“It’s a difficult problem for female patients, but it’s also a difficult problem for doctors who are trying to understand it,” she added.
Factors behind anxiety rates
If your anxiety interferes with your daily life, occurs frequently, or is very intense, you may have generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) or another anxiety disorder, Doumas says. According to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), 3.4% of adult women and 1.9% of adult men are affected by GAD.
A diagnosis of GAD typically involves a six-month history of symptoms (excessive worrying, difficulty sleeping, difficulty concentrating, etc.), said psychiatrist Maytra Doty, associate professor and director of the Women’s Mental Health Fellowship at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center. The patient may experience symptoms such as decreased energy, restlessness, and fatigue. In Dallas.
Anxiety can also be accompanied by physical symptoms such as diarrhea, numbness or tingling, muscle tension, heart palpitations, lightheadedness, and migraines, all of which can also be symptoms of other medical conditions.
Lily Brown, a clinical psychologist and director of the Anxiety Treatment Research Center at the University of Pennsylvania, said hormones such as estrogen and progesterone may play a role in anxiety. According to Brown, the incidence of anxiety disorders spikes around the time of menarche in adolescence.
Cultural and social forces are also at play, said Christine Crawford, assistant professor of psychiatry at Boston University and associate medical director of the National Alliance on Mental Illness. “There’s a lot of pressure on women’s shoulders in today’s society,” she says. “They are more likely to feel anxious given the heavy demands they have to shoulder in professional, academic, social and family settings.”
Women also report higher rates of childhood trauma, including sexual assault, than men, which may significantly increase their chances of suffering from anxiety disorders later in life. said Sohye Kim, co-chair of the organization’s Women’s Mental Health Special Interest Group. American Depression Association. She is also an assistant professor of psychiatry, pediatrics, and obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Massachusetts Medical School.
There is also a self-report bias, as men are less likely to report anxiety than women. However, Kim said, “Bias in reporting does not erase gender differences.” Even when accounting for reporting bias, anxiety rates are higher among women than men. ”
medical bias
One small study published in a journal Advances in cardiovascular nursing It turns out that women with symptoms of coronary heart disease are often misdiagnosed until they have a heart attack. Some study participants said their doctors said their symptoms were due to nervousness and anxiety.
Another 2017 study published in the Scandinavian Cardiovascular Journal found that women with paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia (PSVT), a type of arrhythmia, are more likely than men to be misdiagnosed and referred for treatment later. It turned out to be highly sexual. Their symptoms were “often misdiagnosed as panic attacks, stress, anxiety, or depression,” the study authors wrote.
Women are also less likely than men to be diagnosed with sleep apnea, Brown said, which makes sense because sleep problems and anxiety often overlap. “Men are more likely to have sleep apnea than women, but women tend to go undiagnosed when they do. This is because they don’t breathe while they sleep. is quite serious,” she says.
Certain pain conditions, particularly endometriosis, are also often misdiagnosed as anxiety disorders, says Vail Wright, a certified clinical psychologist and senior director of medical innovation at the American Psychological Association.
Professor Doumas added that it can be difficult for women to receive an accurate diagnosis of thyroid disease or pheochromocytoma (a rare adrenal gland tumor) because the symptoms can resemble those of anxiety. .
get the answer
Here are some tips to help you sort out whether it’s anxiety or something else causing the problem.
See your doctor 4 weeks after new symptoms appear
At Doty, whether or not you have already been diagnosed with an anxiety disorder, we recommend that you see your doctor if you experience new or concerning symptoms within the last four weeks. “There is [tests] they can only govern really quickly [things] I’m out,” she said. For example, a heart test or electrocardiogram can rule out heart problems, while an MRI can rule out neurological conditions.
trust your intuition
Advocate for yourself when you notice changes in your health, Doumas says. If your anxiety feels different than it used to, “it’s definitely worth claiming and getting a thorough medical workup before you say it’s just anxiety,” Doumas says.
keep a diary
Carolyn Ponting, a clinical psychologist and postdoctoral researcher at the University of California, San Francisco, who studies women’s mental health, says she is unsure whether certain symptoms are due to anxiety or another medical cause. He said it can be difficult to determine if someone is suffering from the disease, so it’s often helpful to track symptoms. . “It helps us track when physiological symptoms begin and end,” she said. “Does your heart racing or shortness of breath occur at certain times of the day, in response to stressors, or suddenly?”
share family history
Ponting also recommends sharing your family history with your doctor. This can help show whether you are at increased risk for certain medical conditions. For example, if your symptoms are primarily gastrointestinal, it may be helpful to know if a sibling or parent has celiac disease. Or, if you have heart palpitations, you may want to share whether your parents, siblings, or children have heart disease.
don’t be afraid to ask questions
It’s up to the doctor to figure out what’s wrong, but you can still be assertive and advocate for yourself, says Jill, a clinical psychologist and founder and director of the Private Stress and Anxiety Management Center in San Diego.・Mr. Stoddard says. If you feel like your doctor isn’t answering your questions or taking your concerns seriously, Stoddard recommends getting a second opinion.
If your doctor rules out a medical cause for your symptoms, consider seeing a therapist
“Treatment doesn’t necessarily work for all mental illnesses, but anxiety is one condition where treatment, as well as medication, can be very effective,” Doty said. “It never hurts to at least get evaluated by a therapist.”
