Among the mental illnesses, anxiety and depression are
two of the most commonly diagnosed. Anxiety and depression are debilitating
conditions, and those diagnosed with these disorders often find themselves
resigned to simply live with the disorders.
What many anxiety and depression sufferers fail to
realize is that these disorders are two of the most treatable forms of mental
illnesses. There are numerous medications on the market today for attacking
anxiety and depression. In addition, there is no shortage of literature and
resources designed to help every anxiety and depression sufferer recover from
their condition.
Up to now, medical science still has no complete
understanding of anxiety and depression, although what is known is that these
two disorders are related. For instance, it has been found that people with
anxiety disorders are more likely to have depression compared to people who do
not have anxiety disorders. The same goes for people with depression; they are
more likely to develop or have anxiety disorders. Because of this apparent link
between anxiety and depression, a lot of the treatments for anxiety are similar
or are the same as the treatments for depression, and vice versa.
Sedatives were traditionally used to attacking anxiety
and depression. In fact, alcohol was the very first sedative used as an anxiety
treatment. However, alcohol had toxic effects and was highly addictive and so it
was quickly replaced by barbiturates in 1912. However, it was soon found that
barbiturates have almost the same negative effects as alcohol. Today,
benzodiazapines are the most common type of anxiety treatment.
Like their predecessors, benzodiazapines are also highly
addictive and in some cases can make the symptoms of anxiety and depression
worse. If you are concerned that you may become addicted to benzodiazapines, or
if you are diagnosed with both anxiety and depression, you'll probably want to
avoid using sedatives to attacking anxiety and depression.
A number of drugs are proven effective for treating some
forms of depression. However, these same drugs can make anxiety disorders worse.
For example, Norepinephrine and dopamine reuptake inhibitors like Wellbutrin are
known to be effective in treating depression, but are not recommended to people
who suffer both anxiety and depression. Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors
or SSRIs are medications effective at attacking anxiety and depression.
Anxiety and depression can also be treated in
non-pharmaceutical ways. Sufferers can join support groups, undergo therapy and
counseling, get on a regular exercise routine and switch to a healthy diet.
If you feel that you may be suffering from anxiety,
depression or both, make an appointment to see your doctor for early diagnosis
and treatment. As mentioned earlier, anxiety and depression are highly treatable
disorders. If you don't take immediate steps effectively attacking anxiety and
depression, it will only become worse.
