Battling Fibromyalgia Affects Your Mental Health; Here Is What You Need To Know

Fibromyalgia is a condition that causes pain all over the body accompanied with fatigue, sleep problems, physical and mental stress. 90% of the people that suffer fibromyalgia are women.  Fibromyalgia also time and again causes mental health issues for many people. It can lead to bouts of depression, anxiety, or other psychological disorders. There are disturbances in sleep patterns, mood disturbances and these are intimately associated with the pain symptoms.

Impact of fibromyalgia on mental health

Depression and anxiety disorders are also associated symptom of fibromyalgia. Numerous studies have shown that there may be a common connection between depression and fibromyalgia. Nearly 30% of people with fibromyalgia experience depression, anxiety, or some form of mood disturbance. Investigators haven’t up till now determined whether fibromyalgia in fact causes these conditions or vice versa, but what has become apparent is that when mental state yields to physical pain, physical pain becomes stronger. That's why your physician may counsel you visit a counselor, psychologist, or psychiatrist.

Mental health of those diagnosed and their spouses

Preliminary findings divulge that diagnosed spouses have significantly elevated levels of depressive symptoms and pain and account additional marital instability and anger than their spouses. For both spouses, the symptoms can set off greater than before emotional withdrawal and mental tension. There is a keen link between fibromyalgia and bouts of depression and fatigue, which can be taxing for those diagnosed and their marriages. The mental stress felt by both spouses can negatively affect marital quality. Fibromyalgia is complicated because there is no agreement on the grounds of the chronic pain symptoms it causes. There is no one fixed treatment, so a majority of the couples report that they are continuously trying to grapple with different treatments to handle the symptoms.

How does mental ill-health become a factor for fibromyalgia

The chronic pain of fibromyalgia is often linked to mental health illnesses such as depression and anxiety. For illustration:

• 62% of fibromyalgia patients will also go through depression
• 56% will deal with anxiety

Handling the unceasing, every day symptoms can be demanding, and also the stress hormone cortisol can essentially go down steeply for those with fibromyalgia. An equivalent drop in creation of the “feel-good” hormone serotonin creates a concoction of skewed hormones and chronic pain to increase the possibility of depression and anxiety.

Support

Even if you and your physician are acquainted with your symptoms, it can be tricky to make friends and family comprehend what you're going through. Loads of people are not aware enough of fibromyalgia, and a few may think the situation is imagined. It is often challenging for those who don't live with the condition to understand your symptoms. But educating friends and family is doable.

You should not feel uncomfortable talking about your symptoms. If you can teach others on how the condition affects you, they might be more understanding.

Make use of fibromyalgia support groups in the area; persuade friends or family members to attend a meeting. You can also give them printed or online information about the condition.