Note this list of resources has been updated ... see the "Good Knowledge" section's folder on "Social anxiety information & assessment". It is also worth clicking on "social anxiety" in the "Tag Cloud".
The "Improving Access to Psychological Therapies" (IAPT) initiative is very ambitious and exciting. It states its principal aim is to support English Primary Care Trusts in implementing "National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence" (NICE) guidelines for people suffering from depression and anxiety disorders. IAPT go on to say that "At present, only a quarter of the 6 million people in the UK with these conditions are in treatment, with debilitating effects on society."
One aspect of this carefully planned initiative is strong encouragement to assess and monitor the progress of those who are getting help. Visiting the IAPT "Outcomes Toolkit and FAQ" web page provides access to several freely downloadable documents. The emphasis is on good assessment measures that are free to use. See below:
IAPT Outcomes Toolkit 2008/9 PDF - this 81 page 1.1Mb Adobe PDF is the September 08 version with amended IAPT Paper Based Data Set Questionnaires.
“ The "real world" is a construct, and some peculiarities of scientific thought become more intelligible when this fact is recognized ... Einstein himself in 1926 told Heisenberg it was nonsense to found a theory on observable facts alone, saying "In reality the very opposite happens. It is theory which decides what we can observe." ” - D. O. Hebb
Other anxiety disorders include Anxiety Disorders due to a General Medical Condition (where the anxiety is a direct physiological consequence of a general medical condition), Substance-Induced Anxiety Disorder (where the anxiety is directly caused by the physiological effects of a substance - drug of abuse or medication - including prescription use, poisoning, intoxication, or withdrawal), and Anxiety Disorder Not Otherwise Specified (where there is prominent clinically significant anxiety or phobic avoidance that doesn't meet the diagnostic criteria for any other anxiety or adjustment disorder).
Health anxiety disorder and hypochondriasis are typically classified under Somatoform disorders.
“ The secret of the care of the patient is in caring for the patient. ” - Francis Peabody
Acute stress disorder
“ Keep your face always toward the sunshine - and shadows will fall behind you. ” - Walt Whitman
Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
“We awaken in others the same attitude of mind we hold toward them.
” - Elbert Hubbard
Specific phobias
“The future is already here - it's just not very evenly distributed.
” - William Gibson
Social anxiety disorder
“We camouflage our true being before others to protect ourselves against criticism or rejection. This protection comes at a steep price. When we are not truly known by the other people in our lives, we are misunderstood. When we are misunderstood, especially by family and friends, we join the "lonely crowd." Worse, when we succeed in hiding our being from others, we tend to lose touch with our real selves. This loss of self contributes to illness in its myriad forms.
” - Sidney Jourard
Panic disorder
