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Depression, anxiety, and mood disorders are among the most common types of mental health conditions. There is a high chance that they might occur together and therefore have somewhat similar treatments. According to scientific research, nearly half of the Americans facing depression also develop an anxiety disorder alongside.
Although a lot of the symptoms of the two conditions overlap but still there are few differences between the both that are pretty serious. Depression can be deemed as a specific illness, though with a lot of symptoms. Meanwhile, anxiety encompasses a wide range of different mental conditions and human behaviors. Some keys differences between the two can be sorted out based on the physiological features of the person suffering from either one.
Anxiety
Having ordinary anxiety related to your work, job, studies, or daily affairs is fine as long as it does not affects your everyday life and behavior. However, an anxiety disorder can be more severe and stop you from carrying out your daily life in the usual fashion. It could affect your eating habits, sleep, social skills, and overall state of mind.
Anxiety disorders affect an estimated 18.1% of the U.S. population every year, making it the most common mental condition. On a more global aspect, anxiety is the most prominent psychological problem in the world, and 30% of adults may have or will be affected by stress at some phase in their lives. Some common symptoms of anxiety are panic attacks, painful thoughts, over-grief, nightmares, restlessness, loss of concentration, fear of social situations, etc.
However, one should not confuse anxiety for being related totally to one’s mental condition only. Anxiety disorders can trigger physical symptoms as well apart from emotional. People with an anxiety disorder may experience chronic fatigue, tiredness, restlessness, and dizziness. Surprisingly, despite being highly treatable, only 1/3rd of 36% of the anxiety patients receive its proper treatment.
Depression
Depression is another one of the world’s most prevalent mental condition that currently encompasses more than 300 million people around the globe. In any given year, at least one in ten adults gets victimized to depression, with over 18 million adults every year.
Several factors can contribute to causing depression at any time. These reasons dominantly include genetic orientation as depression can be hereditary and pass down to children. Imbalances in brain chemistry such as sudden variance in neurotransmitters responsible for regulating our mood and other hormonal flux at any time can cause depression. Apart from that, a sudden shock or grief, such as losing a loved one, breakups, abuse, stress, and other emotional letdowns, can trigger the hormonal and molecular complications that further cause depression.
Just like anxiety, depression is more common among women than men. Any sudden change in hormonal function such as during menstruation and pregnancy could lead to depression.
In contrast to anxiety, depression can have more severe consequences, such as disability and suicide. Nearly 50% of suicide victims worldwide suffer from at least some form of major depression. Unfortunately, the suicide rate due to depression is only increasing as in the U.S. alone, and suicide occurs every 12 minutes due to this primary reason.
Final Words
Anxiety and depression combined covers most of the statistics of mental health diseases prevalent around the globe. However, one does not need to suffer unnecessarily as both depression and anxiety and very much treatable and have effective treatments available.