Having multiple sclerosis puts you at a higher risk for depression. But finding the right support and treatment can make it easier to manage both conditions.
Medically reviewed by Pat F. Bass III, MD, MPH
One day, you’re healthy and active — then suddenly you’re dealing with frequent doctor visits and the threat of crippling attacks. It’s no wonder that a chronic condition like multiple sclerosis(MS) can lead to depression.
“When you look at any chronic illness, MS included, there is the potential for a ‘reactive depression’ — a change in mood that goes along with the everyday adjustments that accompany the disease,” says Ben Thrower, MD, medical director of the Andrew C. Carlos Multiple Sclerosis Institute at Shepherd, part of the Shepherd Center in Atlanta. “There is also the biology of what MS does to the central nervous system, which can lead to depression even when everything else in your life is going well.”
If you have MS, what does this means for you? Unfortunately, MS puts you at a much higher risk for depression than the general population. “Studies suggest that the chance of developing depression for a person with MS is 50 percent,” Dr. Thrower says. By contrast, the risk for depression in someone who doesn’t have MS is five percent.
The Biology Behind Depression and MS
When you have MS, your immune system periodically attacks your central nervous system, resulting in scattered lesions throughout the brain and spinal cord. “Each attack results in some brain damage,” explains James Bowen, MD, medical director of the MS Center at the Swedish Neuroscience Institute in Seattle.
More specifically, MS attacks the insulation of the nerve fibers in the brain, called myelin. “If you think of the central nervous system as an electrical system, the nerve fibers are the wires that act as the communication between the brain and the rest of the body,” Thrower says. When MS attacks those wires, communication between the brain and the body can slow down or even stop completely. “Depending on where the brain or spinal cord damage occurs, you can have physical weakness and numbness or cognitive mood changes,” he says.
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