Chronic Illness and Mental Health: Recognizing and Treating Depression (2023)

FAQs

What is the relationship between chronic illness and mental health? ›

Chronic illnesses such as cancer, heart disease, or diabetes may make you more likely to have or develop a mental health condition. It is common to feel sad or discouraged after having a heart attack, receiving a cancer diagnosis, or when trying to manage a chronic condition such as pain.

Depression is one of the most common complications of chronic illness. It's estimated that up to one-third of individuals with a serious medical condition have symptoms of depression. People who have chronic illnesses must adjust to both the illness and its treatment.

The stigma attached to mental illness means many people don't believe mental illness is chronic or even an illness at all. Mental illness is not the same as mental health and wellbeing: it is a chronic condition, no different from any other chronic health condition.

What exactly are mental disorders? The answer to this question is important because it informs how researchers should go about trying to explain mental disorders, how the public responds to people who experience them, and how we should go about developing treatments for them.

Many people feel sad or discouraged when faced with a chronic condition. The physical changes, anxiety and stress associated with the illness can trigger symptoms of depression. The risk of depression increases with the severity of the illness and the level of life disruption it causes.

Living with or experiencing a chronic illness can result in many adjustments and changes, such as loss of independence and not being able to do all the active things you used to do or usually enjoy. Anxiety and depression are common in people with chronic physical illness.

persistent sadness, anger, irritability, or excessive moodiness. changes in self esteem. concerns about physical appearance and body image issues. behavior problems.

Clinical depression has been linked to other mental illnesses, such as anxiety disorders, panic disorder, social phobia, and generalized anxiety disorder. Together, these conditions affect millions of Americans.

Taking an antidepressant or going to psychological counseling (psychotherapy) eases depression symptoms for most people. But with treatment-resistant depression, standard treatments aren't enough. They may not help much at all, or your symptoms may improve, only to keep coming back.

People with ASPD may break the law or cause physical or emotional harm to the people around them. They may disregard consequences or refuse to take responsibility for their actions. ASPD is one of many personality disorders. Personality disorders affect the way someone thinks or behaves.

Is being diagnosed with a chronic illness traumatic? ›

Chronic Illness as a Cause of Psychological Trauma

Similarly, medical diagnosis of illness or disease, such as cardiovascular issues, lung disease, cancer, or autoimmune diseases, can be traumatic and lead to PTSD.

A chronic health condition can be a disability, but not all disabilities are chronic health concerns. Chronic health concerns and disabilities can be visible or invisible. You cannot know that someone has a disability or chronic health concern just by looking at them.

While mental health is always there and may be positive or negative, mental illness affects a person's ability to function over a long period of time. Mental illness is not the same as feeling sad, unhappy, or stressed because of difficult situations.

In addition, our meta-analysis revealed that the increased risk for anxiety and/or depression in people with chronic physical diseases was 310% (95% CI, 1.8–5.2).

Stress can build and can shape your feelings about life. Long periods of stress can lead to frustration, anger, hopelessness, and, at times, depression. This can happen not only to you, but also to your family members. They're also influenced by the chronic health problems of a loved one.

What is dysthymia? Dysthymia is a milder, but long-lasting form of depression. It's also called persistent depressive disorder. People with this condition may also have bouts of major depression at times.

Stress can lead to emotional and mental symptoms like: Anxiety or irritability. Depression. Panic attacks.

Living with a chronic condition—and caring for a person with a chronic condition—can lead to physical and emotional stress. The symptoms of this stress may look similar in both the person dealing with the condition and the caregiver. The symptoms include: Anger, sometimes leading to physical violence.

How do you deal with emotionally chronic illness? ›

Symptoms of medically-induced PTSD or illness-induced PTSD, like flashbacks, intrusive memories, agitation, being hyper-aware of your surroundings, difficulty sleeping or changes in your mood, are similar to the PTSD symptoms that can result from other types of trauma such as military experience or sexual assault.

Patients may find themselves experiencing five broad stages of adjustment to a serious illness: denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance.

People with chronic physical illnesses are twice as likely to suffer from anxiety or depression as their physically healthy counterparts — and for specific health conditions, the rate is even higher. Physically ill individuals may also develop post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

Depressive personality disorder is a personality disorder with depressive features, such as chronic sadness, low self-esteem, or pessimism. The depressive features are chronic and seem more like personality traits rather than depression that occurs in episodes.

People who have gone through adverse life events (unemployment, bereavement, traumatic events) are more likely to develop depression.

Objective: The Hamilton Depression Rating Scale has been the gold standard for the assessment of depression for more than 40 years.

Poor emotional health can weaken your body's immune system. This makes you more likely to get colds and other infections during emotionally difficult times. Also, when you are feeling stressed, anxious, or upset, you may not take care of your health as well as you should.

You may experience various stages of grief including denial, bargaining, anger, and sadness. You may feel you're on a roller coaster of emotion—accepting one day and angry the next. It may help to remind yourself that these feelings are normal, and will likely ease with time.

A chronic illness is one that persists for a long period. Chronic illnesses include many major diseases and conditions, such as heart disease, cancer, diabetes, and arthritis.

Are illnesses that affect the mind and reduces a person's ability to function? ›

A mental disorder is an illness that affects the mind and reduces a person's ability to function, to adjust to change, or to get along with others. What are Mental Disorders? Mental health experts see abnormal thoughts, feelings, or behaviors as signs, or symptoms,of a mental disorder.

Some chronic physical conditions can cause high blood sugar levels and disrupt the circulation of blood, which can impact brain function. People living with chronic physical conditions often experience emotional stress and chronic pain, which are both associated with the development of depression and anxiety.

Living with a chronic medical condition is often accompanied by low self-esteem, a diminished sense of personal worth, and lower self-efficacy, a diminished sense of one's ability to influence behavioral outcomes.

It is believed that prolonged emotional stress, as experienced by many trauma survivors, creates a number of physical changes in the body that lead to illness and disease.

Chronic Mental Illness

The limitations caused by schizophrenia, severe mood disorders, and some personality disorders (such as schizotypal, schizoid, or borderline) may lead to chronically disabling symptoms.

Validation is not: Saying “you'll be fine” or “at least you're young” or “it can't be that bad” or “but you don't look sick.” Validation is: Saying “I understand that *insert chronic illness* can be debilitating.