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Hello World!    Cold weather, depression and comfort foods.  Today I’m talking about how we are affected by the cold weather, which is coming soon. Sooner to some of you than others… I can live with the cold when the sun is shining, but I need sunshine!   I found an article about the physical symptoms of depression that I found appropriate with the cold weather on it’s way.

Physical Symptoms of Depression

There are obvious signs of depression, like your feelings of sadness,  hopelessness, and anxiety–but depression can also cause your unexplained physical symptoms. Your physical pain and your depression are closely related. Simply put, pain can be depressing, and depression causes and intensifies pain. Some research shows that your pain and your depression share common pathways in your limbic (emotional) region of your brain. In fact, the same chemical messengers control your pain and your mood.

According to an article published by the Harvard Medical School, people with chronic pain have three times your average risk of developing psychiatric symptoms–usually mood or anxiety disorders–and depressed patients have three times your average risk of developing chronic pain.  Seems to me to be a viscous cycle…

Many people suffering from depression never get help because they don’t realize that their pain may be a symptom of their depression. The importance of understanding the physical symptoms of your depression is that treating depression can help with your pain–& treating your pain can help with your depression.

Headaches

Headaches & migraine headaches are fairly common in people with depression. If you already had migraine’s, they may become worse

if you’re depressed. The relationship between depression & your migraine headaches, which affect more than 10% of Americans, is especially close. One study found that over a two year period, a person with a history of major depression was three times more likely than average to have their first migraine attack, & a person with a history of migraine was five times more likely than average to have their first episode of depression.

Back pain

If you already suffer with back pain, it may get worse if you become depressed. A study from the University of Alberta followed a random sample of nearly 800 adults without neck & low back pain & found that people who suffer from depression are 4 times as likely to develop intense or disabling neck & low back pain than those who aren’t depressed.

Muscle aches & joint pain

Depression can make any kind of chronic pain worse. According to research

published in the Journal of General Internal Medicine, arthritis-like physical symptoms may improve if your depression is treated with medication.

Chest pain

It’s very important to get your chest pain checked out by an expert right

away. It can be a sign of serious heart problems, but chest pain is also associated with depression. A study from the University of Gothenburg, Sweden, indicates several common factors among those affected by chest pain not linked to biomedical factors such as heart disease or some other illness–depression was one of the significant common factors.

Digestive problems

Queasiness, nausea, diarrhea & chronic constipation  can all stem from your depression. Studies show that up to 60% of people with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) also have a psychological disorder, most commonly depression or anxiety. According to one study published in General Hospital Psychiatry, those who reported symptoms of nausea were more than 3 times as likely to also have an anxiety disorder, & nearly one & a half times more likely to suffer from depression. Depression is a possible cause for your digestive disorders, & should be investigated before aggressive treatments are begun. (A naturopathy once told me that the stomach is the seat of your emotions when things are bothering you and it seems to be true.)

Exhaustion & fatigue

No matter how much you sleep, do you still feel tired & exhausted? Fatigue & depression are not a surprising pair. Depression & fatigue feed off each other in a vicious cycle that makes it hard for you to know where one begins & the other ends. Researchers have found people who are depressed are more than 4 times as likely to develop unexplained fatigue, & those who suffer from fatigue are nearly 3 times as likely to become depressed.

Sleep disturbances

People with depression often have difficulty falling asleep, or awaken in the early hours of morning & find themselves unable to get back to sleep. While around 15% of people suffering from depression sleep too much. Lack of sleep alone doesn’t cause depression, but it can contribute–& lack of sleep caused by other illness or anxiety can make depression worse.

Change in appetite or weight

Several studies have found your excess weight to be linked with depression symptoms, a history of depression, & other measures of psychological distress (e.g. anxiety). Earlier studies also suggest a stronger link in women compared to men. However, this may be changing. According to 2006 study published in the Archives of General Psychiatry, the depression-obesity link was found to be the same in both men & women. Others suffering from depression experience a reduction in appetite & thus, weight loss.

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This is a good article

So many of our physical symptoms related to depression seem to be

circular & symptoms feed off each other, thus making it difficult to determine the cause of your depression. I’ve dealt with depression at times in my life & It affects by not sleeping enough (I wake up a lot during the night); I’ve had digestive issues (which I control now with natural supplements) & my appetite decreases, but I am aware of these issues now. I tend to find that when I eat healthier, I can control my issues better.  I hope this information helps you. Please leave a comment & tell me what you think…

Well, had to get out of the house for a bit so I went to buy soup. A great comfort food in cold weather… I love soup when it’s cold, but don’t eat it too often because of it’s high sodium content. I am basically, too lazy to make it from scratch. 🙂  Let me know what comfort foods you like to eat… You can leave a message below. I’d love to hear from you…

If you feel like shopping & it’s just too nasty to go outside, please check out my website & see if there’s anything you like: http://www.bonanza.com/booths/allix999