Chronic Pain and Depression
Pain serves an important
function in our lives. When you suffer an acute injury, pain warns you
to stop the activity that is causing the injury and tells you to take
care of the affected body part.
Chronic pain, on the
other hand, persists for weeks, months, or even years. Some people,
often older adults, suffer from chronic pain without any definable past
injury or signs of body damage. Common chronic pain can be caused by
headaches, the low back, and arthritis. Unfortunately, there is scant
objective evidence or physical findings to explain such pain.
Until recently, some
doctors who could not find a physical cause for a person's pain simply
suggested that it was imaginary-"all in your head." This is unfortunate
because we know that all pain is real and not imagined, except in the
most extreme cases of psychosis. Emerging scientific evidence is
demonstrating that the nerves in the spinal cord of patients with
chronic pain undergo structural changes.
Psychological and social issues often amplify the effects of chronic pain. For example, people with
chronic
pain frequently report a wide range of limitations in family and social
roles, such as the inability to perform household or workplace chores,
take care of children, or engage in leisure activities. In turn,
spouses, children, and co-workers often have to take over these
responsibilities. Such changes often lead to depression, agitation,
resentment, and anger for the pain patient and to stress and strain in
family and other social relationships.
How is depression involved with chronic pain?
Depression
is the most common emotion associated with chronic pain. It is thought
to be 3 to 4 times more common in people with chronic pain than in the
general population. In addition, 30 to 80% of people with chronic pain
will have some type of depression. The combination of chronic pain and
depression is often associated with greater disability than either
depression or chronic pain alone.
People with chronic pain
and depression suffer dramatic changes in their physical, mental, and
social well-being-and in their quality of life. Such people often find
it difficult to sleep, are easily agitated, cannot perform their normal
activities of daily living, cannot concentrate, and are often unable to
perform their duties at work. This constellation of disabilities starts a
vicious cycle-pain leads to more depression, which leads to more
chronic pain. In some cases, the depression
occurs before the pain.
Until recently, we believed that bed rest after an injury was important for recovery. This has likely resulted in many chronic pain syndromes. Avoiding performing activities that a person believes will cause pain only makes his or her condition worse in many cases.
Depression associated with pain is powerful enough to have a substantial negative impact on the outcome of treatment, including surgery. It is important for your doctor to take into consideration not only biological, but also psychological and social issues that pain brings.
Signs and Symptoms
Some of the common signs and symptoms of chronic pain include:
• Pain beyond 6 months after an injury
• Allodynia-pain from stimuli which are not normally painful and/or pain that occurs other than in the stimulated area
• Hyperpathia-increased pain from stimuli that are normally painful
• Hypersensation-being overly sensitive to pain
Signs of major clinical depression will occur daily for 2 weeks or more, and often include many of
the following:
• A predominant feeling of sadness; feeling blue, hopeless, or irritable, often with crying spells
• Changes in appetite or weight (loss or gain) and/or sleep (too much or too little)
• Poor concentration or memory
• Feeling restless or fatigued
• Loss of interest or pleasure in usual activities, including sex
• Feeling of worthlessness and/or guilt
What is the treatment for chronic pain and depression?
The
first step in coping with chronic pain is to determine its cause, if
possible. Addressing the problem will help the pain subside. In other
cases, especially when the pain is chronic, you should try to keep the
chronic pain from being the entire focus of your life.
• Stay active and do not
avoid activities that cause pain simply because they cause pain. The
amount and type of activity should be directed by your doctor, so that
activities that might actually cause more harm are avoided.
• Relaxation training, hypnosis, biofeedback, and guided imagery, can help you cope with chronic
pain.
Cognitive therapy can also help patients recognize destructive patterns
of emotion and behavior and help them modify or replace such behaviors
and thoughts with more reasonable or supportive ones.
• Distraction
(redirecting your attention away from chronic pain), imagery (going to
your "happy place"), and dissociation (detaching yourself from the
chronic pain) can be useful.
• Involving your family with your recovery may be quite helpful, according to recent scientific evidence.