Psychological Treatments for Older Adults with Anxiety

All of the different anxiety disorders occur fairly frequently among people older than 65, and GAD and phobias are especially common. Unfortunately, even with these disorders affecting so many people, there's been a minimal amount of research published on treatments for those with anxiety problems in late-life.

However, a recent review of the research collected all of the available studies on the subject, which helps shed some light on the issue. What did the reviewers find?

Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT)

Nine studies shows that CBT was helpful for anxiety disorders among older adults. It was most effective for GAD than it was for other anxiety disorders like panic disorder and social phobia. Essentially, the authors concluded that CBT was a treatment of choice for older adults with GAD.

Relaxation Training

Relaxation training is a tried and true anxiety reduction method that is becoming more popular again. It generally includes "some combination of progressive muscle relaxation, deep breathing, meditation, and education about tension and stress." Only four studies specifically examined this, none of which focused on GAD, but overall, the approach was helpful.

Conclusion

After reviewing every available study on treatments for late-life anxiety, the researchers found strong support for cognitive therapy, relaxation training, and also for traditional cognitive therapy and supportive therapy, although the pool of available studies was much smaller.

Essentially, for people in late-life struggling with GAD, an ideal mix of psychological treatments appears to be some form of cognitive-behavioral therapy with a relaxation training component.

_Sources:

Ayers, C.R., Sorrell, J.T., Thorp, S.R., & Loebach Wetherell, J. (2007). Evidence-based psychological treatment for late-life anxiety. Psychology & Aging, 22(1), 8-17.