The mind-body connection is a real thing. The impact of the physical on the emotional (and vice versa) is real. It might sound hokey or implausible, but when you have physical issues, you can wind up with mental issues, too; the opposite also holds true.
An example is dealing with chronic pain: I have had four surgeries (back, shoulder, wrist & knee), and I deal with my fair share of pain daily. Some days my physical pain from the osteoarthritis in my back and knee are positively relentless. And those days are among my darkest. When I can’t outrun the pain, my mental health suffers. It makes sense – I mean, after all, chronic pain is depressing and oppressive - no surprise there.
When my pain is more than I can deal with (and I’m fortunate – I have a very high pain tolerance, so the pain doesn’t hijack me often), I try to breathe through the pain. I practice 6-3-6 breathing, meaning I breathe in through my nose for a count of six, hold for a count of three, and then exhale through my mouth for a count of six. Some people practice “triangle breathing,” which is 4-4-4; I have just found 6-3-6 more helpful.
Chronic stress is another instance in which the body impacts the mind. I experience a lot of chronic stress. I have PTSD (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder), and I technically have the symptoms of GAD (Generalized Anxiety Disorder); interestingly, I don’t have a diagnosis of GAD, however, because it’s subsumed under PTSD. (PTSD is considered the daddy of all anxiety disorders).
My stress level can skyrocket from 0 to 60 in a heartbeat. Even though I usually recognize that I’m feeling stress, I can’t always put my finger on the trigger that caused said stress, and I’m SOL in managing stress from an unknown origin. Stress is a physical-mental experience; and I feel that when my physical symptoms come first; my brain does catch up, and when it does, it is completely hijacked by my physical stress.
Now, the opposite is true as well – the mind can affect the body. One example of this would be our friend, stress. We can experience stress that causes a physical reaction. For instance, we can have a stressful situation in which we emotionally react to a stressor, which, in turn, causes a physical reaction, such as nausea, stomach pain, and/or headaches. A particularly nefarious go-to for me is thinking about a stressful situation resulting in a migraine.
Chronic stress can affect the body resulting in a variety of symptoms, including those mentioned previously. If you’re having unexplained pain (or more intense or unusual pain than normal if you have chronic pain), ask yourself: what are my stressors? Can I relieve my physical discomfort by addressing my emotional well-being?
My tendency leans toward the body-then-mind camp. I tend to feel things long before I have any idea why I am feeling in such a way. My brain often needs time to catch up. Whichever holds more true for you (mind-body or body-mind), know that you can make headway. It won’t be easy, but it’s worth it. Things like chronic stress and chronic pain can eat you alive, so I urge you to practice breathing and identify your triggers so you have a fighting chance at having a life worth living. On that note, know that the Beast loves, loves, loves for you to avoid naming and addressing your mind-body/body-mind issues; left untouched, they can very much be the death of you (no joke), so take your mind and body issues seriously – you CAN beat back the Beast.
There is definitely a correlation between "exercise, movement, pain management and MENTAL HEALTH" --- there was/is a television commercial that stated "A body in motion stays in motion" and that is so true. If you stop, things will get worse, physically and mentally. I'm not suggesting being able to work through the pain or to push oneself through, Pain is real. But, the more we learn about managing the pain, the rest will follow. It does take it's toll on us Mentally, and then we worry, think about, and get more concerned about the Pain and quite focusing on the fact that hopefully it will pass...and mentally we have not been ruined by the physical. It's a war that we…
So interesting, I also have chronic knee pain and never really thought about the mind body connection. I will need to think more about this! Also, thank you for sharing that PTSD is broader than general anxiety disorder, I was not aware that it was the “granddaddy of stress“ so interesting! As always, thank you for sharing and helping others!