When I was going through some of the worst bouts of clinical depression I always seemed to be ill with something else; usually something to do with my liver or gall bladder or some blood condition. I almost always had some pain in my back, or my knee, or I had low-grade cold and flu symptoms.

It seemed that whenever I was ill depression quickly followed in the wake of the illness.

But I've read many medical reports since then that show me that it might have been the other way around – that the depression came first and then the aches and pains and illnesses came afterwards.

It turns out that doctors who treat chronic pain and depression have known for years just how closely the two conditions are linked. There's even some research that shows pain and depression share common pathways in the emotional part (the professionals call it the limbic region) of the brain. It's thought that this goes some way to explaining their association.

I came across this article on the WebMD.com site that talks about the link between pain and depression in detail.

“Physical pain is a common, but often ignored, symptom of depression; and pain severity is a strong predictor of the degree of depression and health-related quality of life, findings from a newly published study indicate.

Two-thirds of the depressed patients beginning antidepressant treatment in the study reported being in physical pain, with the most commonly cited symptoms being frequent headaches, back pain, joint pain, and abdominal pain.

Physical symptoms persisted longer than depression symptoms in more than a third of the patients, leading the researchers to conclude that pain may serve as a barometer for gauging the effectiveness of depression treatment. The findings are reported in the August issue of the journal Psychosomatic Medicine.

"It is important to recognize that physical symptoms like pain can be part of the picture of depression," researcher Kurt Kroenke, MD, tells WebMD. "Even though the physical symptoms may be related to or aggravated by the depression, they can linger longer than the emotional symptoms."
Source: WebMD.com

Here's a question for you - which do you treat first? The physical pain or the emotional and mental pain?

Well, in my case I ended up getting help for both – when I finally did get round to seeking help that is...

I ended up in hospital a couple of times with doctors leaning over me chatting casually about surgery. I remember being in such pain and wondering how I would be able to live my life if I had to put up with such discomfort for another 5 years. It made me feel even more hopeless and exacerbated the depression.

I thought to myself, if I have these difficulties, and I'm not emotionally strong, I simply won't be able to handle all these health issues as well, and I made a decision to seek counselling and coaching to help strengthen me so I could cope.

Well, I cannot diagnose anyone, including myself, but I do know that in the 18 months during which I worked on my emotional state, treating my depression through as many natural nutrition and talking therapies as I could afford, the physical illnesses and the aches and pains have melted away.

Not overnight you understand. But after 20 years of such troubles, to find that they lessened so much within a year and a half seemed – and still does seem – pretty miraculous to me.

I'd encourage you to have a little think about how your physical state and your depressive episodes might be linked. Don't ignore the one and treat the other.

Our bodies and minds and souls are linked – even doctors know that now... We have to treat ourselves holistically.

Wishing you health, wealth and true happiness.


Lorraine

 
 

I always used to feel 'weak' for experiencing depression.  I felt I should have been 'strong enough' to cope with all the difficulties life had thrown at me. Yes, yes, I know - that's ridiculous. But there was always such pressure to carry on within a short space of time, as though nothing had happened. It all left me feelin so weary...

How many people do you know who are expected by their bosses to return to work within 3 days after burying a loved one, or after returning home from hospital?

In our society today many people still feel that anyone over the age of 12 should be able to 'pull themselves together' in a pretty short space of time, even in the face of the dire life circumstances. But many times that's simply not possible to do.  We can never know in advance how or why depression strikes a person.

Or can we? 

This great article that I found at John McManamy's excellent site talks about Nature or Nurture - Outside Depression Causes  and looks at some of the many reasons why depression occurs.  The article's a bit elderly - it was written way back in 2004 - but as far as I'm concerned every word still rings true.

"We know that depression is a physical phenomenon. Thanks to modern imaging, we can see it actually taking place, like a tiny squid secreting dark ink in the left prefrontal regions of the brain. We also know that genes are a factor in both depression and bipolar disorder, that in twins there is a co-occurrence that cannot be explained away by chance, and that these conditions often have interlocking family histories spanning several generations.

But life, let alone depression and bipolar disorder, is never that simple.

According to the Surgeon General, stressful life events loom large in depression. Thirty to 40 percent of those undergoing divorce report a significant increase in symptoms of depression and anxiety. Single mothers face twice the risk of depression as do married mothers. Victims of domestic violence must often bear their considerable emotional burdens while battling incapacitating depression. At least 10 to 20 percent of widows and widowers develop clinical depression during the first year of bereavement. In the words of the Surgeon General: "The compelling impact of past parental neglect, physical and sexual abuse, and other forms of maltreatment on both adult emotional well-being and brain function is now firmly established for depression."

In other words, stress incidence in life can often bring on depression, as much as the chemical imbalances that doctors are forever attempting to drug out of existence.

If you're going through a rough patch in life, and I know many of you are, do these three things.  I understand that you feel you don't have much energy - I get that completely, believe me.  But this list is only 3 items long...  not some great and grand action plan.

1. Do what you have to to take care of your body; sleep more, comfort eat less, exercise more.

2. Ask for help; from your mum, your dad, your brother, your close friend,  a sympathetic doctor or some other health professional.  When I finally got round to doing this (after years of struggling on my own mind), things came together in my life within a matter of months...

3. Be gentle with yourself; remember, modern living takes its toll on the human body and the human mind. 

Wishing you health, wealth and happiness.

Lorraine