Anxiety disorders are groups of symptoms that are characterized by dysfunctional fear and anxiety (Toazza, Franco, Buchweitz, Molle, Rodrigues, Reis, Mucellini, Esper, Aguzzoli, Silveira, Salum, and Manfro, 2016). Although they are the most common group of psychiatric disorders in adolescents and young adults, their causes and pathophysiology is still not well understood. Understanding these disorders in greater depth could ultimately provide new ways to treat them and reduce their severity (Toazza et al., 2016). There are many factors that can trigger anxiety symptoms to flare up, however, some researchers believe that there is a deeper cause within the brain. According to Toazza et al. (2016), disruptions in brain circuits involving the amygdala have been identified in people with anxiety disorders. The amygdala is largely involved in our experiencing of emotions, particularly in response to threatening stimuli, and it plays a critical role in linking external stimuli to defense responses (Toazza et al., 2016). In a separate study, Greening and Mitchell (2015) investigated anxiety and the connection between the amygdala and other regions of the brain (Greening and Mitchell, 2015). They discovered that high anxiety was associated with strong connections between the amygdala and sensory areas. Contrarily, they discovered that anxiety is also associated with reduced connectivity in prefrontal areas associated with emotion (Greening and Mitchell, 2015). Therefore, although anxiety can stem from external stimuli, there is a root cause that lies within the brain.
A very prevalent external factor that contributes to anxiety that is in society today would be social media use. About 90% of young adults use at least two forms of social media daily (Perrin, 2015). Many speculate that social media can have a major impact on mental health, however there is little research about it. Social media can be a great way for young adults to complete key developmental tasks such as identity development and maintaining social connections (Moreno and Whitehill, 2014). Although these tasks are important, social media can also cause stress, negative self-evaluations, and negative comparisons among social media users (Nesi and Prinstein, 2015). Often, those who use social media can become so immersed in it that they become socially isolated (Moreno and Whitehill, 2014). While some have studied small groups of individuals or very specific situations, there has been very little research of whether a broader range of social media use is related to anxiety. Vannucci, Flannery, and Ohannessian (2017) investigated the association between social media use and anxiety symptomatology in a large sample of young adults in the United States (Vannucci, Flannery, and Ohannessian, 2017). They hypothesized that more daily social media use would be associated with elevated dispositional anxiety symptoms and more severe anxiety-related impairment (Vannucci, Flannery, and Ohannessian, 2017).
The research study consisted of a survey given to U.S. residents between the ages of 18-22. This survey assessed how much time participants spent using specific social media platforms on a typical day. Next, the participants were tested for dispositional anxiety symptoms using the Beck Anxiety Inventory-Trait (BAI-T). The BAI-T assessed how much, in general, the participants were bothered by 21 problems on a day-to-day basis. Finally, the participants were tested with the Overall Anxiety Severity and Impairment Scale (OASIS). This assessed the frequency, severity/intensity, and functional impairment related to anxiety and fear during the last week (Vannucci, Flannery, and Ohannessian, 2017). Among the 563 young adults that participated, there was a wide range of anxiety symptoms and severity. Overall, the findings suggested that higher daily social media use was associated with greater dispositional anxiety symptoms and an increased probability of having an anxiety disorder (Vannucci, Flannery, and Ohannessian, 2017).
While increased time spent on social media has been associated with anxiety, the role of using multiple forms of social media is unclear (Primack, Shensa, Escobar-Viera, Barrett, Sidani, Colditz, and James, 2017). The number and types of different social media platforms is increasing substantially. Although this can be positive in some ways, it can also lead to multitasking between different social media platforms or between social media platforms in school or occupational work. The stress of multitasking has been associated in the past with negative cognitive and mental health outcomes (Chen and Yan, 2016; Ophir, Nass, and Wagner, 2009). Multitasking can also lead to more opportunities for online misunderstandings, negative interactions, and/or feeling left out. All of these things can result in negative mood states (Arnett, 1995).
In order to better understand the role of using multiple forms of social media, Primack et al. (2017) conducted a study assessing the use of multiple social media platforms and self-reports of anxiety in a sample of U.S. young adults. Primack et al. (2017) assessed anxiety symptoms using the 4-item PROMIS anxiety scale (Pilkonis et al., 2011). The scale asked participants how frequently in the past 7 days they had experienced the following anxious symptoms: “I felt fearful,†“I felt it was hard to focus on anything other than my anxiety,†“My worries overwhelmed me,†and “I felt uneasy†(Pilkonis et al., 2011; Schalet et al., 2014). To assess the use of multiple social media platforms, participants were asked to report their use of each of 11 widely used social media platforms including Facebook, Twitter, Google+, YouTube, LinkedIn, Instagram, Pinterest, Tumblr, Vine, Snapchat, and Reddit (Nielsen, 2012; Pew Research Center, 2015). The results of this research showed that, when compared with those who used 0-2 social media platforms, those who used 7-11 platforms had more than 3 times the odds of reporting high levels of anxiety symptoms (Primack et al., 2017).
There are several different approaches when it comes to treating anxiety disorder including medication, self-help, exercise, diet and nutrition, and therapy. Some types of medications that are used to aid in the treatment of anxiety include selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) and serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs). SSRIs block certain nerve cells in the brain from reabsorption which leaves more serotonin available. Serotonin acts as a neurotransmitter and also contributes to mood regulation which can be very helpful to someone with anxiety. Some common brand name SSRIs include Prozac and Zoloft. SNRIs increase the levels of serotonin and norepinephrine. Norepinephrine is a chemical that is released in response to stress. Cymbalta is a well known brand name SNRI. Self-help methods, exercise, and diet and nutrition are all examples of things that people try to implement on their own to alleviate their anxiety. Yoga would be an example of a self help method to combat anxiety.
While medication and self-help methods can be great ways to reduce anxiety symptoms, there are several therapy options that can be very beneficial as well. One of the most common and well known forms of therapy would be Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy or CBT. CBT focuses on identifying, understanding, and changing thinking and behavior patterns related to anxiety in regular meetings with a licensed, CBT-trained therapist (“Guide to Effective Anxiety Treatment†n.d.). A lesser known yet fascinating form of therapy that can be used to treat anxiety is Emotional Freedom Therapy or EFT. EFT is often referred to as “psychological acupressure†and is based on the same energy meridians that are used in acupuncture just without the invasiveness of needles (“Basic Steps to Emotional Freedom†n.d.). CBT is much more well known than EFT but there is evidence that EFT can be a successful form anxiety treatment.
In 2017, Gaesser and Karan conducted a research study to compare the results of CBT and EFT in reducing adolescent anxiety. They chose 63 students ages 10-18 years, who scored in the moderate to high ranges for anxiety on the Revised Children’s Manifest Anxiety Scale-2 (RCMAS-2) and randomly assigned them to CBT, EFT, or a waitlist control group. The students in the CBT and EFT groups each received 3 individual sessions of their therapy type. The RCMAS-2 was used to assess the anxiety levels before and after the treatment. When compared to the waitlist control group, both the CBT and EFT participants showed significant but similar results of reduced anxiety, thus proving that EFT is also an effective form of therapy for individuals dealing with anxiety (Gaesser and Karan, 2017).
Although anxiety disorders are rather common, there are many misconceptions and stigmas surrounding them. These stigmas and misconceptions can often cause anxiety sufferers to shy away from getting help out of fear of embarrassment and/or judgement. As anxiety and it’s treatment options continue to be studied, the disorder will hopefully become better understood and accepted. This will enable more sufferers to seek help and improve their anxiety symptoms.