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The Relationship Between Depression and Anxiety

Most people think that depression and anxiety are two very different things. The average person thinks that when they are depressed they slow down, that it becomes difficult to find the energy to do the day to day activities their life requires. When people think of depression they often think about laying around in a darkened room doing nothing but sleeping and eating potato chips and chocolate bars for weeks at a time.

When a person thinks they are suffering from depression they often think that their brain waves have slowed down. When the average person thinks about anxiety they think that their brain is working too fast. When a person is anxious they often find that it is impossible to get their brain to shut off, it is constantly worrying at various issues. When people think of anxiety they think of a person who is jittery and suffering from insomnia. Most people feel that depression and anxiety are two very different things.

The truth is that depression and anxiety often co-exist.

What Is Depression?

Depression is an illness that, although it starts in the brain, affects the entire body. People who are suffering from depression often find they feel a change in their thinking, feeling, and behavior. More often then not people who are depressed can feel the illness taking a toll on their psychical health. There is a variety of things, including body chemistry and outside influences that can trigger depression.

What Is Anxiety?

Anxiety is the feeling of constantly being worried. People who suffer from anxiety often find that they are unable to stop worrying and fretting about things. Because anxiety makes a person incapable of relaxing it takes a physical toll on the body. Some of the physical side affects of anxiety include a change of weight, change and diet, and insomnia. People who are dealing with anxiety often suffer from anxiety often experience panic attacks.

The Similarities

Even though depression and anxiety are separate things they aren’t mutually exclusive. Medical experts have discovered that as many 85% of patients who have depression also have a condition called Generalized Anxiety Disorder. In some situations anxiety issues can use a person to be come depressed. Forms of depression such as obsessive compulsive disorder and Post Traumatic Stress disorder originally start with anxiety.

Helping Yourself

If you are suffering from depression and anxiety there are some things you can do to help stabilize and in some cases even cure the conditions. Many people have a great deal of success using both exercise to help them cope with their depression and anxiety. Yoga and other forms of relaxation therapy have also been very successful. Changes in diet can help improve your well being, as can a change in environment. There are also several medications available that doctors will prescribe that will help balance your body’s chemistry and work at helping alleviate your depression and anxiety.