review provides evidence that CBD is effective in treating symptoms of panic disorder and may offer an alternative to traditional medications.
- A 2019 clinical study shows CBD can help teenagers to manage the symptoms of social anxiety disorder.
CBD Approval For Anxiety
While initial research on the anti-anxiety effects of CBD is very encouraging, more research is still needed.
For example, all the details of the underlying mechanism that makes CBD effective in the treatment of anxiety are not currently known.
Learn more about the CBD dosage for anxiety.
Researchers also need to explore the relative impact of CBD across a variety of anxiety disorders.
Even so, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) clearly recognizes the health benefits of CBD and has already given approval for the first CBD-derived medication in the United States.