Phil’s psychiatrist prescribes him a benzodiazepine for generalized anxiety disorder. “What does it do, exactly?” Phil asks. The psychiatrist begins by stating that the drug influences certain chemicals in his brain, then provides a more detailed explanation. Supply the more detailed explanation that Phil’s psychiatrist probably provided.

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

Ans: The psychiatrist might explain that people like Phil, who have anxiety disorders, generally have reduced levels of a brain chemical, or neurotransmitter, called GABA. GABA normally inhibits or helps block the brain structures that respond to threats in the environment. These structures include the prefrontal cortex and deeper brain structures such as the amygdala and hippocampus. Because GABA helps block threat responses, people with anxiety disorders have exaggerated threat responses because they have too little GABA. The benzodiazepine that the psychiatrist prescribes will help boost the GABA that Phil does have, thereby blunting his exaggerated threat responses.
Learning Objective: 8.2 Discuss the cognitive, neurobiological, and developmental aspects of anxiety.