When you are suffering from depression, this colorful world of ours can seem bleak and painted in hues of blue and gray. You may be unable to enjoy the things you used to or feel a terrible sadness that never seems to end. On top of depression, you may also have increased anxiety about the smallest things which seemed totally insignificant before. This is known as depression with anxiety and can paralyze you with fear over the oddest things. While it may seem like the end of the world, you should know that treatment for depression and anxiety is possible.
The Connection between Depression and Anxiety
Severe anxiety can lead to a depressed mind and depression can also lead to anxiety. There are many different types of anxiety just like there are many types of depression. There are anxiety disorders that range from mild to severe. You may experience panic attacks, obsessive compulsive disorders, post traumatic stress disorders or even simple general anxiety disorder. Having any of these is enough to push you into a depressive episode that combines the anxiety with depression. Having this combination generally requires treatment and is best handled by a trained doctor who is well versed in mental health disorders. Some people attempt to self treat but treatment for depression and anxiety should be supervised and monitored. The best treatment is actually a combination of talk therapy and chemical therapy which relieves the depression and works to change the anxiety related habits that may have led to or result from the depression.
Treatment for Depression and Anxiety
Psychotherapy – there are a variety of talk therapy treatments that can help people seeking treatment for depression and anxiety. Cognitive therapy involves the patient discussing the thoughts and feelings resulting from the anxiety and depression. Behavioral therapy involves fear confrontation to desensitize the patient to the anxiety. Cognitive Behavioral therapy combines the two and is the most effective for depression disorders that have anxiety symptoms. Some doctors use relaxation techniques to relieve the stress of the anxiety and help control the depression symptoms.
Drugs – there are a great deal of antidepressant medications that are used to reduce or control the symptoms of depression. These drugs range from the mild to the serious and have a wide range of side effects. Some of the older drugs are used to treat severe forms of depression and anxiety, the newer drugs tend to be geared toward the mild to moderate forms of depression because most of the people who suffer from depression and anxiety have low level symptoms. In addition to the antidepressants, there are anti-anxiety drugs that need to be taken in conjunction to combat all symptoms. Many of these quickly reduce the symptoms and feelings of anxiety and panic attacks. Some anti-anxiety drugs have short term effects and have to be taken several times a day. The longer term drugs are for people who are chronic sufferers who may not experience panic attacks.
