Anxiety and depression are two of the most commonly occurring psychological symptoms for Americans, nearly 19 million adults have an anxiety disorder, and more than 18.8 million adults are suffering from a major depressive disorder.
Both disorders commonly occur when a patient is suffering from another psychological disorder, such as substance abuse or eating disorders. Anxiety and depression also co-occur with one another; nearly 60 to 70 percent of patients with a major depressive disorder have an anxiety disorder.
Depression and Anxiety: Opposing Forces
Depression is a mood disorder, most simply defined as a psychological disorder that affects a person's mood. Depression, often the common name for major depressive disorder, shares the mood disorder slot with bipolar disorder, cyclothymia (elevated mood), and dysthymia (mild depression).
Anxiety disorders encompass post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), panic disorder, phobias, acute stress disorder and agoraphobia, generalize anxiety disorder (GAD) and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD).
Essentially, both groups of disorders develop as a specific way in which a patient responds to stress. One patient faced with the stress of finding a new job may have a panic attack, for example, while another patient faced with the same stressor may display symptoms of depression.
Disorder Similarities Between Depression and Anxiety
In recent years, the commonality between anxiety and depression has grown, and researchers are finding biological links that may explain why the disorders so often co-occur.
The National Institute of Mental Health believes that patients may have a decrease in the number of brain receptors that process serotonin, a neurotransmitter that regulates mood, pain perception, memory and other brain functions. Patients with anxiety and depression also can have an overactive stress response system. Patients with these neurological abnormalities may react to life stress with a form of anxiety, and then move on to episodes of depression.
Dual Treatment for Depression and Anxiety
Many times when dealing with treating co-occurring disorders, treating one illness will cause symptoms of the other illness to decrease or stop altogether. In other cases, one therapy can be effective in treating both disorders simultaneously.
Psychotherapy methods for each group of disorders can differ greatly. Patients with depression may respond best to a form of "talk" therapy, such as cognitive-behavioral therapy or interpersonal therapy, and disorders like GAD or social phobia can be helped by CBT. For certain anxiety disorders, a form of exposure therapy is most beneficial. Patients with PTSD, for example, may go through a guided recollection of their traumatic experience with the therapist, allowing the patient to be desensitized to the trauma, and not experience a panic response to remembering the event.
Antidepressants are a common medication used to treat anxiety and depressive disorders, with patients reporting a reduction in panic or depressive symptoms and a more regulated mood. For some anxiety disorders, anti-anxiety medications can help regulate the body's reaction to stress and reduce general anxiety symptoms.
Anxiety and depression, whether occurring alone or in tandem, are treatable psychological disorders. For more information on anxiety and depression, and how to get help, click here.
Sources:
- American Psychological Association
- National Institute of Mental Health
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