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Ms and mental illness
Hi all,
I'm wondering if there are any connections with ms and mental illness. It seems a " Tabu" subject as it seems under reported. People are embarrassed most likely , or don't want to talk about it.
Well.. I have had 3 separate episodes of irrational thoughts along with lightheartedness, usually a slight headache or a slight numbness that feels "internal " within my head. Having these internal dialogues with myself. Trying to calm myself down from becoming too panicky while feeling these strange emotions.
Ie: I was having lunch with a friend. It was a bit hot, and I was just coming off of a relapse. ( bladder). Then it started. I left to go home , I'm driving, and thoughts such as.. Oh.. Just drive off the road. " and then myself saying.. Stop . This is ridiculous. This is just a corky symptom. Don' let it get to you. If say this lasted approx an hour or so.
One other time was more recent. I was really tired. Went to lie down. I feel like I was hallucinating, feeling like I was on the floor. When I wasn't. Hearing noises and feeling like my husband was rocking the bed. But wasn't. Eventually drifted to sleep. Scary, I have an appt to talk to my doc about this but wanted any insights that may be out there. I know one of the larger lesions is within my frontal lobe. Not sure what can be done with this type of symptom. Unless this is just overall anxiety?? I also wasn't exersising at all. I was re doing our house. Wondering if there's a connection there. Anyway. I just want people to feel comfortable talking about this type of thing. It's scary acing a disease we don't understand. These support groups are essential. Thank you all. As always.
Andi
I'm wondering if there are any connections with ms and mental illness. It seems a " Tabu" subject as it seems under reported. People are embarrassed most likely , or don't want to talk about it.
Well.. I have had 3 separate episodes of irrational thoughts along with lightheartedness, usually a slight headache or a slight numbness that feels "internal " within my head. Having these internal dialogues with myself. Trying to calm myself down from becoming too panicky while feeling these strange emotions.
Ie: I was having lunch with a friend. It was a bit hot, and I was just coming off of a relapse. ( bladder). Then it started. I left to go home , I'm driving, and thoughts such as.. Oh.. Just drive off the road. " and then myself saying.. Stop . This is ridiculous. This is just a corky symptom. Don' let it get to you. If say this lasted approx an hour or so.
One other time was more recent. I was really tired. Went to lie down. I feel like I was hallucinating, feeling like I was on the floor. When I wasn't. Hearing noises and feeling like my husband was rocking the bed. But wasn't. Eventually drifted to sleep. Scary, I have an appt to talk to my doc about this but wanted any insights that may be out there. I know one of the larger lesions is within my frontal lobe. Not sure what can be done with this type of symptom. Unless this is just overall anxiety?? I also wasn't exersising at all. I was re doing our house. Wondering if there's a connection there. Anyway. I just want people to feel comfortable talking about this type of thing. It's scary acing a disease we don't understand. These support groups are essential. Thank you all. As always.
Andi
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy helps you determine and examine counterproductive patterns of thought and behaviour and retrains you to think differently. It's a LOT of work, but very worthwhile. I got more out of it than the year I spent as an inpatient, though I've chosen to continue with my SNRI as well.
There are self-guided books on it, but I did mine with a trained psychiatric nurse/therapist. People get out of it what they put into it. As I said, it's work but worth it. At least it was for me
There are self-guided books on it, but I did mine with a trained psychiatric nurse/therapist. People get out of it what they put into it. As I said, it's work but worth it. At least it was for me
I honestly don't know what cbt is..? Tools I can implement.. Such as yoga, mindful ess, ect?
COMMUNITY LEADER
CBT is usually the first treatment option these days, because CBT teaches you specific techniques to maximise your ability to keep your anxiety levels down, which additionally helps with making decisions, and having lower anxiety levels limits your anxiety from overly clouding your judgement, impulses, reactions etc
Antidepressants may not necessarily be needed after CBT, it entirely depends on the individual.....suicide only occasionally occurs and the higher risk is generally more related to the under 25yr old age group, in the first few weeks of taking one, changing medications, increasing dosage, and it also depends on the class of medication too.
It might help you to know that suicide or depression specifically from antidepressants is still highly debated, mental health is complicated with issues often overlapping etc but anxiety and depression when left untreated understandably carries the higher risk. Whilst the warnings are definitely valid, historically antidepressants actually lower the risk.
I do recommend before you start really worrying about antidepressant or their side effects, you seriously consider giving CBT a good try first and IF an antidepressant is additionally recommended, you discuss your concerns about antidepressants with your doctor and then make your decision.
Hugs........JJ
Antidepressants may not necessarily be needed after CBT, it entirely depends on the individual.....suicide only occasionally occurs and the higher risk is generally more related to the under 25yr old age group, in the first few weeks of taking one, changing medications, increasing dosage, and it also depends on the class of medication too.
It might help you to know that suicide or depression specifically from antidepressants is still highly debated, mental health is complicated with issues often overlapping etc but anxiety and depression when left untreated understandably carries the higher risk. Whilst the warnings are definitely valid, historically antidepressants actually lower the risk.
I do recommend before you start really worrying about antidepressant or their side effects, you seriously consider giving CBT a good try first and IF an antidepressant is additionally recommended, you discuss your concerns about antidepressants with your doctor and then make your decision.
Hugs........JJ
Possibly. But. Now my concern will be, on anti depressants, the side effects of suicidal thoughts, depression, .. That would make me more anxious!!
COMMUNITY LEADER
Um oops not sure why i've got a duplicate within the post......sorry about that lol i'll put it down to just being one of those days :D
Ah no not medical, lol coulda woulda shoulda....basically i'm just a geek with a life long interest in psychology, developmental disabilities, brain plasticity and the like, due to my complicated family history. My interested in mental health stems from my mother, we've always been opposites, i'm an adrenaline junky, athlete, optimistic and calm in a crisis......and she's just totally not, she was originally dx with manic depression and then the manic depression label changed to Bipolar but her most problematic mental health issue, is actually anxiety.
There are degrees of disassociation, and there doesn't actually need to be a mental health problem going on, mild levels of disassociation are part of every day life eg driving home on auto pilot, disconnecting from your bodies aches and pains to go to work, reading a good book and hours go by without your notice, being half asleep and telling hubby to let the cat out etc etc
Things like sleep deprivation, chronic fatigue, MS, Lassitude, medications etc can definitely cause and or enhance a dissociative episode and they can be truly scary experiences but I do think, regardless of the outcome with your neuro, you probably do need to take a more proactive approach with your anxiety. It can only benefit you to learn some specific anxiety techniques, that help you cope with what is happening!
Hugs............JJ
Ah no not medical, lol coulda woulda shoulda....basically i'm just a geek with a life long interest in psychology, developmental disabilities, brain plasticity and the like, due to my complicated family history. My interested in mental health stems from my mother, we've always been opposites, i'm an adrenaline junky, athlete, optimistic and calm in a crisis......and she's just totally not, she was originally dx with manic depression and then the manic depression label changed to Bipolar but her most problematic mental health issue, is actually anxiety.
There are degrees of disassociation, and there doesn't actually need to be a mental health problem going on, mild levels of disassociation are part of every day life eg driving home on auto pilot, disconnecting from your bodies aches and pains to go to work, reading a good book and hours go by without your notice, being half asleep and telling hubby to let the cat out etc etc
Things like sleep deprivation, chronic fatigue, MS, Lassitude, medications etc can definitely cause and or enhance a dissociative episode and they can be truly scary experiences but I do think, regardless of the outcome with your neuro, you probably do need to take a more proactive approach with your anxiety. It can only benefit you to learn some specific anxiety techniques, that help you cope with what is happening!
Hugs............JJ
Your incredibly helpful. Were or are you in the medical field? The more I think back.. I see the panic attack happening as a result from fear. My fears of bodily changes I cannot control . In addition to of course worrying about it. My first episode worrying of symptoms I wasn't sure why they were happening. Second coming off a relapse , worrying about symptoms after.. ( oh no. Am I having another one?)... The hallucinating I think I wAs going through I may have been drifting in and out of sleep- awareness.. I was exceptionally tired and nauseated from being so tired. However.. I'm still going to talk with my neurologist. He's also a dr. Of psychiatry in addition to an authority on ms. I will take notes as I'm sure we'll have an interesting convo. Thanks to all of you. Xo
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