Diagnostics is as much an art as it is a science. A good diagnostician takes everything into consideration when evaluating a condition. Lab results, patient affect, impressions, and history — all these become integral parts of the diagnosis.

It isn't possible to isolate a specific medical condition by drawing an imaginary line across a given part of the human body. “You've got a headache? We'll just lop off your head at the neck and things will be fine.” Of course this is nonsense. Even if you have a definite area of concern, a malfunctioning appendix, for example, the effects of this problem are felt throughout your body. This includes your head! An attack of appendicitis will have certain symptoms:

• Pain

• Elevated temperature

• Elevated white blood cell count

These symptoms, however, are not confined to your abdomen. Your brain tells you that you're hurting. You're running a fever, and you feel awful all over. Perhaps you have chills and are visibly shaking. And those white blood cells have free rein throughout your bloodstream. So, even though the problem is in your tummy, the symptoms of appendicitis permeate your entire body, and no one would tell you otherwise.

One more example to set the stage. A sliver. A little, teeny piece of wood, embedded in your index finger. It hurts, of course. That foreign body is an irritant. And, in addition to the possibility of infection, if you don't dig it out, what else is happening? Are you focusing on that sliver? Is your mood going south? You're irritable.

And if you can't find a needle or something else with a sharp point to get that splinter out, it's going to be difficult to ignore, until you can. All in your finger? Technically, yes. However, the spillover effects are felt pretty much everywhere.

How Pain Works

Pain receptors in your finger send a signal to your brain that sends a message via your spinal cord to the affected nerve. You look at your finger and see what's causing the pain. You realize that, to alleviate that pain, you've got to remove the splinter. So, is the pain all in your head? Of course not. If you can accept this fact in minor physical hurts, it makes sense that this truth also applies in more serious hurts, such as depression. You cannot separate your mind from your body.

Your tolerance for pain is highly individualized. What one person experiences as mild discomfort may send another person to the aspirin bottle. That's why hospitals now use a pain index for each patient. You point to the level of pain you're feeling, based upon a facial expression. Personalized pain equals personalized treatment.

It's Everywhere!

When you are depressed, your entire body is affected. You can't compartmentalize. Whether you experience aches and pains, tiredness, irritability, insomnia, or any of depression's other symptoms, it's your mind that takes control and processes the problem. This is the mind/body connection, and it's a marvelous system.

Keeping you healthy, keeping you strong, is a major cooperative effort, requiring your body and your mind to be in sync. After all, who else could have more of a vested interest in your health than you do? Trust your body when it tells you it hurts. Trust your mind when it tells you that you're depressed.