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How Can I Manage Anxiety To Help A Depressive Disorder?

Anxiety and depression may sound like opposites, but they are linked. While there are tons of tricks and tips to manage both anxiety and depressive disorders, how can you discover what really works?  

The way that these disorders can affect you can critically impact your daily life and happiness. However, they can be managed with proper treatment and lifestyle changes. First, it's essential to understand what anxiety and depression actually are. 

Woman struggling with anxiety.

What Is Anxiety? 

The definition of anxiety is a feeling of worry, nervousness, or unease. Such feelings can happen to anyone in a particular situation. For instance, someone who has not been diagnosed with an anxiety disorder can feel anxious about a presentation, a job interview, or a date.  

Being diagnosed with an anxiety disorder that requires treatment or management is more complex. According to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), anxiety disorders "involve more than temporary worry or fear. For a person with an anxiety disorder, the anxiety does not go away and can get worse over time. The symptoms can interfere with daily activities such as job performance, schoolwork, and relationships." 

Anxiety like this can keep you in a high-energy state filled with constant irrational thoughts. Such fears and worries can easily turn into depression without the proper interventions. 

What Is a Depressive Disorder? 

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) describes depression as more than just feeling down or having a bad day, but rather a gloomy mood that lasts for a long time and interferes with normal functioning. While there is no sure cause of depression, genetic, biological, environmental, and psychological factors (like anxiety) can contribute. 

Depression withdraws you from everyday life and activities you once enjoyed. This feeling can last for years and requires long-term treatment. As with most mental health disorders, depression treatment often includes therapy, medication, and support group meetings. 

Solely focusing on depression when anxiety is at play can leave you at a standstill in treatment. As anxiety has links to depression, managing one disorder can help with the other. 

How Are Anxiety and Depression Linked? 

The odds of having depression increase when you already have an anxiety disorder. About half of those who have a depressive disorder also suffer from an anxiety disorder. Suffering from both an anxiety disorder and depression is challenging, and this dual diagnosis requires treatment in a much more intricate manner. A psychiatrist should do a thorough exam to confirm the diagnosis, and then treatment can begin.  

How Managing Anxiety Can Help Depression 

Apart from medical intervention and treatment from a health care professional, there are ways you can manage your anxiety that can help a depressive disorder. Some may seem silly at first, but they can make a difference with practice and proper incorporation into your everyday life. 

#1. Exercising 

Exercise is something many people roll their eyes at when it comes to managing anxiety or depression. However, there is a lot of evidence that exercise has a positive impact on your mental health. While you don't need to go to the gym daily, practicing yoga, taking a walk, or even stretching can benefit you. 

#2. Meditating and Relaxing 

Meditation or another form of relaxation is key to reducing your anxiety levels. Mindfulness is about controlling your thoughts. When fearful thoughts invade your mind, refocusing on something simpler can ease stress and anxiety. Sitting in a calm space and practicing deep breathing improves your oxygen intake and slows down your heart rate. This lets you think more clearly and with less impact from anxious thoughts. 

#3. Eating a Balanced Diet 

Everyone's version of healthy eating is different, but the key to your diet aiding in reducing anxiety is balance. You don't need to cut yourself off from all the foods you enjoy, but finding a healthy balance is best. Getting enough fruits, vegetables, complex carbohydrates, fats, protein, and hydration keeps your body functioning at its highest level. Malnutrition and dehydration can lead to worsening anxiety, weakness, fatigue, and depression. 

#4. Finding Activities That You Enjoy 

Finding things that give you a purpose increases your confidence and hope for the future. Removing yourself from stressful situations and discovering something you enjoy doing enhances your ability to overcome struggles. Finding a passion project or hobby can inspire you to push yourself and boost your mood. Even doing things such as volunteering or helping out a friend can help motivate you. 

#5. Having a Support Network  

The involvement of a doctor or therapist is key to managing anxiety and its impact on depression. However, a support network is just as important. Having friends and loved ones around you who treat you with respect stops you from isolating and feeding into negative thoughts. 

Woman being supported by her peers.

Managing One Disorder Can Reduce The Symptoms Of Another 

There is no lack of evidence that anxiety and depression go hand in hand, and one often leads to the other. But managing one disorder can help reduce the symptoms of the other, too. Working through anxiety with meditation, support from a loved one, or improving your physical health can decrease your likelihood of having a depressive episode. Breathing techniques, enjoyable activities, and finding a purpose can boost your self-esteem and help you push through troubling times. 

Managing your anxiety is never easy, but starting to incorporate lifestyle changes will go a long way. Giving yourself time to adjust and asking for help from loved ones or medical professionals can help you face your mental health struggles. Here at DetoxNearMe.com, we have access to the support and resources you need to start making the most of your life. You can manage your anxiety and depression with help. Reach out to DetoxNearMe.com today.

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