The Qatari Forum for Authors held a remote scientific session about the topic of “Cognitive-behavioral therapy in cases of anxiety disorder”, which includes several sessions presented by Dr. Khaled Ahmed Abdul Jabbar, consultant psychiatrist and cognitive-behavioral therapist.

These sessions, which are broadcast live on the Teams program, are for doctors, psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, psychological and family support and counseling providers, and those interested in understanding mental disorders, with the aim of providing psychological support to specialists and observers to get rid of anxiety and face challenges with stability, determination and greater flexibility.

In the first of these sessions, Dr. Khaled Abdul Jabbar discussed the topic of “anxiety disorder and the emerging of corona crisis”, indicating that the criteria for his diagnosis are far from normal anxiety, and represented in the presence of a number of combined strikes, including: The presence of anxiety and worry which are superfluous that occur most of the time for at least six months about a number of events or activities such as performance at work or school and that the person finds it difficult to control worry, difficulty in concentration or the emptiness of the mind with sleep disturbance, a decrease in social or professional performance, and the presence of muscle tension, pointing out that anxiety or concern is thoughts and the same frequent apprehension, associated with the future and expecting the worst outcomes associated with the future, inability to wait and constant suspicion.

He added that there are concerns related to daily life and a person expects that he will not be able to bear it, and another concern is related to the concern itself, whether it is positive which is considered to be as a motivation for him to change or it is negative, such as thinking that it will harm him, explaining that worry occurs in the mind and psychological pressure occurs in the body, and that anxiety is related to feelings, while generalized anxiety disorder occurs in the mind, emotions, and body together.

He explained that anxiety is divided into four categories, pre-emptive anxiety, situational anxiety, free-floating anxiety, and post-situation anxiety.

 

In his speech, Abdul-Jabbar discussed the difference between normal anxiety and generalized anxiety disorder, types of anxiety, types of worry, and the cognitive content of generalized anxiety types, pointing out that the evaluation of anxiety is linked to several criteria, namely duration, severity and how they were affected, how they were influenced with accompanying symptoms and functional complications.

He also talked about anxious behaviors and disorders that accompany it, whether those behaviors that achieve safety, such as exaggeration in caring for family members, caring for them, and frequent contact with them, or behaviors to reduce concern such as exaggeration in preparation and avoiding tasks and exaggeration in planning, while there are negative behaviors such as difficulty sitting, restlessness and lack of satisfaction.

Dr. Khaled Abdul Jabbar presented several tips for prevention and treatment of anxiety and worry, including the presence of a healthy access to get rid of negative feelings, a sense of control, an optimistic outlook, the presence of social support, as well as writing and recording the concerns that encounter a person’s life, recording treatment or disclosing those who trust him, or contacting a therapist.

He added that one of the coping methods is to stop following up on news that causes worry and anxiety, to exercise, not to blame oneself for things that cannot be accomplished, to avoid smoking and all taboos, and to practice relaxation sessions.

The Qatari Forum for Authors continues its cultural activities as a cultural body affiliated with the Ministry of Culture and Sports that is concerned with caring for authors, and the forum aims to interest authors, especially in raising the cultural level of authors, in accordance with the Minister of Culture and Sports Decision No. (91) of 2018 establishing the Qatari Forum for Authors and adopting its founding contract and statute.