Depression, Anxiety and Stress Management

The brain is a target of physiological stress, and is infl uenced and responds to stress-induced adaptation via synaptic plasticity. This brain structural remodelling can infl uence an individual’s behaviour and physiological responses. Dysregulation of stress may contribute to the development of a number of psychiatric disorders, including major depressive disorder (MDD). The management of stress typically involves pharmacological and non-pharmacological interventions. For the former, drug or herb therapy has been employed, but stressed individuals may also adopt acute (binge) and/or repetitive alcohol drinking behaviour. Excessive alcohol intake also drives neurobiological changes, some of which may contribute to the development of MDD. Alcohol dependency and MDD have alarmingly high rates of co-morbidity, indicative of a commonality of molecular mechanisms. In this talk I will highlight some of the neurobiological changes associated with stress, alcoholism and consider alcoholism and depression co-morbidity.