Cognitive-behavioral interventions anxiety

Particularly in more serious cases, medications are often used to supplement the treatment regimen, because they allow the client to do the necessary therapeutic work (Schatzberg Cole, 1991). This is especially important when such great strides have been reported in the use of cognitive-behavioral treatments to treat symptoms of depression and anxiety. Because many of these interventions relate to depression and anxiety, more in-depth information on cognitive-behavioral interventions is covered in chapter 6 on anxiety disorders. 

Both pharmacological and psychotherapeutic interventions have proven effective, to various degrees, in the treatment of anxiety disorders. Usually, a combination of both techniques seems to yield the best results. A number of factors (e.g., patient preference, availability of specially trained therapists, cost, and prior results) will determine whether medications, psychotherapy, or both are selected. Among the psychotherapies, the evidence shows cognitive-behavioral techniques as the preferred approach. 

First, many of these medications have the potential to be addictive and clients may believe that taking a pill for a quick fix is the recommended course of treatment. Social workers must establish quickly the understanding that supplementing medications with other types of cognitive or behavioral interventions can prove most effective (Cohen Steketee, 1998). For this reason, a behavioral-based contract should be initiated early in the intervention process, preferably before the medication is prescribed. By contracting prior to the medication, the client remains keenly aware that the pill is only one facet of a multidimensional approach to the treatment of anxiety disorders. 

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