Psychosomatics is a movement in medical science and psychology that consists of studying the impact of psychological factors (emotions, experiences, feelings) on the appearance of various somatic ailments. According to this direction, all human pathologies are rooted in psychological discrepancies between the aspirations of the soul, the subconscious of a person and his thoughts. Within the framework of the current movement, the relationships between personal characteristics (behavioral styles, character traits, constitutional features) and certain bodily ailments are studied. In other words, psychosomatics of diseases is a science that combines the physical body and the inner universe of a person, his soul.
Somatic diseases – what are these diseases?
The term used in medicine to characterize them will help you understand this. From the Greek language “σῶμα” is literally translated “body”. For this reason, somatic diseases are physical disorders that are caused by psychological trauma or disorder. This relationship is very close. It is explained by the fact that the body is a single system: the release of one element leads to the “breakdown” of another.
The difference between an infectious disease and a somatic disease
The first group of pathologies has the following features:
- Specificity
- in other words, a specific pathogen causes a specific disease. Somatic diseases affect various systems and organs, and the ailments have a special pathogenesis. - Contagiousness
is the contagiousness of a disease or, in other words, the ease with which the pathogen is transmitted from one organism to another. The somatic nervous system has a different mechanism of damage. - Disease development
– in an infectious disease, it lasts from the moment of infection until the appearance of clinical manifestations. Somatic pathologies have a slightly different development pattern. Such diseases do not have an incubation period: they are not contagious.
How to relate to the interpretation of psychosomatic diseases given by the authors of esoteric books.
I treat esoteric literature like sweet intoxication. In search of truth, many, especially young people, wander into the fields of occultism and mysticism. Rarely do any of them recover with the help of these teachings, but many are damaged in their minds. In my opinion, some systems based on self-education and strict rules are also unsafe.
There are Orthodox-oriented teachings that have sound foundations with very controversial conclusions and recommendations that claim to be a comprehensive truth. I also remember all sorts of fashionable diets, types of fasting (according to Brag and Shelton). Not so long ago we were keen on healing according to the Seraphim (Chichagov) method as presented by Ksenia Kravchenko, the systems of Boris Vasilyevich Bolotov, Ivan Pavlovich Neumyvakin; It would also not hurt to remember the mass healing sessions of Anatoly Kashpirovsky and Alan Chumak, all kinds of urine therapy, sucking vegetable oil, drinking kombucha, apple cider vinegar, etc. Is it worth repeating that a universal system of healing does not exist in nature, and all esoteric books, from the position of our Russian Orthodox Church, are harmful to the human soul.
Somatic diseases - types
All pathological disorders of this group can be conditionally differentiated into the following classes:
- Conversion diseases
are pathologies that arise after a neurotic conflict. Such somatic disorders are temporary. Prominent examples of these diseases are blindness, paralysis and deafness. - Organic diseases
- they are provoked by stress, fear and excessive worries. More often, a person experiences strong painful sensations, which can have different areas of localization. - Pathological disorders, the occurrence of which is associated with the individual characteristics of the body.
For example, a patient has a tendency to get injured. Its occurrence is promoted by bad habits (overeating, alcohol abuse or smoking).
Acute somatic diseases
More often, such pathological disorders develop in childhood and young age, less often after 30 years. Representatives of the fair sex are more defeated by them. The likelihood that somatic diseases will begin to develop is higher in those women whose close relatives suffer from similar ailments. Drug and drug addiction increases the chances of the occurrence of such a pathological disorder. List of somatic diseases in acute form:
- gastritis;
- bronchitis;
- rheumatoid arthritis;
- damage to the kidneys and gastrointestinal tract;
- ulcerative colitis and so on.
Chronic somatic diseases
Pathological disorders move into this stage from an acute form. Somatic diseases:
- neurodermatitis;
- essential arterial hypertension;
- nephritis;
- hepatitis;
- pneumonia;
- diffuse glomerulonephritis;
- bleeding disorders and so on.
Features of psychosomatics
As noted above, psychosomatic disorders are a set of symptoms that arise in response to a stressful situation. These may be isolated manifestations, for example, weakness, dizziness or chest pain. But often psychosomatics manifests itself in the form of separate diseases. These include ulcerative colitis, rheumatoid arthritis, bronchial asthma and other pathological conditions. Under the influence of certain life circumstances, the human psyche and nervous system malfunction, the body is unable to adapt to the environment, and then various diseases arise.
But how exactly do psychosomatic diseases arise? In a stressful situation, the human body begins to accelerate the production of hormones responsible for an emergency response in times of danger. Dopamine, adrenaline and norepinephrine accelerate all physiological processes (the motility of the stomach and kidneys increases, the heartbeat accelerates and breathing becomes more frequent). Since organs and muscles require more oxygen at this moment, blood flow, and therefore pressure, in the vessels increases significantly.
When a person is safe, he should have a surge of emotions and the functioning of the cardiovascular system should normalize. But if such a discharge does not occur, then vascular spasm persists, and arterial hypertension develops. In modern conditions, a person often has to restrain his emotions, especially negative ones (aggression), which inevitably affects changes in the internal organs.
Causes of somatic diseases
It is impossible to independently determine the source of such a pathological disorder. Only specialists can cope with this task correctly: you will additionally need to consult a psychologist, neurologist and therapist. The somatic system is complex, but more often it fails under the influence of the following factors:
- severe nervousness;
- fears;
- constant conflicts;
- feelings of dissatisfaction;
- anxiety;
- strong anger.
Somatic diseases - symptoms
Such pathological disorders are characterized by a certain clinical picture. Even the most severe somatic diseases can be accompanied by the following symptoms:
- Impaired appetite
– patients experience extremes (some completely refuse to eat, while others, on the contrary, overeat). The result is either anorexia or obesity. Another disorder that can occur due to nervousness is bulimia. Patients show increased interest in fatty foods, which can lead to obesity. However, in order not to inadvertently gain extra pounds, those who suffer from bulimia drink laxatives, emetics and diuretics. Because of this, somatic diseases develop with complications in the digestive tract. - Insomnia
- most patients try to cope with this problem on their own, without resorting to the help of a doctor. They drink sleeping pills uncontrollably and try to relax in any other way possible. However, all this does not bring the desired result: the situation only gets worse. - Painful sensations
often develop in very suspicious and overly anxious people. Discomfort can be observed in any organ (usually in the weakest point of the body). - Sexual disorders
- they are provoked by fears, prolonged abstinence, low self-esteem, disgust towards a partner. In men, such acute somatic diseases occur with weak erections and decreased libido. In women, sexual disorders are manifested by the absence of orgasm and painful sensations during sexual intercourse.
In childhood, somatic disorders are accompanied by the following symptoms:
- emotional instability;
- increased sensitivity to infections;
- allergic predisposition;
- vegetative dystonia;
- stuttering, tics and other psychomotor disorders;
- weather dependence;
- a decrease in the body's defenses.
How long can treatment last and how effective is it?
It all depends on the nature of the disease, its severity, and timeliness of treatment (an advanced, chronic pathological process is always more difficult to treat). Treatment of some diseases that are based on spiritual (mental) ill health can be very lengthy.
The Holy Fathers mention the so-called “inconvenient” diseases, which have a special sacred meaning. The so-called genetic, hereditary factors cannot be discounted.
In each specific case, the approach to treatment should be purely individual, and, as was taught in Soviet times, personal, clinical and pathogenetic. It must be said that the Russian medical school made a significant contribution precisely to the process of a deep, holistic attitude towards a sick person. Starting with Mudrov M.Ya. (1776 -1831), Zakharyin A.G. (1829 -1898), Botkin S.P. (1832-1889), Pirogov N.I. (1810-1881) - it was the multifactorial one that prevailed, therapy focused on the personality of the patient, the motto of which was the slogan: “Treat not a disease, but a person, in the fullness of his personality traits and conditions.” Let me dwell in more detail on some representatives of the Russian school of healing diseases, who could well be included among the outstanding psychosomatics (in the positive sense of the word). Among them is Professor of Therapy and Pathology at Moscow University Matvey Yakovlevich Mudrov, who professed a model of a holistic, multifaceted view of the disease, taking into account mental and spiritual, and not just biological and physiological mechanisms. He, in particular, wrote: “Knowing the mutual actions of the soul and body, I consider it my duty to note that there are also spiritual medicines that heal the body. They are drawn from the science of wisdom; often from psychology. With this art you will console the sad, soften the angry, calm the impatient, stop the furious, frighten the daring, make the timid bold, the hidden - frank, the desperate trustworthy. This art imparts to the sick that firmness of spirit that overcomes bodily illnesses, melancholy, and tossing, and which then subjugates the illnesses themselves to the will of the patient. The patient’s admiration, joy and confidence are then more useful than the medicine itself.” Along with medicines, Mudrov prescribed to the sick who and at what time from the heavenly doctors and under what cases they should pray.
Among the causes of illnesses, he assigned an important place to mental factors: “spiritual disturbances: anger and malice, envy and ambition, luxury or stinginess, jealousy or despair and all sorts of everyday sorrows, which alternately pass through our gloomy life at night,” a person comes to various illnesses and sufferings . Another famous doctor of ours, who treated Emperor Alexander III and Leo Tolstoy, Professor Anton Grigorievich Zakharyin, described “reflected” pain from certain internal organs to the skin, introducing an important milestone in the theory of the relationship between the internal and external in a person. In Soviet times, the famous doctor and psychologist Alexander Luria (1902-1977) wrote: “The brain cries, and tears go to the heart, liver, stomach...”
Treatment of somatic diseases
Before prescribing therapy, the doctor must:
- Identify the root cause of the disorder.
- Determine whether this disease is hereditary.
- Study the test results.
The list of somatic diseases is long. Their treatment should be carried out comprehensively. Psychotherapy for somatic diseases allows you to achieve faster results. It specifically affects the mechanism of development of the disease. Tranquilizers and antidepressants may also be prescribed. Additionally, traditional medicine is used. For example, for hypertension, a decoction of calendula can be prescribed.
Prevention of somatic diseases
It is much easier to prevent any disease than to treat it afterwards. To prevent somatic diseases from occurring in children and adults, the following conditions must be observed:
- Lead a healthy lifestyle - for this you should eat right, spend more time in the fresh air, and play sports.
- Get rid of bad habits (this point applies to adults).
- Get medical examinations regularly.
- Protect yourself as much as possible from increased stressful situations.
- Change your thinking - try to acquire a positive attitude and outlook on life (if a child suffers from a disorder, parents should become real support for him).
