Comorbidities and You: Living with Multiple Mental Health Disorders

If you’ve struggled with your mental health or provided support to someone struggling, you may have heard the word comorbidity, but you may not understand it. Today, we will discuss what comorbidities are, some of the most common comorbidities, and ways to provide support to people struggling in multiple ways.

Definition

Comorbidities are when multiple Psychological or Physical Disorders are observed in a person. For example, the person in question may be dealing with Depression and Anxiety, or they may have Depression and a physical disorder like Diabetes or Cancer. 

Causes

What causes someone to develop multiple mental disorders? For some, it can be as simple as delaying treatment; many patients with long-term untreated social anxiety find themselves showing signs of Depression as well. For others, such as those dealing with PTSD, Anxiety Disorders may develop as a response to the trauma. 

Most Common Comorbidities

According to this NAMI Article, about 60 percent of people who struggle with an Anxiety Disorder also struggle with signs of depression and vice versa. The reason is unclear but may have to do with depression and anxiety having similar effects on brain chemistry. As many as 80 percent of people who struggle with PTSD also deal with Depression, Anxiety, and even substance abuse disorders. Because PTSD is a very complex disorder and can affect many parts of the brain, many aspects are difficult to overcome. These are not the only mental health disorders that commonly have comorbidities. People who struggle with eating disorders are especially prone to comorbidities as well as bipolar disorder and many others.

Seeking Treatment & Providing Support

If you seek treatment for mental health disorders and suspect you may have more than one disorder, you should be completely honest with your health care provider about everything you are feeling, even on a good day. If you are providing support for a person struggling with multiple mental health conditions, please remember they are not just fighting one battle but many daily. It may be challenging to provide them with the help and support they deserve, but please always be the support they need.

That’s all I have for today. If you struggle with multiple mental health disorders and feel comfortable talking about how you cope with them, please leave a comment and tell us how you do it. Until next time.