Anxiety Disorder (PTSD) can pretend to be Addiction or Alcoholism

I am retraining my brain because I consistently think of people suffering from PTSD, as war veterans. It’s true that 20% of soldiers who have been deployed in the past 6 years have PTSD, but it can occur after any traumatic experience. Examples are situations involving natural disasters, serious accidents, life-threatening illnesses, physical abuse, and sexual assault during child or adulthood. When I looked up information on PTSD, I learned that is falls under — Anxiety Disorder.

The most common anxiety disorders are

• generalized anxiety disorder (GAD)
• obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
• panic disorder
• post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
• social phobia (or social anxiety disorder)

What can also be confusing is that anxiety disorders commonly occur along with other mental or physical illnesses, including alcohol or substance abuse. These behaviors can mask anxiety symptoms or make them worse. In some cases, these other illnesses need to be treated before a person will respond to treatment…