How are stress, anxiety, and depression connected?

Stress is any pressure or strain on your mind or body. Anxiety is a feeling of worry or fear, which could be situational -- due to worrisome circumstances, or more generalized and not focused on anything at all. Depression is an ongoing feeling of hopelessness, fatigue, and pessimism.

Stress, anxiety, and depression often go hand-in-hand, with any one or two of these feelings being dominant at any given time. There are all types of stress -- job stress, positive stress, negative stress, financial stress -- and each one manifests a little bit differently. Stress can lead to feelings of anxiety ranging from a low-grade uneasiness to full-on panic attacks. Stress and anxiety actually consume a lot of your energy; left untreated, they can lead to varying degrees of depression.