Connection Between Mind and Body: How Depression Physically Affects Your Body

When we think about depression, what are the initial images that come to mind? Is it a disheartened expression, tears, or an individual struggling to get out of bed? While sadness is a component of depression and is typically the first symptom associated with the condition, depression affects much more than just prolonged sadness.

What we may not realize is that depression influences far more than just a person’s emotional state. More education about the condition can help reduce the stigma that people suffering from depression are “just lazy” or should “just be happy.” This way of thinking is far past outdated.

How Does Depression Affect The Mind?

It’s obvious that depression causes enduring sadness, but there’s a lot more under the surface. It affects the mind outside of sadness and can even cause fatigue or anger. Feeling miserable for long periods can start to take a toll on us. We may start believing the negative thoughts that replay over and over in our heads—that we’re “worthless, no one wants us around, etc.”

Without proper treatment, depression can keep us in a vicious cycle of being down on ourselves, and we could start “living in our head” trapped with those negative thought patterns. Soon, those thought patterns can make it nearly impossible for us to function as human beings. The constant internal pain can make their work suffer, we may start self-isolating from loved ones, and our personal relationships can also take a nosedive. 

How Does Depression Affect The Body?

If the mind is suffering, so will the body. Prolonged depression causes more than frequent crying spells. For example, we can end up constantly stuck in our heads with those nasty, intrusive thoughts, so much so that our entire lives can be impacted, like work, relationships, and hobbies. We are dreading failing at school or our job. So, how does our body react to the pressure?

We could start experiencing frequent bouts of nausea. Or we might begin to drop weight, often to the great alarm of those around us. Maybe our depression has the opposite effect on us. We could start eating more to attempt self-soothing. However, the extra weight (or the, likely, unhealthy snack foods) could affect our physical health.

Eventually, people with depression struggle to get out of bed in the morning.  Alternatively, we might continue sleeping to avoid feeling the anguish. Or we might not sleep enough. We might stay in bed, staring wide-eyed at the ceiling because we can’t get our brains to calm down. 

At some point, people with depression often become so exhausted that they start neglecting personal hygiene and self-care. This vicious cycle can feed into the pre-existing self-deprecation which further feeds the lack of self-care.

How Can Depression Be Soothed?

Some people might try to rid themselves of depression on their own instead of seeking professional help because of the social stigma attached to therapy. However, depression is often something that needs to be treated by a trained professional. A qualified therapist has the tools and knowledge to guide someone through the healing process. We can work to practice coping mechanisms that can be used outside of sessions to soothe depression.

If you or someone you know is hesitant to seek a professional because of the social stigma, think about this:

We can either continue to live in a downward spiral, or we can take proactive steps that can pave the way toward recovery. Depression is not something you should go through alone or try to treat by yourself.  If you would like to learn more about depression and how it affects the mind and body, feel free to contact me.