The Complicated Relationship Between Alcohol and Depression

It’s common for people to use alcohol to get through difficult times. It seems like a quick way to relieve anxiety, lessen feelings of depression, and take the edge off. When someone goes through a breakup or loss of a job, having a few drinks can help blunt the pain.

Reaching for an occasional drink when looking for relief isn’t necessarily a bad thing. It’s different when alcohol accompanies every challenge or problem that comes up. If alcohol is your way of coping with struggles or sadness, this might be the sign of a bigger problem.

There is also a connection between alcohol and depression. Using alcohol as a coping mechanism is a sign of disordered drinking. Are people with depression more likely to drink? Or do people with a drinking problem develop depression over time?

There is a complicated relationship between alcohol and depression. Are you curious about how the two conditions interact with each other? Continue reading to learn more about the connections between depression and alcohol abuse.

Everyone experiences challenges in life from time to time. Breakups, job loss, unexpected illness; life presents difficulties to everyone. These situations come out of nowhere and leave you feeling overwhelmed and upset.

Still, many people can acknowledge the experience, work through it, and move forward. They aren’t affected by what took place for long before continuing with their life. Their sadness is temporary but doesn’t plague them for weeks or months.

Depression is not the same thing as normal sadness. It’s a pervasive condition that affects a person’s outlook on themselves and the world around them. People with depression can’t “get over it.” The sense of hopelessness touches on every aspect of their life.

Since they’re dependent on drinking, quitting drinking doesn’t cross their mind as an option. This only makes their depressive episode worse and may cause more episodes in the future as well. If they don’t seek help for their drinking or depression, they put themselves at risk of advancing both conditions.

Dual diagnosis, or co-occurring disorders, is the presence of both mental illness and alcohol use disorder. People who struggle with depression and alcohol abuse qualify as dual diagnosis cases. It doesn’t matter whether their depression or their drinking came first.

Individuals with dual diagnosis have a unique set of circumstances to work through. For example, 30 to 40 percent of people with an alcohol problem also struggle with depression. At first, they may seek treatment for their alcohol abuse. It’s only once they’re at the facility that they discover the presence of depression.

Removing alcohol from their system is the first step. Once sober, they still need to work through their symptoms of depression. Effective treatment requires the aid of a facility that understands the relationship between the two.