Anxiety is being reported by more and more people as the covid pandemic continues, Elizabeth Tracey reports

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How can you tell if you or someone you love is developing anxiety as a result of the pandemic? Karen Swartz, a psychiatrist at Johns Hopkins, describes the most common characteristics.

Swartz: With anxiety, an individual has a level of distress that often interferes with functioning. They have ongoing tension, and have negative thoughts that are spinning in their mind. They feel off, often with increased heart rate, or trouble catching their breath, and their stomach can feel upset. Anxious people can get into the habit of avoiding activities that make them nervous to make them feel comfortable. And this often leads to someone significantly restricting their activities or even having disability. They also have an ongoing feeling that things aren’t right, and that bad things are likely to happen.  :31

Swartz says the good news is anxiety can be managed. A number of different psychotherapeutic techniques and a variety of medications, either alone or in combination, will usually be effective. She notes that developing a trusting relationship with a therapist is key. At Johns Hopkins, I’m Elizabeth Tracey.