What is wrong with me?
Recently, the psychological clinic of Fengxian District Mental Health Center received an aunt in her 50s, she was full of sadness, carrying a bag in her hand, which contained a stack of examination reports, including test sheets, B ultrasound sheets, electrocardiograms, CT, gastrointestinal endoscopy reports, etc., and all kinds of medicine boxes in the bag. As soon as she sat down, the aunt showed a painful expression, and kept telling that she often had headaches, back pain, nausea, palpitation, chest tightness, shortness of breath, insomnia, etc., visited many departments, hung up a lot of expert numbers, and almost did an examination, but the results of the examination were basically normal, and the doctors said that there was no problem.
The aunt almost collapsed, suspected that she had some rare disease, and was very anxious, and the doctor advised her to see a psychiatrist. But the aunt couldn't figure it out, she felt that she was really uncomfortable, not imaginary, and had been suffering from "disease". In the end, she came to the psychology department with the mentality of giving it a try, and the result really found out the culprit - somatic form disorder.
Somatic form disorder is a neurosis characterized by persistent fear or belief in the dominant notion of various somatic symptoms.
The patient's self-perception plays a key role in this condition: because the patient is sensitive, suspicious, and overly focused on his or her own personality traits, many patients develop the perception that they have an undiagnosed disorder.
This is followed by increased anxiety and frequent visits to the doctor, which leads to an increased selectivity in the patient's perception of the physical condition, and the patient can feel their heartbeat and gastrointestinal movements. This can lead to a vicious cycle in which selective heightened perception leads to repeated visits to the doctor, self-monitoring of blood pressure, pulse, urine and bowel movements, etc., and the abnormality triggers more anxiety, which in turn can lead to more physical discomfort.
The etiology of somatoform disorder is complex and may be related to:
01
Hereditary, with familial clustering. Some studies suggest that about 20% of patients with somatoform disorder have first-degree relatives who also meet the diagnosis of somatoform disorder, and that this familial clustering can be influenced by genetics, environmental factors, or a combination of both.
02
Personality traits, female patients with somatoform disorder have a common etiology and are associated with antisocial personality disorder, whereas in males, somatoform disorder is more associated with anxiety disorder.
03
Neurophysiologically, there is symmetrical dysfunction in the bilateral frontal lobes in patients with somatoform disorder, the dysfunction of the anterior part of the non-dominant hemisphere is more severe than that of the posterior hemisphere, and the dysfunction of the dominant cerebral hemisphere in patients with somatoform disorder is more severe than that of healthy controls and patients with depression.
04
Psychosocial factors, somatoform disorder is associated with mental trauma and chronic stress, trauma, especially in childhood, which leads to psychological and physical separation, resulting in somatization symptoms, severe abused children and adolescents are more likely to develop somatoform disorder than other populations, and can trigger increased autonomic activity.
ask
What should I do if I have somatoform disorder?
answer
Go to a professional medical institution for help.
psychotherapy
Supportive psychotherapy provides patients with explanation, guidance, and understanding of the symptoms of the disease, which is effective in alleviating emotional symptoms and enhancing confidence in treatment.
Psychodynamic psychotherapy helps patients explore and understand the internal psychological conflicts behind the symptoms, and is effective in completely relieving the symptoms.
Cognitive therapy is a long-term effect for patients with obvious hypochondriacal concepts and hypochondriacal personalities.
Morita therapy is effective in alleviating symptoms and improving the quality of life by enabling patients to understand that the symptoms are not severe, to accept and tolerate the symptoms, and to continue to work, study, and live as they are.
drug therapy
Patients with drug treatment have high health requirements and are sensitive to physical reactions, so it is advisable to choose drugs with small adverse reactions, and it is advisable to treat them with small doses. Patients with obvious symptoms of anxiety and depression can be given an appropriate amount of anxiolytic drugs or antidepressants, and often a small dose of an anti-anxiety drug (alprazolam, lorazepam, clonazepam, etc.) is effective. In addition, symptomatic treatment can be given for somatic symptoms, such as propranolol and metoclopramide should be given in moderation.
Other treatments
Such as spectrum therapy, massage therapy, extracorporeal counterpulsation therapy, etc., have certain adjuvant treatment effects.
Self-regulating
Improve your mental health and develop ways to relieve your emotions, such as sports, entertainment and other personal hobbies.
Increase communication with the outside world,
Including communicating more with friends and family,
Learn to express unpleasant emotions.
Family support
Family members should listen patiently to the patient's story in a gentle and friendly manner. Do not ignore the patient's physical symptoms, do not deny the patient's physical discomfort, assist the patient with self-care, encourage the patient to express his emotions and stress, and encourage the patient to discuss the pressures of life.
If someone close to you or a family member has such symptoms, remember to always bring them to a psychiatrist.
Shanghai Psychological Assistance Hotline
962525
Fengxian District Mental Health Center
Psychological Counseling and Pediatric Psychiatry (Psychological) Specialty
How to make an appointment:
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Outpatient Consultation Tel: 37502012