Well-being therapy in anxiety disorders

In almost all treatments for prevalent psychiatric conditions, particular attention has been devoted to stress and its consequences; this has led to an involuntary and unavoidable reinforcement of negative aspects of life. Because of the important influence of individual and cultural influences on positive health, well-being is a challenge from a clinical and scientific perspective and interventions aimed at enhancing it represent an area of growing interest for the future of clinical practice and research. Well-Being Therapy (WBT) is a short-term psychotherapeutic strategy aimed at enhancing well-being based on the model originally developed in 1958 by Marie Jahoda. It emphasizes self-observation, with the use of a structured diary, interaction between patients and therapists, and homework. WBT may be used as the only therapeutic strategy or in sequential combination with other psychotherapeutic strategies, mainly Cognitive Behavioral therapy. WBT can be differentiated from positive interventions based on several features which are described in detail in the present chapter. We also report the clinical use of WBT in the treatment of anxiety disorders, mainly generalized anxiety disorder, panic disorder, agoraphobia. Potential further clinical application of WBT is withdrawal after antidepressants discontinuation and side-effects during long-term antidepressant treatment.