Experiences and Treatment of Physical and Mental Health: Their Similarities
SUE NOBLE, RCC, VITALITY COLLECTIVE
SURRY THERAPIST & REGISTERED CLINICAL COUNSELLOR
This blog is dedicated to a friend and her family. Sadly, and devastatingly, her son recently took his life at the age of 17, due to depression.
With his passing, they have advanced their advocacy for mental health awareness, and I write this blog to support them. Over the past decade, there has been an increase in awareness of mental health and its impact on individuals. However, I know such efforts don’t reach everyone, nor are they comprehensive or understood by all. To help make mental health more accessible to understand I’d like to illustrate the parallels or similarities of physical health/illness and mental health/illness, their impacts and their treatments. My intention is to provide a perspective that offers an understanding of mental health/illness for those who experience mental health issues, such as depression, anxiety, and PTSD, as well as for their loved ones.
Acute
I would propose that a physical injury, like a broken arm, has similarities to an experience that traumatizes the psyche. An example of this may be anything from a bad marriage breakup to a physical assault (small t or large T traumas). As well, a physical illness is like a developmental mental health issue; for example, Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) and depression, respectively. My intent is to highlight the importance of prevention and maintenance of our mental wellbeing. I’m not saying there are guarantees to fix mental health but there are things we can watch for in order to increase our awareness, understanding, and compassion.
I am grateful for the increased attention on the value and importance of our mental health. There has been a significant increase in awareness of its harmful impacts. However, I just have this sense that the general public, if they have not experienced a decline in their own mental health or watched a loved one suffer, they just don’t “get it”. In general, mental health issues can be dismissed or stigmatized and cause difficulty to identify and address them. I have found we often become frustrated or dismiss others when they don’t fix their problem.
Personally, and professionally, I feel our fear of inadequacy (to help someone) impedes our ability to be curious and compassionate. Both compassion and curiosity can help us better manage mental health through improved understanding. Often, I hear clients say they are willing to do anything to feel better, however, when some suggestions are provided there is resistance. Don’t get me wrong, not every suggestion fits but we do need some mental, emotional, and physical openness if we want change. Sometimes there are no answers but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t try. In the trying, we can often find a path through.
Here's an example of how I find the physical model of illness has similar traits and perspectives to our way of addressing mental health issues. Years ago, I broke my wrist and arm. It was incredibly painful and debilitating. Once I was operated on, I had an apparatus that immobilized my forearm and wrist for six weeks. When that came off, I had physiotherapy for 12 months. I still suffer from inflammation and experience limitations to normal functioning. I’d like to parallel this with someone who experienced a traumatic event(s) in their life. It’s normally recommended that this person receive treatment in the form of counselling to help heal emotional and psychic wounds. A counsellor can offer a way to process these difficult feelings and skills to help manage feelings of overwhelm. These two treatments are similar to the operation I had to stabilize my wrist and arm. However, there are many who have had traumatic experiences who try to dismiss them or ignore them, in the hopes the feelings will go away. If I had ignored my injury, I likely would not have the use of my forearm. In addition to the initial treatment, I had a year of physiotherapy, and I still don’t have the same function I used to.
If a person with a trauma history doesn’t follow through with obtaining support, professional and personal, they are likely to have trouble trusting others, they may have heightened anxiety or depression – to name a few impacts of trauma - and would be permanently changed, just like my arm. Additionally, I still have flare-ups of inflammation that impedes my ability to do certain sports and exercises to this day. When someone has experienced a trauma, even if treatment is sought, there will be residual symptoms, it just won’t likely be experienced with the same intensity. As well, the individual is likely to be able to better manage the negative impacts. These supports, as well as the skills counsellors provide, are similar to physiotherapy exercises, both help to maintain a level of physical and mental health.
Developmental
I hope this illustrates how acute physical and mental traumas can have similar needs for treatment to gain some form of health. I proposed, that as a society, we are much more open to treatment for physical health than we are to mental health. However, as I stated previously, we have improved our perspective on the importance of mental health over the years.
As I mentioned above, physical illness (IBS), something we develop, I propose parallels a mood disorder or a developmental disorder (depression) in its treatment approach. Years of studies show it is not just our genetics that impacts our development but also our environment - physical, social, and psychological. Some studies also include spirituality (meaning and purpose). To treat both developmental disorders we often use behaviours such as exercise, types of food we eat, and the rest we get, among other psychological attitudes and perspectives to improve our discomfort. If this doesn’t help, we typically seek out a professional's help, maybe some assessments are done and treatment is recommended such as medication.
Again, I find it important to identify traits of illness and get curious about our ailments as an opportunity to increase our wellbeing. I think it goes without saying that we ought to maintain certain behaviours, attitudes, and at times medication to keep ourselves healthy.