Chronic Pain Affects The Brain

Chronic Pain Affects the Brain 

The brain is a three-pound organ that’s the source of qualities that define each person. It’s the center for intelligence, emotion, interpreting the senses and controlling body movement and behavior. However, for millions of people who suffer from chronic pain, the brain changes every day. Hot-off-the-press research shows that chronic pain rewires the brain and disrupts its natural equilibrium. These new findings add to past research demonstrating that pain shrinks the brain. Dr. Meltz wants you to be aware of this startling new information.

Music can help to fight depression, but keep in mind the kind of music you are listening to. Keep away from any type of music that makes you sad or pensive. This kind of music will make you remember bad feelings and dwell on them.

TIP! You need to address not only your depression, but its resulting stress. Getting a proper amount of restful sleep each night is vital to managing stress and feeling refreshed.

Try Chiropractic Care

Doctors of chiropractic, such as Dr. Meltz, know that chronic pain can cause a host of problems. Unremitting discomfort is linked to depression, anxiety, insomnia, anger and a heightened risk of suffering from other illnesses. Fortunately, chiropractic care significantly reduces chronic pain — not just in the back and neck but throughout the body. Dr. Meltz wards off pain by eliminating vertebral subluxation, a condition associated with limited range of motion and spinal dysfunction. This is accomplished through precise, gentle maneuvers called chiropractic adjustments. Read on to find out why it’s so important to address chronic pain.

If your depression is really severe, it might be best to avoid caffeine at that point. There is evidence to suggest that excessive caffeine intake can exacerbate depression. If you enjoy your daily cup of coffee or can of soda, think about changing to the decaffeinated versions of these drinks.

TIP! If you are feeling depressed, try discussing your feelings with a friend. Repressing your feelings can lead to depression.

A Three-D Approach

How do researchers detect how pain affects the brain? Significant developments in the field of “neuro-imaging” have pinpointed how the brain changes under chronic pain. Different types of images show that the brain alters in three domains: brain volume, brain state and brain chemicals. “Taken together these three domains have already changed the way in which we think of pain — it should now be considered an altered brain state in which there may be altered functional connections or systems,” write researchers (Mol Pain 2007;3:25).

Get plenty of exercise every day. Do not overdo it, though, since wearing yourself out can just make you feel more depressed. Aim for no more than one hour per day. Exercise is a natural anti-depressant. When you exercise, endorphins flood your brain. These neurotransmitters cause you to feel relaxed and happy and give you an overall sense of well-being. The same can be said about exercise releasing serotonin, a chemical that brings more energy-creating oxygen to the brain.

TIP! An important factor in lessening the symptoms of depression is getting sufficient sleep time each night. A common symptom is insomnia or restlessness, so try to get six to eight hours of sleep nightly.

Balance is Skewed

A healthy brain exists in a state of equilibrium with a precise number of regions activated or “turned on.” At the same time, other brain structures are deactivated or “turned off.” Depending on what activity the individual is engaged in, certain brain locations “fire,” while other areas rest to maintain balance. This equilibrium is known as the resting state network of the brain.

Try taking the dog out for a walk if you have depression. Studies have shown that those people who have a pet are less likely to be depressed than those who don't. The fresh air you get on a walk can also help lift your mood. Try to enjoy your little friend and your issues might get a little less painful to bear.

TIP! A long bath can be helpful if you start to feel depression symptoms coming on. Whether you simply soak, read a favorite novel, or listen to pleasant background music, a bath can really improve your mood.

Alarmingly, new research shows that the brains of people in chronic pain are not so even-keeled. The cortex is the outer layer of gray matter that covers the surface of the brain. Long-term pain alters the connectivity of regions in the cortex that are typically active during rest and inactive with certain activity.

This crucial phenomenon is known as the “default mode network” (DMN). In chronic pain sufferers, one part of the DMN remains active, when it should normally be turned off. This specific region of the brain is associated with mood and attention. Consequently, individuals in chronic pain are prone to mood and attention problems.

If you are dealing with depression, stay away from diet sodas and anything which contains artificial sweeteners. These sweeteners reduce the amount of serotonin secreted and can worsen existing depression symptoms, including headaches and insomnia. Try to remove sugars from your diet.

TIP! There are many self-help books available that can help you cope with depression. They can provide tips that have proven successful for others that shared in your pain.

Mental Problems

3D PET Scan

This abnormal, unremitting brain activity wears out neurons and rewires nerve connections, boosting the risk of additional mental health issues. The brain is overtaxed with too many active areas. The rewiring forces the brain to allocate additional mental resources to perform everyday tasks. As a result, even a simple activity can feel like joyless drudgery. One report documents that “chronic pain has a widespread impact on overall brain function, and suggest that disruptions of the DMN may underlie the cognitive and behavioral impairments accompanying chronic pain.” (J Neurosci 2008;28:1398-403.) 

Do not substitute a crutch in place of treating depression, because it can only make the situation worse. Many people self-medicate their depression with alcohol. Although this may make you feel good, it is just subsiding your depression temporarily.

TIP! If you are depressed, you should refrain from drinking alcohol, particularly in excess. Avoid drinking alcohol if you are prone to depression or if you are taking any type of depression medication.

50 Times More Activity

Just how overtaxed are chronic pain sufferers’ brains? In one study, researchers compared the brains of chronic back pain (CBP) patients to pain-free volunteers’ brains using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Both groups tracked a moving bar on a computer screen, a task requiring minimal attention. CBP patients performed the task equally well, but had 50 times more active regions in their brains than their pain-free counterparts. In essence, the CBP sufferers actually used their brains differently to perform the simple task (J Neurosci 2008;28:1398-403).

Take a good look at the personalities of the friends you spend the most time with when you are struggling with depression. Everyone has friends with a wide range of personalities, but if you are going through a rough patch, it may be helpful to spend time with friends who have a positive outlook instead of those who are more pessimistic. It is understandable that you might not want to eliminate people from your life, but understand the impact that negative people play in your life and avoid them for the time being.

TIP! Dealing with depression can be challenging. It can be very helpful to develop the habit of being grateful.

White Matter Wiring Error

Ever tried to hook up a DVD player and connect the wrong cables to the wrong inputs? Even if the system does turn on, it doesn’t function correctly. A similar event occurs with the brain and chronic pain.

A vicious cycle of depression can easily occur if you aren't careful. Focusing on the negativity in your life will make your depression worse. It's not always easy, but do your best to focus on the positive things in your life, and surround yourself with people who do the same.

TIP! Diet therapy has been successful in treating certain types of depression. If you eat improper foods, this can affect how you think and can make depression difficult to escape.

Like Jumbled White Matter

Brand new research, appearing in the scientific journal Neuron, is the first to link pain with changes in white matter of the brain. White matter functions like a network of tiny “cables” that relay messages between the neurons. White matter is related to emotion, pain perception and sensing skin temperature. Gray matter, on the other hand, is the part of the brain that processes information and memory. Scientists used two different types of MRIs to visualize the brains of 22 patients with a chronic pain condition known as complex region pain syndrome (CRPS). They compared these images to those taken of the brains of 22 pain-free individuals. They noted alterations in the CRPS patients’ white matter directly related to the duration and intensity of pain and anxiety. The researchers also detected a significant “disrupted relationship” between white matter and gray matter. Specifically, white matter “connectivity in these regions was characterized by branching pattern alterations.” In addition, the CRPS patients’ brains showed atrophy or, (shrinkage) of gray matter (Neuron 2008;60:570-81).

Shrinking Gray Matter

A sound guideline in combating depression is to follow a steady program of healthy eating. Breakfast is critical as a meal since it boosts your metabolism and wards off compensatory binge-eating further into the day. When making your meals, try eating more cold-water fish. Experts agree that foods rich in the fatty acid omega-3 like tuna or salmon, will work with your body in fighting depression symptoms.

TIP! If you are having a hard time when you are depressed, you may think that it's a good thing to sit at home and quit talking to the people you used to. You may also lose interest in the things you liked to do.

Additional previously conducted research shows that individuals enduring chronic pain suffer brain loss in gray matter. In one report, scientists used specialized MRI brain scans to compare the brains of 26 individuals with chronic back pain (CBP) with the brains of 26 pain-free control subjects. Results indicated that “patients with CBP showed 5 to 11 percent less neocortical gray matter volume than control subjects.”

The study also showed that CBP patients had decreased density of their remaining gray matter. According to the scientists, “The magnitude of this decrease is equivalent to the gray matter volume lost in 10 to 20 years of normal aging.” (J Neuroscience 2004;24:10410-5.)

Change the things in your life that are keeping you down so you can free yourself from depression. There are people whose depression is fueled by the fact that they feel trapped in their life and can't seem to break their way out of it. Bust out of these habits, one at a time and you will notice a big change.

TIP! When you are starting to feel yourself getting depressed, find something that makes you laugh. When you find something funny, endorphins are released in your brain and they make you feel happy.

Small Pain, Big Stress

Chronic pain also affects mental health by altering stress levels. New research links even low levels of everyday pain to elevated emotional stress. Researchers rated pain levels in 93 subjects suffering from unrelenting pelvic pain due to endometriosis. An additional 82 pain-free volunteers served as control subjects. Chronic sufferers were divided into three groups: low pain, moderate pain and high pain.

Your diet can have a big impact on your mental state. Many people who feel depressed are not eating a well-balanced and nutrient-rich diet, which only adds to the negative emotions that plague their minds. Make the necessary changes to your diet incorporating leafy green vegetables, lean sources of protein and healthy grains.

TIP! Cultivate outside interests or activities to help with your depression. A steady lack of interest in activities can really be a major factor in the onset of depression.

All three pain groups showed lower levels of a naturally occurring key hormone involved in stress response. And, patients with only moderate intensity pain reported elevated levels of perceived stress and poorer quality of life (Stress 2008;11:390-7). 

Dress to impress as a means of curbing your depression. Put on some nice clothes and go out. Not because there's a special event to go to, but just because you feel great! Doing what you can to make yourself look good and feel attractive will do wonders for the way you are feeling, and eliminate depression.

TIP! Change your negative behaviors that contribute towards your downward slide into depression. Replace your negative habits with positive habits.

Not All Pain is the Same

Research shows that, compared to acute pain, chronic discomfort is especially detrimental to areas of the brain responsible for cognition and emotion. To arrive at this conclusion, investigators pooled data from 92 studies published over a 15-year duration. Researchers opted to include only studies that used “well-designed” experimental procedures. All of the studies examined brain activity using chemical tests, or high-tech imaging tests, such as MRI (Eur J Pain 2005;9:463-84). 

Don’t Dismiss Pain Masking chronic pain with over-the counter or prescription painkillers does nothing to solve the underlying cause of the problem. Pain medication is also linked to a litany of short- and long-term side effects. In contrast, our chiropractic office focuses on determining the root of patients’ discomfort, and eliminating it for good. The longer you put off addressing the underlying source of your pain, the more your brain will be affected. But even if you have suffered from pain for years, scientists believe that it is possible to reverse the brain changes that may have ensued. Schedule an appointment with our office today. And, if you know anyone suffering from chronic pain, let them know how chronic pain affects the brain and please refer them to our office. 

Bless and be blessed... Always,

Lewis Meltz