Hi, Jumpy--
You know I've followed your thread about depression with interest. I'm grateful that at least you seem to be making some progress in your overall perspectiveof your own, and your family's health issues. I think that this sort of thing is usually a journey, shorter if you get good information and good medical support early. But often demanding and frustrating in any case.
Interesting theory about the connection between anxiety and RLS/other conditions. I have stated a number of times that I wonder if there is a connection-- because at their heart, several of my own chronic "complaints", for lack of a more precise catch-all term, are the result of and/or are known to include a chemical inbalance/sensitivity. I can't help but think that biochemical imbalances/sensitivities could EASILY contribute to more than one discernible condition, even if those individual conditions are controlled by different specific chemicals.
Over in the RLS/depression you spoke about "personality types", and I personally feel that even personality has a much deeper connection to biochemistry than we yet understand. My anxiety disorder, GAD, is unquestionably a biochemical "problem", because it can be affected by diet, exercise, amount of sleep, hormone levels, etc. which all cause changes in our bodies on a biochemical level. There are certainly cognitive things that can improve quality of life by reversing established behavioral patterns caused by the biochemical signals sent to my brain, but at it's heart, as I said, I believe that GAD (and a great deal of what most people would call my "personality") is biochemically-determined.
From the people I know with chronic depression (a few different types/presentations), my theory is that if we better understood the biochemical components of their condition, there would be more we could do to help and understand their symptoms and struggles as well.
I'll attach below a quote from a book which has been very helpful to me in dealing with my GAD as well as some other health issues. I think that it casts an interesting light on this discussion.
Take good care, Jumpy!
Sara
The Diet Cure, Julia Ross, M.A., Chapter 1, pp. 13-14
"Life's pain can be unendurable without adequate amounts of these buffer chemicals [[endorphins]]. Some of us may be born with too little natural pain tolerance.... Others of us use up too much endorphin through trauma and stress. We just run out, espeically if we were born short on endorphins to begin with..... Low serotonin can be the easiest of all deficiencies to develop. Very few foods are high in the amino acid tryptophan, which is the only nutrient that the body can use to make serotonin.... If, in addition to dieting [[or stress]], you inherited low serotonin levles and experience a lot of stress, your levels can fall low enough to set off a major eating disorder or serious emotional disturbances.... Obsessive fears and phobias are common among peope with low serotonin levels. It may be difficult for you to see symptoms like control, fear, and low self-esteem as biochemical problems, not just psychological ones. But the success of [[SSRI's actually has]] alerted us to the biochemical nature of many symptoms that don't respond to psychological help alone. "
) fits the pattern, in my opinion.
