What's The Link Between Addiction, Anxiety, And Panic Attacks?

People with anxiety disorders are more likely to fall into the clutches of a drug or alcohol addiction — and looking at any group of people receiving treatment for substance abuse will reveal much higher rates of anxiety disorders, too. It's clear that there's significant overlap between the two. Why, though? And more importantly if you think you're facing both or someone you care about is, what help is available?

What is the link between substance addictions and anxiety disorders?

Alarmingly high numbers of substance abusers suffer from an anxiety disorder — and conversely, people with anxiety disorders struggle with substance abuse at attention-grabbing rates. While one study showed that 43 percent of those in treatment for a substance addiction also deal with crippling anxiety, around 20 percent of people who have a mood disorder like anxiety have been estimated to abuse alcohol or drugs. 

It is beyond clear, then, that there is indeed a link between substance addiction and anxiety disorders, with people who suffer from one of the two having a much higher risk of also having the other. Why, though? There are a few possible explanations, which will apply to different individuals. 

• Someone already suffering from a debilitating anxiety disorder may turn to alcohol or drugs — or both, of course — to try to cope with the symptoms. This would be a "self-medication" pathway to substance abuse. Some people may find that alcohol or drugs do, in fact, reduce the symptoms of their anxiety disorder, though they still add a new problem into their lives while leaving the underlying problem, now somewhat masked, intact. Others will find that drugs and alcohol only worsen their anxiety, but are addicted by the time they realize. 
• Someone with a substance use disorder may develop anxiety triggered by the drugs or alcohol they are using and the stress the addiction brings into their lives. 
• It is also possible that, in some cases, a person is vulnerable to both anxiety disorders and substance addictions for a shared reason, such as, for instance, genetics or a traumatic childhood. 

What do you need to know about the link between panic disorder and substance addiction specifically?

Panic disorder is an anxiety disorder that causes its victims to suffer intense episodes of fear and anxiety that may seem to come out of the blue or be triggered by specific circumstances — panic attacks. Panic attacks are no joke. Often leading to symptoms like heart palpitations, chest discomfort, excessive perspiration, feeling like you're choking and unable to breathe, and like the end is near, it's no wonder that many people who don't know what's happening to them believe they're suffering from a heart attack when they have one. 

Though you've got to realize that numbers will vary from one study to the next — they're each working with different "test subjects", after all — different bits of research found that:

• Thirty percent of people in treatment for alcoholism suffer from panic attacks, with or without agoraphobia (an anxiety disorder in which places or situations induce anxiety — often leaving people with an overwhelming fear of public spaces and sometimes effectively trapping them in their homes). 
• Around 40 percent of weekly cannabis users reported that they had at least one panic attack. 

It's important to note that though the people who abuse substances in a bid to numb the symptoms of panic disorder and other anxiety-related disorders will absolutely know that they feel — to put it simply — bad, they may not be aware that they suffer from a diagnosible medical condition. They may simply be trying, even subconsciously, to feel a little less bad. 

How should the combo of anxiety disorders and substance use disorders be treated?

Anxiety disorders and substance addictions can, as you see, be so deeply intertwined that it's hard to determine where one ends and the other starts. As you can imagine, suffering from crippling anxiety makes it harder to get through treatment for substance abuse — and even to ask for help — while a substance addiction makes treatment for anxiety a challenge, too. 

• Sertraline (Zoloft), an antidepressant, can help reduce the symptoms of anxiety disorders as well as decreasing alcohol intake among alcoholics. 
• Paroxetine (Paxil), another antidepressant, has also been shown to help people who suffer from alcohol use disorder alongside an anxiety disorder. 
• Tiagabine (Gabitril), an anticonvulsant, has shown to be promising for people suffering from a cocaine use disorder and an anxiety disorder at the same time. 
• Many other medications have the potential to help — but besides pharmaceuticals, talk therapy also offers hope. Cognitive behavioral therapy is very often used to help people with either substance addictions or anxiety disorders, and provided it's adapted to an invidual's needs, can also help those with a dual diagnosis.