Symptoms Of Anxiety And Depression
According to the current Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders , the standard classification of mental disorders used by mental health professionals in the United States, anxiety and depression can share several common symptoms, including, but not limited to:
- Being easily fatigued
- Sleep disturbance
Other signs that a person may suffer from both anxiety disorder and depression include:
- Constant, irrational fear and worry
- Physical symptoms like rapid heartbeat, headaches, hot flashes, sweating, abdominal pain, and/or difficulty breathing
- Changes in eating, either too much or too little
- Persistent feelings of sadness or worthlessness
- Loss of interest in hobbies and activities
- Inability to relax
How Can I Support My Mental Health
Having depression or anxiety isnt a sign of weakness and theres no need to feel embarrassed. Keep active in your community, consider joining a support group and do things that boost your mental wellbeing.
Self-help groups
Meeting other people who understand what youre going through can be helpful, especially if youre feeling isolated or lonely. You can find a local support group by asking your GP, or by contacting Mind, Anxiety UK, SANE or Rethink Mental Illness.
Keep a regular social routine
There are a range of services in the local community where you can meet new people and learn new skills. This will give you something to look forward to, and prevent you feeling isolated or alone. Your local Age UK can help you find an activity or group that will suit your interests.
What Connects Depression Anxiety And Ptsd
In the largest study of its kind, researchers identify similarities in the brain activity of people with major depressive disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, bipolar disorder, and anxiety disorders.
Mental health disorders, although incredibly prevalent, remain poorly understood.
According to the National Institute of Mental Health, almost adults in the United States live with a mental illness.
About half of the U.S. population will experience a mental health condition at some point in their life.
Medication and talking therapies are useful for many people, but understanding the neurological roots of these conditions is proving challenging.
Don’t Miss: Treatments For Depression Other Than Medication
Prevalence Of Anxiety And Depression In Men
On average, one in 8 men will have depression and one in 5 men will experience anxiety at some stage of their lives.
Men are less likely to experience anxiety and depression than women. They are also less likely to talk about it. This increases the risk of their anxiety or depression going unrecognised and untreated.
Untreated depression is a high risk factor for suicide. In Australia, there are about 3,000 suicides each year. Around 75% of people who take their lives are men, with an average of almost 7 men taking their lives every day.
Its important to remember that anxiety and depression are conditions, not weaknesses, and effective treatments are available.
and depression not only for you, but for your friends and family. Visit Beyond Blue to find out more about anxiety.
How It Feels To Have Anxiety And Depression At The Same Time
Depression and anxiety each have their own sets of symptoms and challenges. And as if living with one of the conditions isnt frustrating enough, research also shows that its not unusual to experience the two of them simultaneously.
Unfortunately, having both anxiety and depression together is not an uncommon thing nearly half of those diagnosed with one are also diagnosed with the other, said Chad Perman, a licensed marriage and family therapist in Bellevue, Washington.
Both mental health conditions can be managed through therapy, medication or both. But while treatment makes it entirely possible to live a healthy, fulfilling life, that doesnt make the experience any less valid or challenging at times.
HuffPost reached out to people living with both depression and anxiety as well as experts who treat the conditions to explain how it really feels to live with them on a daily basis. Take a look at them below.
Also Check: What Is The Best Herbal Tea For Anxiety
Don’t Miss: What Is The New Nasal Spray For Depression
Does Medication For Depression And Anxiety Work
A group of medications known as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors have been shown to be helpful for both anxiety and depression.
Anti-anxiety medications have also been shown to reduce anxiety among patients.
Note that you may need to try medication for six to eight weeks before you notice fuller effects.
You May Like: Can Anxiety Cause Rheumatoid Arthritis
Make Time For Rest And Relaxation
Mental health conditions like depression and anxiety can affect your energy and motivation, which often only adds to feelings of guilt and worry.
Remember, though: Depression and anxiety are health conditions. If you had the flu, youd need time to rest, right? Mental health symptoms require recovery time, too.
Instead of fixating on the things you think you should be doing, honor your needs by taking time for activities that soothe and relax you. Maybe this includes things like:
- watching a comforting movie or TV show
- re-reading a favorite book
Recommended Reading: How To Tell If My Cat Is Sick Or Depressed
The Link Between Anxiety And Depression Disorder
Anxiety and depression disorders are not the same although there are similar elements. Depression generates emotions such as hopelessness, despair, and anger. Energy levels are usually very low, and depressed people often feel overwhelmed by the day-to-day tasks and personal relationships so essential to life.
A person with anxiety disorder, however, experiences fear, panic or anxiety in situations where most people would not feel anxious or threatened. The sufferer may experience sudden panic or anxiety attacks without any recognized trigger and often lives with constant nagging worry or anxiousness. Without treatment, anxiety and depression disorders can restrict a persons ability to work, maintain relationships, or even leave the house.
Both anxiety and depression treatment are similar, which may explain why the two disorders are so often confused. Antidepressant medication is often used for anxiety and depression and behavioral therapy frequently helps people overcome both conditions.
The Connection Between Depression And Anxiety
Although they are distinct mental health disorders, anxiety and depression often occur together. The rate of people with both depression and anxiety is about 40 to 50 percent. When two conditions occur together, they are said to be comorbid or have a high comorbidity. This simply means having one of the disorders or conditions makes a person more likely to suffer from the other condition.
Recommended Reading: How Do You Know If Your Depression Is Getting Worse
Therapy For Anxiety And Depression
There are many different types of therapy that can be used to treat anxiety or depression alone. When both disorders are present, you may need to use a variety of these methods. Here are some types of therapy that work well for anxiety and depression:
- Cognitive behavioral therapy
- Acceptance and commitment therapy
- Psychoanalytic therapy
- Interpersonal therapy
There are also therapies designed for anxiety, such as exposure therapy, and techniques that are effective for depression, like behavioral activation. You may find it helpful to incorporate some extra therapeutic techniques into your treatment plan.
What Do I Do If Im Worried That A Relative Or Friend Has Depression Or Anxiety
If you think a friend or relative is experiencing symptoms of depression or anxiety, try to talk to them about it.
You may feel uncomfortable bringing up a sensitive topic, especially if the person you’re concerned about doesn’t often talk about their emotions. Explain why you are concerned but avoid diagnosing their problem or forcing solutions.
They may be unwilling to talk about it, but let them know that you’re willing to listen when they’re ready.
There are various ways you can help them, such as:
- Offer your support, listen and reassure them that how theyre feeling can be improved.
- Stay in touch, call or visit regularly. The risk of depression increases when people feel alone and unsupported.
- Encourage them to make an appointment with their GP or another health professional. Offer to go with them to appointments.
- Encourage them to keep active and healthy. Plan occasional outings to get them out of the house.
Supporting a relative or friend with depression can be both rewarding and stressful. There is information and support for carers where you can get help for the difficulties you experience. Contact Carers Direct, Carers UK and the Carers Trust for more information.
You May Like: How Do I Save Myself From Depression
What Might Indicate That Both Anxiety And Depression Are Present
Traits that may signal the presence of both anxiety disorder and depression include:
- Irrational worries or fears that wont go away
- Physical symptoms, such as fatigue, headaches, rapid heartbeat, labored breathing or abdominal pain
- Difficulty going to sleep or staying asleep
- Changes in eating habits either too much or too little
- Trouble remembering, making decisions or concentrating
- Constant feelings of sadness or worthlessness
- Loss of usual interest in activities or hobbies
- Feeling often tired and cranky
- Inability to relax and live in the moment
- Suffering from panic attacks, including the sense of losing inner control2
How Are Depression And Anxiety Diagnosed
There are no specific tests but your GP may perform some blood tests for other health conditions that share similar symptoms with depression or anxiety.
Your GP will need to get a good picture of the way youre feeling mentally and physically. They will ask you lots of questions about your symptoms and the changes youve noticed.
It can be difficult to think about specific answers on-the-spot but the following suggestions might help you plan ahead for your appointment.
- Make a list of all your symptoms, whether they are worse at certain times of the day or on particular occasions, how long youve had them and their effect on your day-to-day life and relationship with others.
- Explain any circumstances that could be contributing to these symptoms and the way you feel.
- Take a list of all medications you currently take, including any supplements or non-prescription medication.
- Be as open and honest as you can remember anything you say is confidential.
Also Check: Free Depression Support Groups Nyc
When Anxiety And Depression Occur Together
Being both anxious and depressed is a tremendous challenge. Clinicians have observed when anxiety occurs comorbidly with depression, the symptoms of both depression and anxiety are more severe compared to when each disorder occurs alone. Moreover, the symptoms of depression take longer to resolve, making the illness more chronic and more resistant to treatment .
Finally, depression exacerbated by anxiety has a much higher suicide rate than depression alone. In one study, 92% of depressed patients who had attempted suicide were also plagued by severe anxiety.1 Like alcohol and barbiturates, depression and anxiety are a deadly combination when taken together.
APA ReferenceTracy, N. . Relationship Between Depression and Anxiety, HealthyPlace. Retrieved on 2022, September 16 from https://www.healthyplace.com/depression/anxiety-and-depression/relationship-between-depression-and-anxiety
Treatment Considerations For Comorbid Anxiety And Depression
Resolving anxiety quickly should be the first goal of treatment in patients with anxiety and depression. Once this objective is accomplished, patients are much more likely to remain compliant with their antidepressant regimen and to continue their therapy for the full duration necessary to achieve complete remission of their depression.
One choice for pharmacotherapy in patients with comorbid anxiety and depression is the combination of a BZD or buspirone with an antidepressant. Alternatively, some patients may respond to antidepressant therapy alone, provided a drug that is effective in treating both disorders is used. Because the traditional anxiolytics will have little if any effect on depression, an adequate course of therapy with an antidepressant is imperative. On the other hand, in patients treated with an antidepressant plus an anxiolytic, the clinician may consider tapering the anxiolytic slowly, then discontinuing it when the symptoms of acute anxiety have resolved. Because of their well-documented withdrawal effects, the BZDs should be tapered gradually over the course of at least several weeks, depending on the dosage and duration of BZD therapy.
You May Like: How To Know You Have Social Anxiety
Read Also: What To Expect In Therapy For Depression
How Depression Anxiety And Addiction Go Together And Why It Matters
The most staggering statistic that Ive read regarding mental health goes like this: more than 50% of people in America will experience a mental illness at some point in their lives. This data comes from a study led by Harvard Medical School and the National Institute of Mental Health .
Take a moment to let that sink in. Then ask yourself, how much do we really know about these conditions that impact most of us at some point in our lives? Mental health issues are not side issues. On the contrary, they affect millions of Americans every single day.
National Depression Screening Day takes place on October 5th this year, and World Mental Health Day follows on October 10th. Now is the perfect time to focus in on depression and anxiety, two interrelated mental and emotional health conditions that often precipitate addiction.
Can Depression Cause Anxiety
Depression and anxiety have a cyclic relationship. If someone experiences the symptoms of depression, that may lead to anxiety over the way theyre feeling. Or an individual might feel anxious much of the time, and, when this constant state of worrying begins negatively impacting their daily life or relationships, can lead them to feel depressed.
If youre wondering whether one disorder triggered another one, its difficult to know for sure. People may develop depression first and then anxiety afterwards , and this can make it seem like one caused the other. In reality, the causes of mental health disorders are complex and varied. However, its possible for an untreated anxiety disorder or depression to lead to other complications, including additional mental health disorders or substance abuse.
Also Check: How To Help Bipolar Depression
How Do You Know If You Have Both
Think about how you feel after social interactions. Do you feel good about yourself or bad about yourself?
Keep in mind that everyone deals with awkward social interactions from time to time. How you handle and cope with these interactions can determine whether youre dealing with mental health challenges.
A person who doesnt have social anxiety can usually brush off an awkward social moment and move on.
For someone living with social anxiety, however, the fear of embarrassment and genuine anxiety may feel too intense to even deal with a social situation. If you do find yourself in a social setting, you may feel like youre being watched and judged the whole time.
If you suspect youre dealing with symptoms of social anxiety, depression, or both, try to talk with a doctor or mental health expert. They can help you understand your symptoms and point you toward the best type of treatment.
Treatments are available to improve social anxiety and depression. If youre diagnosed with both, your doctor may choose a therapy that works for both conditions.
Defining Depression And Anxiety
Traditional textbook definitions of depression and anxiety describe symptoms, not causes.
If you Google depression, youll get this: A mental health disorder characterized by persistently depressed mood. If you search for anxiety, youll find this: A mental health disorder characterized by feelings of worry, anxiety, or fear. These definitions are accurate, but theyre not exactly illuminating. They dont reveal the root causes.
We like to define depression as anger turned inward. This definition is just three words long, but it gets straight to the heart of the matter. Depression is anger you havent allowed yourself to feel or express. While depression manifests as sadness or numb apathy, it starts off as anger.
Likewise, we define anxiety as emotional energy bouncing back and forth, trapped between internal walls. Anxiety is the sensation you get when you refuse to feel your off-limits emotions, such as hurt and anger.
We teach a framework that clarifies the relationship between depression, anxiety, and addiction. Its called the Anger-Hurt-Loving model, and it points the way forward to healing.
Recommended Reading: Icd 10 Code For Severe Depression
How To Cope With Anxiety And Depression
Anxiety and depression often go hand in hand. Heres what you need to know if they strike simultaneously.
Aleksei Morozov/iStock
Do you sometimes worry so much that it interferes with your everyday activities? Or feel so blue that it completely clouds your outlook? Do you often experience these or similar feelings together? Youre not the only one.
According to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America , anxiety disorders which include generalized anxiety disorder, panic disorder, and social anxiety disorder are the most common mental health problem among U.S. adults, affecting 18.1 percent of the population each year. And mood disorders which include major depressive disorder, bipolar disorder, and seasonal affective disorder are the leading cause of disability.
Moreover, the incidence of developing depression in addition to an anxiety disorder or vice versa is high. Many people with major depression also suffer from severe and persistent anxiety, notes Sally R. Connolly, LCSW, in Louisville, Kentucky. And some experts estimate that 60 percent of people with anxiety will also have symptoms of depression, according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness .
RELATED: Black Mental Health: Fighting Stigma and Building Trust
Living With Both Conditions Can Cause Physical Symptoms
My biggest issue is with sleep. There are days when I constantly feel tired but I cant fall asleep because my mind is wired Im constantly overthinking. My conditions are well managed now, after therapy and antidepressants, but there are still tough days. The physical symptoms dont always go away. I experience a lot of tightness in my chest and stomach aches from anxiety. Those things lend themselves to a depressive episode so it feels like a never-ending cycle some days. Alex Kuntz, 25, a public relations professional in Minneapolis
Also Check: Can I Get Rid Of Depression