Anxiety, worry, and stress are all afflictions of life in the modern world. According to the National Institute of Mental Health, approximately ten percent of the American population, or twenty-four million people, suffer from anxiety disorders.

Experiencing anxiety in and of itself does not constitute a disorder. In fact, anxiety is a necessary warning signal of a dangerous or difficult situation. Without anxiety, we would have no way of anticipating difficulties ahead and preparing for them.

Anxiety becomes a disorder when the symptoms become chronic and interfere with our daily lives and our ability to function. People suffering from chronic anxiety often report the following symptoms:

• Muscle tension
• Physical weakness
• Poor memory
• Sweaty hands
• Fear
• Confusion
• Inability to relax
• Constant worry
• Shortness of breath
• Palpitations
• Upset stomach
• Poor concentration

These symptoms are severe and upsetting enough to make individuals feel extremely uncomfortable, out of control and helpless.

Naomi is a bright, highly motivated young woman who works as an executive for a large investment firm and is doing quite well in her career. Although she is well-liked by both colleagues and superiors, Naomi has never told them that she suffers from terrible, unexplained anxieties.

Ever since she was a child, she remembers worrying about things. She would worry about her father getting home safely from work or her sister getting safely to school. She often had the feeling that something dreadful was about to happen.

In her adult years, in addition to her constant worry, Naomi has become increasingly aware of feeling depressed. There are days when, for no apparent reason, she feels extremely "blue," without energy or ambition, and suffers from low self-esteem. All of this is puzzling, since she continues to be successful at work, just as she had been at school. However, try as she might, she cannot shake these feelings of being down and of continually worrying that something terrible would happen. It was after coming home extremely drunk one night, after being out with friends, that she decided to seek help; nothing was improving and she was aware of an increase in her alcohol use.

Large numbers of people, like Naomi, have their lives disrupted by the interference of unwelcome and unrealistic fears, phobias, and worries. Some individuals attempt to deal with their anxieties by turning to alcohol to gain relief. The result is that the symptoms are further aggravated. Others do everything they can to avoid situations that might cause an increase in symptoms. Whatever it is that people attempt to do to cope with their fears, it is usually unsuccessful because of their inability to stop feeling nervous. For these people, life can become increasingly narrow and restricted.

Things have not changed very much for Naomi since childhood except that her fears and worries have worsened. She feels most comfortable with her set routine and avoids travel, parties, and dining out for fear of introducing something new in her life to worry about. And yet, there are many nights when Naomi is unable to sleep, preoccupied with some problem at work, in her social life, or with her family. None of this has ever prevented her from carrying on with life in general, but it has made her life miserable.

When Naomi referred herself for psychotherapy, she was told that her situation was not unusual; in fact, she was suffering from a common malady called “generalized anxiety disorder” or GAD. She was also told that depression often accompanies this disorder.

The chronic worry that accompanies GAD is impossible for the sufferer to control. The irony is that these worries and fears are not completely unrealistic. There is always the possibility in life that something terribl