Anxiety disorders are the The most common mental health problem in the world. But it is not always easy to receive professional help, with long waiting lists in many countries.
Worldwide, only about 28% of people With stress he receives treatment. The number is similar to the United Kingdom and in the US About 37% receive treatment. This is due to various factors such as lack of resources, including mental health staff and stigma related to mental health problems.
But if you are struggling to get help, there are things you could try at home in the meantime – including some new technologies. To understand how they work, let’s take a look at how stress is expressed in the brain and body.
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THE anxiety symptoms They are cognitive and emotional and normal. They can include problems of concentration and decision -making, a feeling of irritable or tense and having heart rate or shaking. The problem of sleep and feelings of panic or imminent danger is also common.
These symptoms often begin in childhood and adolescence. Unfortunately, he often continues in adulthood, Especially if it has not been treated.
There are many genetic and environmental factors involved in the development of stress. These may include competition and pressure at school, university or work or economic concerns and lack of job safety. Social isolation and loneliness are also ordinary factors, often the result of retirement, homework or intimidation or abuse in childhood.
Such experiences can repeat our minds. For example, our neuroimaging study has shown This childhood mistreatment is linked to changes in the connectivity of the centromeometric almond almond of the brain, which plays a key role in the processing of emotions, including fear and anxiety and anterior island, which processes the feeling among others.
Stress is usually associated with depression or other conditions, including attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and autism spectrum disorder. During the Covid pandemic when the prevalence of anxiety and depression increased by 25%People with such neurodevelopmental conditions have had more emotional problems than others.
According to the commissioner of children This is still on the rise With 500 children a day referring to stress mental health services, more than twice the pace before.
Researchers continue to reveal new ways for professionals to help treat such people. For example, in our recent study, we noticed that suicidal thoughts and depression were more common in stressed children which were also very impulsive. This could affect the treatments they receive. Thus, the science of how to better deal with stress is constantly moving forward.
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Technological solutions
Unfortunately, however, waiting lists of taking a diagnosis can sometimes take years. Neurotechnology can, at least in part, help to fill the gap before the symptoms worsen. There are several stress companies that work on both hardware and stress management software.
Stress management technology promotes rapidly, offering alternatives and supplements to traditional therapies. Moonbird, for example, uses a portable device that guides users through breathing with mild physical movements. You really feel that the device is moving in your hand and breathe with it. Research has shown that This breath It can help the nervous system reduce stress symptoms.
Parasym affects the areas of the brain involved in the regulation of mood and stress. People can use it by wearing a small device that applies mild electrical microaries that run through the lung nerve, which runs from the ears and below the neck and activates a basic part of the nervous system.
Neurotherapy and neuroscience of the flow investigate non -invasive brain stimulation, such as the transcranial “direct stimulation current (TDCS)”. This can be applied using electrodes mounted on the scalp to deliver a mild, fixed electric current to alter brain activity. These devices ultimately target the frontal bark to support the setting of emotions. A Scientific review of TDCS studies in stress He concluded that some research has clearly shown benefits from TDCs to treat anxiety symptoms, although larger studies and longer duration studies were needed.
The way we experience life events and feel or react to them also affects normal functions such as our heart rate. You will have experienced how the possession of a meaningful conversation creates a special relationship between two people. This can really manifest itself in the body as an increased synchronization of your heart rate and other functions. This is called “Normal synchronization” and is considered to be important for positive social interaction.
Unfortunately, in common stress conditions, including social anxiety And after childbirth, heart rate, heart rate can become less variable and therefore less capable of synchronizing. Therefore, a device that promotes normal synchronization would be beneficial. Lyeons is currently developing such a device, targeting stress, post -traumatic anxiety disorder and ADHD.
On the digital side, Headspace offers structured meditation and behavioral cognitive programs. Similarly, IESO offers a type of text based on the text for mild to moderate stress and low mood. These platforms use guided meditation, breathing exercises and behavioral tools to help users create resistance to emotions and reduce anxious thinking patterns.
Other pop -up tools also include virtual reality, which is being investigated to treat exposure and reducing impressive pressure, in particular. All of these technologies have used scientific and medical information to offer different options that are addressed to both the mind and the body.
If we can stop the tendency to increase the number of people suffering from stress and find ways to improve access to effective therapies, it will lead to a better quality of life for individuals and their families, improving productivity and prosperity at work and promoting a flourishing society.
