New iPhone App for Anxiety Disorders
Having a panic attack? There’s an iPhone app for that. Many mental health specialists are developing online applications for mobile phones and other technology.
A popular British counselor who specializes in anxiety disorders has just released versions of his most successfully anti-anxiety treatments and talks on iTunes. They are also available for iPad and the iPod Touch, from the Apple App store, and other programs are sure to follow.
The Linden Method Program is available in its entirety for use on mobile devices. It was developed by Charles Linden, who suffered from Anxiety Disorder for years before conquering it and helping more than 135,000 patients. Using the system is like having a “therapist in your pocket” according to Linden. He hopes that patients will be able to venture further afield, knowing they have the entire program with them.
A patient having a panic attack can use the reassuring and powerful “panic talk” to sooth his or her nerves. There is also an anxiety stop watch to use a first aid anytime anxiety or panic strikes. A breathing program helps patients soothe their nerves and calm themselves by breathing properly.
The app is also helpful for those suffering from post traumatic stress disorder and generalized anxiety disorder or GAD. Symptoms often include a racing heart, trembling, and breaking out in a cold sweat. Individuals with anxiety disorder often report an almost paralyzing fear.
According to Dr. Jakov Shlik, about one in five people in the U.S. and Canada will suffer from an anxiety disorder at some point in their lives. The most effective treatment includes antidepressants or anti-anxiety medications, plus exposure and response prevention therapy. In ERP, the patient is gradually exposed to the feared behavior. As the patient becomes comfortable with each step, another is introduced. A patient who is afraid of dogs might start out by merely looking at a photo of a dog, and end up after months of treatment by petting a large, strange dog.
Panic attacks and anxiety symptoms can be so severe that the patient actually believes that he or she will die. Once the patient learns that it is not possible to die of anxiety, they begin to get better.
More than 60 million people in the U.S. and Europe suffer from anxiety disorders including OCD, panic attacks, agoraphobia and others.
By Joni Holderman, [email protected], contributing reporter for Mental Health News.