The Power of a Mind-Body Treatment Approach
Treating the whole person improves outcomes
Posted June 3, 2026 | Reviewed by Davia Sills
Often, individuals hesitate to consult a mental health clinician when they are struggling with a chronic physical illness. There may be a worry about stigma . American culture often views illness without nuance, separating disorders into physical and/or mental illness. An individual may feel they need to choose a side and stick with it.
Here’s how I explain to my new patients who are medically ill how a mental health clinician is a value-add:
It’s never all in your head or your body
Seeing a mental health clinician does not mean that your current pain or medical distress is “all in your head.” It does not mean your illness is not being taken seriously, that you are not coping well enough, or that you are fabricating symptoms.
It is a simplification to consider any bodily distress to be all in one’s head or all in one’s body. Sometimes it can be easy to forget that we have a neck. When treating the whole person, we recognize that the mind is constantly communicating with the body and vice versa.
This connection is even reflected in our language: When you hear someone complain of a “lump in the throat” or “butterflies in the stomach,” we appreciate that these symptoms are physical manifestations of anxiety , an emotional state.
Stress can trigger an underlying medical issue
We know that stress , anxiety, and mood changes can amplify pain or contribute to a flare of a medical vulnerability. As I explain to my Massachusetts patients, many of whom are die-hard sports fans, cardiac events increase when a beloved team loses an important game. A loss by the New England Patriots, Boston Red Sox, or Boston Celtics does not cause a heart attack, but if one already has pre-existing cardiac disease, one’s emotional reaction after a game loss can have a physiologic impact. Cardiac events increase in frequency with the accompanying rise in blood pressure and heart rate, a direct example of the brain affecting the body.
Why does this matter for patients meeting a mental health clinician? Medical disorders cause stress, and stress amplifies medical symptoms; the loop is established quite quickly. Unsurprisingly, ongoing medical illness is a risk factor for depression and anxiety disorders.
Some may question treating mental distress in response to physical pain, seeing anxiety and dysphoria as inevitable and understandable reactions to complex illness. Instead, let’s view the mental health impact of a chronic condition as a comorbid diagnosis, because depression and anxiety benefit from treatment. Therapies can increase coping skills and provide a safe space to process the impact of the illness while also supporting and building on an individual’s strengths. There is evidence that treating psychological distress may also protect the body; observational data show that patients with inflammatory bowel disease on antidepressants have an easier disease course and higher rates of remission as compared to those without psychiatric treatment.
Learning to listen to your body
As a psychiatrist working closely with gastroenterologists, I also help patients learn to listen to their bodies. If your reflux has been improving and then it unexpectedly returns, it is easy to get anxious and feel like any progress you have made has been lost. Slowing down and reviewing the situation can be illuminating. Did the pains occur after eating a panini with cheddar cheese and a cold brew? These foods are known reflux triggers and may explain the symptom flare.
Food diaries can be very helpful for any gut-related distress. Years ago, I worked with a patient whose parents owned a sub shop. She had no GI pain after eating fries or grilled cheese, but for some reason, cheese fries triggered a few days of significant severe GI distress. Once we had identified the problematic dietary combo, her symptoms decreased in frequency and intensity.
Whatever the bothersome symptom, keeping a symptom log and reviewing it with a clinician can be enlightening. Let’s say your dizziness occurs in waves. Keep a log of when it happens. What you learn may not cure your symptoms, but even an intervention that decreases symptom severity by 10 to 20 percent can provide some real relief. Notice whether a lack of food, drink, or sleep, or a change in bowel habits, might exacerbate a baseline vulnerability. An example: with this approach, a patient and I uncovered that her postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS) worsened when she was constipated.
When dealing with a chronic illness , small symptom increases can understandably fuel anxiety. A careful review may uncover a reason for the flare. With increased understanding, agency increases, and helplessness decreases. Once a trigger is identified, an intervention can be created. Small, positive changes can shift the experience of the illness in a meaningful way.
One interesting and useful tidbit I have observed over the years: when our bodies have a medical area of vulnerability, this is often the route that it uses to express emotional distress, even if the primary disease isn’t active. I have worked with patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), whose presenting symptom was severe fatigue or abdominal pain. Sometimes these symptoms recur even after the IBD has been sufficiently treated, and a full medical workup is normal. During my consult, I may find an untreated depression or severe anxiety.
When the brain is in distress, the mood or anxiety disorder may first present with a medical symptom familiar to the body. After treating the psychiatric symptoms, the physical symptoms may significantly decrease in intensity. With complex illness, a coordinated care team of specialists that includes a mental health clinician may lead to the best outcome.
The take-home lesson: when taking care of a complex or chronic physical illness, consider treating yourself as a whole person rather than focusing only on the organs being investigated. Mental health care can enhance resiliency, protect the body as well as the spirit, and, in certain situations, may even improve your disease course.
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Suzanne Bender, M.D., is a child adolescent and adult psychiatrist in private practice and on faculty at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts.
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This article is part of the Bringwise Psychology Journal — daily insights on human behavior, mental health, and personal growth.