The connection between addiction and mental illness
Introduction If you're in a relationship with someone who is addicted to drugs or alcohol, it's important for you to know the warning signs so that you can protect yourself. You may feel like your partner is neglecting or abusing you, but this could be because they are in denial about their disease. There are also other things that can happen when someone has an addiction problem--they may become violent, act irrationally and be unable to function normally at work or school. Chronic depression and anxiety often lead to drug and alcohol abuse. Depression and anxiety are common. Research shows that about one in four people will experience depression at some point during their lives, and about half of those people will have a major depressive episode (a period when they feel depressed much of the time or for more than two weeks). Anxiety disorders affect about 18 million Americans each year and can be debilitating, causing symptoms such as physical symptoms (such as trouble slee...