Chronic Pain And Mental Health – Everything You Need To Know

Posted on Oct 17, 2022 | 0 comments

It is no secret that our country is experiencing a health crisis. In fact, 1 in 5 Americans suffer from chronic pain, and over half of Americans report living in pain each year…. This is an astounding number of people…

Living in pain…

Their mental health being negatively impacted on a daily basis. Our mind * body * soul are all connected so it makes sense if our bodies are in pain, our minds and our souls will be unaligned as well.

Studies show that people suffering from chronic pain are 4x more likely to become anxious or depressed. Read on to find out why and how.

The Science Behind Chronic Pain & Mental Health

Research has proven that pain acts as a survival signal for the brain. When our bodies experience pain, our reptilian brain is triggered to prepare us for the fight, flight, freeze or fawn mode. This changes our brain physically and chemically. And while our body and brains can usually resolve these changes and return to normal after temporary pain, chronic pain does exactly what you think – it negatively impacts one’s wellbeing creating real psychological changes long term.

Over time, this will impact brain function resulting in behavior changes, possible heart issues, gastrointestinal changes and more.

In fact, pain is inextricably linked to emotions as they exist on almost the same circuitry of the nervous system. Our brain is made up of hundreds of neuropathways, some subconscious, that cause behaviors within one that they may not even be aware of.

Chronic pain suffers can experience brutal pain for long periods of time, resulting in a feeling that there is no way out, life is filled with pain and sometimes they feel like they just can’t go on.

These feelings are real, very, very real.

Is There Any Good News?

Yes!! Our brains are neuroplastic – meaning they can be changed!! In my course Treat Yourself Well, Conscious Awaken The True You, we focus on rewriting our neuropathways to heal our inner child and to find happiness, even through the struggle.

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There are certain treatments and therapies that are specific to the structures of the brain. Some things you can start doing now to help are yoga, goal-setting, mindfulness and meditation training, sleep routines focus, and a few other behavioral therapies.

The fact of the matter is that there is hope. There is a way to live a good quality of life. It takes understanding, sharing information, and caring.

Chronic pain, just as depression, anxiety, and trauma bonding are all very real. Just because you can not see them, does not mean they fail to exist. It means, they can often times be far more painful because they can take longer to figure out and properly diagnose.

So the next time a friend or loved in is in pain, or you are, don’t be so hard on them or yourself. It’s time we all started caring for each other more.

Take a second and please share your great tips on dealing with chronic pain and mental health issues in the comments. Sharing is caring!!

Malibu Mama Loves Xx