Which to treat first: Comorbid anxiety or alcohol disorder?
Therapies that target just one problem are in sufficient for patients who have both.
Figure 2
Identifying and addressing alcohol use in patients with anxiety disorder
The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) offers assessment tools to help you judge whether a patient’s alcohol use exceeds recommended limits (seeRelated Resources).Related resources
- Al’Absi, M, ed. Stress and addiction: Biological and psychological mechanisms. 1st ed. New York: Elsevier-Academic Press; 2007.
- Beck AT, Wright FD, Newman CF, Liese BS. Cognitive therapy of substance abuse. New York: Guilford Press; 1993.
- National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. Alcoholism screening tools. https://pubs.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/arh28-2/78-79.htm.
- National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. Helping patients who drink too much: a clinician’s guide. 2005 ed. Rockville, MD: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services; 2005. NIH Publication No. 07-3769. https://pubs.niaaa. nih.gov/publications/Practitioner/CliniciansGuide2005/ clinicians_guide.htm.
- Padesky CA, Greenberger D. Mind over mood. New York: Guilford Press; 1995.
Drug brand names
- Acamprosate • Campral
- Disulfiram • Antabuse
- Naltrexone • Depade, ReVia
Disclosure
The authors report no financial relationship with any company whose products are mentioned in this article or with manufacturers of competing products.
Acknowledgements
The authors thank Eric Maurer for his help in preparing this manuscript.
This work was supported, in part, by the following grants: NIAAA Grant R01 AA0105069 (MGK), R01 AA013379 (CLR), P50 AA010761 (CLR, SWB).
