Dubai: The Dubai Foundation for Women and Children (DFWAC) has organized a workshop titled “Generalized Anxiety Disorder” to discuss the most recent research on the condition and to inform attendees of the most efficient cognitive-behavioural therapy methods of treatment.
There were 55 participants in the workshop, including psychologists, social workers, and psychiatrists who work in hospitals, shelters, police departments, social institutions, courts, prosecutors, the Ministry of Interior, and the Ministry of Community Development. The workshop aimed to increase participants’ knowledge of and skills regarding this disorder. High-profile speakers from Canada, America, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE were also present.
The workshop was essential in educating participants about generalised anxiety disorder, which is characterised by excessive tension and anxiety that lasts for extended periods of time and is frequently brought on by daily events related to family and work as well as fears about the future, stressed Ms. Shaikha Saeed Al Mansouri, acting director-general of DFWAC.
Ms. Al Mansouri continued by saying that the group also talked about the damaging effects anxiety disorders have on people, families, and communities. The director-general emphasised that the Foundation hopes to accomplish a number of objectives through the workshop, including disseminating thorough knowledge about generalised anxiety disorder, its symptoms, and techniques of evaluation.
Participants also learned about the foundations of cognitive-behavioural therapy and the various therapeutic approaches and the research that supports them in the treatment of generalised anxiety disorder. Additionally, they acquired the methods and strategies employed in cognitive behavioural therapy, as well as exercises and real-world applications for the management of generalised anxiety disorder.
The four-day event covered eight key topics, including an overview of generalised anxiety disorder, an introduction to cognitive-behavioural therapy, a detailed model of cognitive-behavioural treatment for generalised anxiety disorder, and case studies of patients with generalised anxiety disorder using the cognitive perception of the situation. Additionally, participants will learn about the cognitive components of generalised anxiety disorder and how to address them.
Additionally wrapped in the workshop were topics such as how to use relaxation techniques to support people with generalised anxiety disorder, how to use various exposure techniques, such as real and imagined exposure, and how to put strategies in place to prevent relapse in generalised anxiety disorder.