Scientists are discovering more about the role our minds play in chronic illness and chronic pain. Illness mindsets include beliefs and attitudes people hold about their chronic conditions. Mindsets shift as symptoms and care plan success fluctuate, and they often have vast impacts on patient experience and treatment outcome.
Patients can manage these mindsets to a large degree, and researchers have identified three: Catastrophe, Management, and Opportunity.
- Catastrophe mindsets cause panic and despair. Patients might feel that their situations will never improve and brace themselves for continued decline. In truth, they may be experiencing a flare—a temporary worsening of symptoms.
- Management mindsets offer a more balanced view, including acceptance, that can lead to greater adaptability. These patients are more likely to meet flare-ups with perseverance and self-care. They tend to explore their options and empower themselves in ways that may include better dietary choices, research into treatment provider qualifications, and asking questions until they have an adequate grasp of the answers.
- Opportunity mindsets allow patients to see the good that can come from their situations, including advocacy for themselves and others facing similar challenges. Patients with this mindset often perceive needed lifestyle changes as the means to additional benefits they would not have enjoyed otherwise.
Our brains send pain signals and determine our response based on our previous pain experiences, memories, and mood and attitude histories. That’s one reason everyone experiences pain differently and that illness mindsets develop.
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