When you enter into an episode of anxiety or depression, it's so important to get the right treatment as quickly as possible. Sadly, a number of myths surrounding anxiety and depression can make it difficult to know what the best treatment is. Let's debunk several of these myths to help you recover from anxiety and depression as quickly as possible.

Another common myth regarding anxiety and depression is the theory that both have their roots in past events, even going back as far as childhood. Repeatedly going over events from the past is a major part of depression, and of course, the past can be a very cruel place to live. But replaying past events is again just one of the symptoms. Therapy that solely focuses on addressing events from the past in a misguided search to attribute the cause of your depression is flawed in two ways: First, one single event from the past will not cause depression or anxiety. Yes, certain events from the past - especially abuse - can cause problems but these problems are not part of anxiety or depression and need specialist counselling. Secondly, replaying events from the past will do nothing whatsoever to help you deal with the problems and circumstances you face here and now. Instead of concentrating on the past, concentrate instead on coping with and solving, the problems and issues you are confronted with at the moment. This will help you far more than digging up the past.

You may hear fitness gurus promoting exercise as the best way to ease anxiety and depression. Although exercise is great for physical health, it cannot cure anxiety or depression. Lack of exercise has absolutely nothing to do with depression and exercising regularly will not cure you. Indeed, certain exercises - running, treadmills, biking to give just 3 examples - may even fuel depression as they allow you to brood over your problems. Exercises where you have to concentrate, such as tennis, badminton, squash, are more beneficial. Exercise can help, but you also need to treat the root cause of anxiety and depression as well. And if you perform the behaviours that cause anxiety and depression when you stop exercising, exercise won't help you conquer either of these problems.

If you're taking an antidepressant and it isn't working, you will be told that: "some drugs are more effective than others. What works on one person may not be as effective with another. That's why doctors repeatedly change the type of drug. It's simply a matter of finding the drug that is right for you." This simply isn't true. There are other factors - tolerance to a drug, dosage of a drug and the simple fact that chemical imbalances aren't the root cause of your anxiety or depression. Tellingly, Yale University has published results showing that for 70% of people, antidepressant drugs are totally ineffective. Other treatments, especially cognitive therapy, are far more effective.

Anxiety and depression are all in the mind. This is another huge myth, mainly believed by people who have never suffered from these problems. There are many other symptoms that are part of anxiety and depression: back ache, muscle cramps, exhaustion, loss of appetite or increase in appetite, sleeplessness, hyper-tension, and loss of sex drive to name but a few. Dismissing anxiety and depression as being "all in the mind" simplifies them and shows a complete lack of understanding about them. All of these symptoms combined make it so very hard for sufferers to do even the simplest of daily tasks and cause so much anguish. If anyone tells you it's "all in your mind" ignore them, they don't know what they're talking about.

When it comes to treating anxiety and depression, most sufferers believe antidepressant drugs such as Effexor, Prozac, Zoloft, and Celexa for example - are the most effective treatment. The problem with using drugs to treat anxiety and depression is that they only treat one of the symptoms - reduced levels of serotonin, a "happy chemical" in the brain. As soon as a person stops taking the drug, the root cause will surface and another episode of suffering results. Drugs may help you feel better in the short term, but they cannot offer you a cure.

You're now aware of what doesn't work when it comes to treating anxiety and depression. In avoiding these myths and choosing more effective methods, you'll take a significant step towards recovery.