Chronic Pain and Mental Health

There is a clear correlation between chronic pain and mental health. When someone is living with pain regularly, it is going to negatively affect their mental health. It is easy for these individuals to get caught up in negative thinking regarding their situation. Moreover, will the pain interfere with planned events, affect socializing, or their ability to work.  Also people living with chronic pain tend to worry, when they are not in pain, about when the pain will come back and how bad it will be. People who experience chronic pain often have a hard time adapting to the pain. With that, there is often an increase in stress, anxiety and depression, and in some cases, suicidal thoughts. 

When individuals are anxious, it is a normal response for them to tense their bodies. For someone who already has chronic pain, that can amplify their existing pain. Chronic pain can also interfere with healthy sleep. If someone is not sleeping well, due to their pain, it will increase stress levels and increase chances of depression.

Chronic pain also has a deep effect on the brain and body's functioning that impacts mental health. Chronic pain can lead to structural and functional changes in several areas of the brain. Neuroplasticity changes due to chronic pain, can cause negative affective states; such as depression, anger, and anxiety. Because these individuals’ brains are receiving constant pain signals, for long periods of time, their bodies often become dysregulated. The chronic pain can activate the sympathetic nervous system, leading to a fight or flight response. In doing so, creating a state of physical anxiousness and stress within the body.

When this is happening, it doesn’t take much for that physical manifestation of anxiety to lead to one becoming extremely anxious. As a result, a number of anxiety symptoms can occur.  

With all of this being said, it is clear that there is a relationship between both chronic pain and mental health. Moreover, they both affect one another in a number of ways. That is why it is important for individuals who are struggling with chronic pain to not only address their pain symptoms but also have mental health support. If someone with chronic pain is seeking therapy, there are options to accommodate them. Tele-health therapy could be a great option for individuals with chronic pain, so that they do not physically need to leave their homes. If they are looking for in person therapy, it does not need to be weekly. Therapists can work with the individual who is experiencing chronic pain to determine what timing works best for them to meet. Therapy could be a great option to provide social support, psychoeducation, validation but also, provide these individuals with coping skills and a safe space to explore all of their feelings related to their chronic pain.

References:

Greenberg EN. The consequences of chronic pain. J Pain Palliat Care Pharmacother. 2012;26(1):64-7. doi: 10.3109/15360288.2011.650359. PMID: 22448948.

​​Pasquale, M., & Murphy, LCSW, N. (2022, April 19). The emotional impact of the pain experience. Hospital for Special Surgery. https://www.hss.edu/conditions_emotional-impact-pain-experience.asp#:~:text=Patients%20with%20chronic%20pain%20often,acute%20injury%2C%20it%20may%20be 

Yang S, Chang MC. Chronic Pain: Structural and Functional Changes in Brain Structures and Associated Negative Affective States. Int J Mol Sci. 2019 Jun 26;20(13):3130. doi: 10.3390/ijms20133130. PMID: 31248061; PMCID: PMC6650904.

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