How is generalized anxiety disorder diagnosed?

How is generalized anxiety disorder diagnosed?

Christopher Reist (Academic Psychiatrist, Co-Author of “Psychiatry”) gives expert video advice on: What are the common treatments for generalized anxiety disorder?; Is there anything I can do to avoid developing generalized anxiety disorder? and more...

The diagnosis of generalized anxiety disorder starts with a psychiatric examination in which data and information is collected about the present condition, as well as past history and family history. The psychiatrist then makes a list, which we call a differential diagnosis, of all possible things that could explain these symptoms. It's important then to rule these out one by one. One of the important categories, especially in generalized anxiety disorder, is to rule out is other medical conditions that can cause anxiety symptoms. This would include problems with your heart, such as cardiac arrhythmias. Other anxiety-causing illnesses include metabolic conditions, such as hyper- or hypo-thyroidism, hypoglycemia and a variety of others. Once these have been ruled out by either tests or an exam, then you can arrive at the proper diagnosis of generalized anxiety disorder.