Depression is quite common with people suffering from
chronic pain. I mean who wouldn't feel a bit low when trying to cope with constant pain but there is help out there to deal with this type of
depression.
Research shows that some of these antidepressants may help with some kinds of long-lasting pain.
Web MD state that Doctors don’t know exactly why antidepressants help with
pain. They may affect chemicals in your spinal cord -- you may hear them called neurotransmitters -- that send
pain signals to your
brain.
It's important to note that
antidepressantsdon’t work on
pain right away. It can be a week or so before you feel any better. In fact, you may not get their full effect for several weeks.
After my second spinal surgery I was put on a very low dose of an antidepressant which I took over a period of 20+years. I am still on this antidepressant ( Prozac) even though over the many years I haven taken it there have been numerous articles on the pros and cons of taking it for so long. In fact, only last year the Professor of Medicine whom I call my
Medicine Man who I see on a regular basis, suggested that maybe I should stop taking it.
I started with reducing it to one every other day and had no ill effects except that I wasn't feeling as perky as I usually am. I put it down to the fact that at that time last year I ways constantly going back and forth to stay at my Dads so that I could go and be with him in hospital. He was in three months and my sister and I would do three week shifts of going in for most of the day over a period of three weeks then coming home for a rest. Sadly Dad passed away in hospital by which stage I had already started increasing my drug to nearly what I had been on before as I had an even bigger reason for feeling low.
On the
NHS website they say that even though a type of antidepressant called tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs) weren't originally designed to be
painkillers, there's evidence to suggest they're effective in treating chronic (long-term) nerve
pain in some people.
Chronic nerve
pain, also known as neuropathic
pain, is caused by nerve damage or other problems with the nerves, and is often unresponsive to regular
painkillers, such as
paracetamol.
Amitriptyline is a TCA that's usually used to treat neuropathic
pain. I also take this for my neuropathic
pain and it also helps me to sleep better.
We are all different and try to deal with
chronic pain, stress and even loss in different ways but for me personally I felt this one little pill I took every morning worked for me. When I went back for my review with my
Medicine Man I told him what I had been through and said I felt for me personally it was one drug I would like to continue taking indefinitely if he felt that was safe. He said that every single person will have different views and reactions to different types of antidepressants but if I had found one that I truly felt helped me 'feel good' every day no matter what I was going through then he was happy for me to take it indefinitely.
I know there are lots and lots of alternative things to try for any type of depression from Cognitive Behavioural Therapy to Group Therapy and much more but I do feel that some people are nervous of taking medication on a long term basis but if that works for you, then why not.
Try everything that is available to you and when you find something that works for you then stick with it even it is taking a daily dose of medication. Feeling low and
depressed is awful and most people in
chronic pain must feel that at some stage but life really is to short to feel that way on a daily basis so why not try something just for you to help you feel better on the outside even if the
pain on the inside is still there.
Some great websites and organisations that can help with
chronic pain and depression are
Away With Pain.
BLB Solicitors have a long list with links to UK support and help with depression from
pain. The
NHS also has details on Cognitive Behavioural Therapy in the UK and how to find a therapist.
