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Psychosomatic Illness and Disorder |
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Psychosomatic Disorder---a mental disorder that causes somatic symptoms--- Psychosomatic or Somatoform disorders are among the most common psychiatric disorders found in general practice. It is a condition of dysfunction or structural damage in bodily organs through inappropriate activation of the involuntary nervous system and the glands of internal secretion. Psychosomatic disorder is mainly used to mean a physical disease which is thought to be caused, or made worse, by mental factors. Some physical diseases are thought to be particularly prone to be made worse by mental factors such as stress and anxiety. The DSM III has dropped the category of Psychosomatic diseases, but according to the DSM II classification it has listed 10 categories of psycho-physiologic disorder:
Sometimes a physical symptom is a metaphor for the person's psychologic problem, as when a person with a "broken heart" experiences chest pain. Other times, a physical symptom reflects identification with another person's pain. Some people also use the term psychosomatic disorder when mental factors cause physical symptoms , but where there is no physical disease. For example, a chest pain may be caused by stress, and no physical disease is can be found. Physical symptoms caused by mental factors are discussed further in a another leaflet called 'Somatization and Somatoform Disorders'. Increasingly doctors are recognizing the importance of dealing with psychological and social factors in relation to physical disease. As a result, many doctors now try to deal with the whole person. This means taking all these factors into consideration. By doing this, it is important to realize that the doctor is not playing down or ignoring the physical disease. Many people with so-called psychosomatic disorders feel that their doctor does not take them seriously. They feel that the doctor believes that it's all in the mind. The doctor will always attempt to treat the physical illness with appropriate medical treatment if necessary. But he will also be interested to understand more about the person who has the illness. This will in turn help him and the patient to understand the illness better. Sometimes psychotherapy or talking treatment can help. Patients are given the opportunity and time to talk about their feelings and emotions. This will help provide them with an insight into themselves and help them understand their illness better. Sometimes it is helpful to look at the whole lifestyle of the person involved. This may require looking at how the stress is dealt with, teaching techniques for stress management, as well as examining factors such as diet and exercise.
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Psychiatric disorders - Psychosomatic disorder |
