Physical Pain and its Mental Effects
As a society, we tend to put our physical bodies first. It makes sense: our bodies are what we present to the world. Without them, we couldn’t do anything. We couldn’t drive on our Michigan roads, we wouldn’t be able to dine at the best restaurants, and we couldn’t take a peaceful leisurely stroll at any one of our beautiful state parks. Without our bodies going through stress, we wouldn’t be able to relax. Furthermore, when our bodies are sick, or in pain, we tend to take care of them before anything else.
When we’re hurt, our bodies go through some interesting changes. Our nerves figuratively catch fire, and there’s an intense, sharp feeling of some kind of pain – pressure, sharpness, etc. – localized at the source. Depending on what the injury is, there may be psychological details to come to terms with later. A bee sting is not likely to take any victims in the trauma department, but on the other end of the spectrum, an auto accident may bring up some very traumatic memories for the victim, which can understandably take their toll on the human psyche.
Just the physicality of the pain can cause all sorts of psychological phenomena to sprout up. While our memories like to gloss over details, from time to time, the memory of experiencing pain tends to stick with you. Our minds process the searing details of being hurt, and sometimes it seems like it processes that faster than it does other feelings. Why else does pain feel so urgent, so – well – painful? Dealing with the memories of being hurt alone can cause some psychological pain to manifest. Phantom pains are an extension of this: feeling like an injury is still there, when it healed long ago. Your mind is remembering a time when it was hurt, when it was weak, and it can’t move past it.
Psychological pain can also manifest itself in various mental disorders. When you’re hurt, or when you’ve been hurt, negative feelings begin to fester, and it’s all too common for dark, oozy feelings of unease to take hold of victims. Depression and anxiety are increasing in our society at a rapid rate, and are both often caused by traumatic events in the past. What’s more traumatic than being physically injured?
When depression festers, the symptoms can often be compared to that of someone who is physically injured. Often, sufferers of depression are bedridden, though out of a lack of desire or a general apathy to getting up, compared to the lack of movement that injuries permit someone. Physically, they’re often unable to move, or go out and participate in the things that made them happy. When depression seeps in, nothing seems fun anymore. It’s more than an overwhelming feeling of being sad. These feelings can start to take hold of people while they’re recovering from an injury, as well. It’s far, far too easy to slip into feelings of uselessness and lethargy when you physically can’t do anything. When you’re unable to do the things you used to love, it’s difficult to believe that anything still has a point. What’s left to do besides wallow in misery? It isn’t any more pathetic than the physical pain ailing you.
Anxiety manifests itself somewhat differently. While the negative feelings and emotions are still there, depression seeps the life out of you. Anxiety does this, but in a different way: it fills you up with nervous energy. It’s possible for the two disorders to coexist, and someone going through or healing from physical pain is a prime target for the brunt of it.
Think of all the questions you’ve had when you’ve been hurt: What happened? Will I be okay? What will the pain doctor say? Which doctor should I see?
Amplify those by a hundred. Amplify them so much that you can’t hear anything else. Put them on repeat, and let them flood your head. That’s what anxiety’s like. When you’re hurt physically, you’re often hurt mentally, and it’s too easy for anxious, negative thoughts to creep in and put themselves on a hamster wheel, running in a flurry through your head. You’re already struggling through enough when it comes to your body healing your injury: adding mental illnesses is a topping that nobody asked for.
Going through an injury is traumatic enough, and more people need to be aware of the psychological effects of processing your pain and trauma. Are you experiencing psychological pain? If so, Farmbrook can help with that too. Contact us to find out what options may be available. You may require a psychological assessment by a licensed local psychologist or some psychological therapy to get the full story on any underlying issues. Treating the mind can often times end up positively affecting and improving physical pain.