MENTAL SYMPTOMS OF FOOD ALLERGY OR INTOLERANCE: HYPOCHONDRIA
The same is also true of hypochondria, an anxious preoccupation with the body, or a part of the body. The patient characteristically believes that the part is diseased or not fully functional. He or she generally reports pain, and other bizarre sensations of bodily disturbance and internal movement. There are few physical symptoms that can be observed, apart from vomiting, fainting and sweating in some cases. Hypochondria is thought to be a result of repressed emotions and secret fears, and it is far more likely to develop in families where there is a preoccupation with illness, or in people who have a great deal of contact with invalids as children.
In earlier centuries, hypochondria was recognized as a ‘real’ illness, with a distinctive set of characteristics. And it was considered to be worthy of treatment. The dismissal of hypochondria by most doctors is a relatively new attitude, and one which is lamented by those that have studied this disorder. Robert Meister in his book Hypochondria writes: ‘Those physicians who shrug off a suffering patient because they regard his condition as psychosomatic or hypochondriacal are not acting as professional healers … The cultural and social norms that affect considerations of health and illness have established what might be called an unspoken “Acceptability Index” of various forms of illness. On such an index, bacterial pneumonia, which is regarded as a “real” illness, would indubitably outrank peptic ulcers, which are viewed suspiciously as being of “psychosomatic” origin, and all illnesses known to man would outrank hypochondria … The prevailing negative attitudes towards hypochondria are largely unexplained, unjustified and certainly unjust to victims of the condition.’
The best type of treatment for both psychosomatic complaints and hypochondria is some form of psychotherapy or hypnotherapy which should make it possible for the sufferer to identify the underlying emotions that are responsible for the symptoms. Once aware of the source of the problem, the patient can come to terms with these emotions and the physical symptoms should then diminish.
In some cases, however, the symptoms are a vital element in the way the patient deals with the world and with his or her own conflicts about life and relationships. For such people, the symptoms are indispensable and the best hope is to keep the condition within limits so that it causes the least possible disruption to the patient and his family.
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