subject: Are Depression and Anxiety Related? [print this page] Although often confused Anxiety and Depression are completely separate and different conditions. Anxiety islearnt behaviour. We often, through our own personal experiences, program ourselves to behave in a certain way or to react in a certain way to stress. Where Depression on the other hand is a physiological condition where we have developed a chemical imbalance in the brain that makes us think and behave differently. Where anxiety can respond well to treatments such as cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), depression will need to be treated with anti-depressant drugs that will help the body to recover the correct chemical balance in the brain.
Even the medical professionthe professionals have problems and depression and anxiety are often confused. If you are suffering from depression it is very easy to blame anxiety for your symptoms, especially if you are going through a difficult time and have a lot to be anxious about. For Example PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress disorder), a type of anxiety can often be written off as simply being the natural depression that follows on from a sad event or trauma.
Research has shown that there are a huge number of of links between various anxiety disorders and depression. Anything up to half of people who suffer from depression can then develop an anxiety disorder in their lifetime and not always at the same time as the depressive episode. These can vary from ptsd, social anxiety, OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder as well as phobias and panic attacks. So it would seem that there is a close link between depression and anxiety.
Some people who suffer from depression can have an anxiety disorder at the same time. The problem with this is that the symptoms of both the depression and anxiety can be worsened if they happen simultaneously. Someone who has from depression and an anxiety disorder at the same time is at a much greater risk of suicide or self harm.It is vital that the right diagnosis is arrived at as soon as possible which is why yu should pay a visit to your doctor for a professional diagnosis if you feel that you are suffering from either an anxiety disorder or depression.
An anxiety disorder will tend to respond well to anxiety treatment and you can usually make a swift recovery once you have found the treatment program that suits you. Depression, on the other hand can often take much longer to cure and you may well end up on anti-depressants for a number of months whilst you regain the correct chemical imbalance in the brain. If someone is suffering from both depression and anxiety you need to deal with the depression first to ensure that the anxiety is not just a symptom of the depression. A lot of the time where people are suffering from anxiety and depression, the symptoms of anxiety will cease as the depression has been treated or may be greatly reduced making treatment of the underlying anxiety disorder much easier.
