Living with a chronic illness like diabetes, heart disease, or arthritis can be challenging — not just physically, but emotionally.
Pain, fatigue, and limitations caused by illness can contribute to depression, anxiety, and other mental health concerns. That’s why caring for a chronic illness involves more than managing physical symptoms. Emotional health is an important part of overall health — and your primary care provider can help.
At Regional One Health, our primary care practices recently earned Patient-Centered Medical Home recognition, highlighting our team-based approach to care and coordinated services.
Managing a condition over the long term affects nearly every part of your life. We look at the whole person, supporting both physical and emotional wellness.
If you have a chronic illness, taking care of your physical health means staying current on your medications, making healthy lifestyle changes, and receiving regular monitoring. Our primary care teams help with these things to keep your condition well-managed and reduce the risk of complications.
PCPs are also uniquely positioned to support your emotional health.
Your physical and emotional health are connected. Improving physical health through regular care can often improve emotional well-being, too. When you feel better physically, you may feel better emotionally.
That mind-body connection is scientifically based.
Living with ongoing physical stress can affect mood and increase risk of depression and anxiety. There are other connections, too. Chronic pain can interfere with sleep, and when your body doesn’t get the restorative rest it needs, physical and emotional symptoms can worsen. Pain and fatigue can also make it hard to stay active, limiting the physical and mental health benefits of exercise.
On the other hand, when a chronic condition is well-managed, you may experience fewer symptoms, flare-ups, and complications. Better symptom control can make it easier to sleep, stay active, participate in social activities, and enjoy a better quality of life.
Your PCP can help you manage the whole picture.
In addition to focusing on how you feel physically, we can use routine, evidence-based screenings to monitor your emotional health.
For patients with chronic conditions, we ask about how their illness affects them emotionally. Does persistent pain or fatigue leave you feeling depressed? Does uncertainty surrounding your condition cause anxiety? Do frequent flare-ups or physical limitations make it difficult to participate in social activities, leaving you feeling isolated?
We also look for physical factors that could contribute to symptoms.
When appropriate, blood tests — including thyroid and vitamin B12 testing— can help identify certain medical causes of fatigue or mood changes.
We also review your medications to determine whether side effects or drug interactions could contribute to anxiety, depression, fatigue, or other symptoms.
Once we have a better understanding of what’s going on, we can help determine next steps.
PCPs can treat many common mental health conditions and, when appropriate, prescribe medications like antidepressants, mood stabilizers, and medications used to treat anxiety. If you need specialized support, your PCP can connect you with mental health professionals, including therapists who specialize in helping people cope with chronic illness.
PCPs also manage your medications for chronic physical conditions. Therefore, we consider your overall treatment plan and help identify potential medication interactions or side effects.
If you’re living with a chronic condition, one of the best things you can do is build a long-term relationship with a primary care provider. We provide compassionate, judgment-free care that looks at all aspects of your health — because taking care of your physical health and taking care of your emotional health go hand in hand.
Cecilia Dowsing-Adams, MD, is a primary care provider at Regional One Health’s Primary Care Specialists, 3109 Walnut Grove Road. To learn more, visit Regionalonehealth.org/primary-care or call 901.515.4800.
By Cecilia Dowsing-Adams, MD
