Hypochondria: causes, symptoms, treatment

Have you ever thought that you have serious health problems or, even worse, are terminally ill? But what if such thoughts overwhelm you constantly? Carefully! Perhaps you are faced with a disease such as hypochondria.

Who is a hypochondriac

According to experts, a person who is constantly concerned about the state of his health, convinced of the presence of fatal diseases, suffers from hypochondria. Moreover, in fact, in reality, no deviations in the field of health are often observed, other than this fixation. Such thoughts continue to overcome a person even after a complete and comprehensive examination of the body, the results of which deny the presence of serious illnesses.

For the first time, such a pathological condition was described by Hippocrates. He gave it the name "hypochondria". This word meant diseases of the internal organs that are located in a person below the ribs. Nowadays, the word “hypochondria” is understood as a feigned state and a tendency to despondency.

The condition of hypochondria can occur in people independently or against the background of another mental illness. In the latter case, hypochondria becomes a companion depression or anxiety panic disorder. Hypochondria goes away on its own if the underlying disease is treated.

According to scientists who studied this phenomenon, hypochondria is observed in 10% of the total population. American experts say that the number of hypochondriacs is twice as high.

Hypochondria: reasons

Now there are many theories explaining the occurrence of hypochondria. Most scientists are inclined to believe that hypochondria occurs due to several reasons.

Here are the most common ones:

• Personality type is of primary importance for the occurrence of hypochondria. Also I.P. Pavlov pointed out that people with an anxious and suspicious type of psyche are more susceptible to hypochondria. These people are characterized by indecision, they love to reason, they quickly form obsessive thoughts and are too suspicious. Usually, such individuals come up with all sorts of rituals for themselves, for example, in order to avoid getting sick, they wash their hands all the time. Such habits are formed in childhood and adolescence, and by the age of 40 they reach their full pathological peak.
• Psychotraumatic situations of varying degrees of intensity can provoke hypochondria. This could be some kind of transmission about a new type of flu or a recent mild illness. Any such insignificant circumstance is perceived by suspicious people as a threat to life.
• Environmental factors are perceived especially acutely by suspicious people. We can say that it is the environment that produces hypochondria in a suspicious person.
• Other diseases can trigger the development of hypochondria. Often, against the background of a nervous disorder, a person has thoughts that become delusional. In order to recover, people begin to invent new treatment methods for themselves, taking kilograms of medicines, bringing himself to the point of poisoning. And they perceive signs of intoxication or exhaustion as manifestations of a fatal illness.

Symptoms of hypochondria

A person with signs of hypochondria is absolutely sure that he has an incurable disease or will soon become ill with something like that. He can talk about his diagnosis better than doctors. But the problem is that he constantly changes his opinion.

The most characteristic sign of hypochondria is the constant “pain” that the hypochondriac feels, as well as other manifestations of the disease. Medical research, as a rule, does not confirm anything like this. This fact makes a person even more concerned about his health and reinforces the belief that doctors do not understand anything.

Most often, hypochondriacs “suffer” from diseases of the heart, stomach, brain or genital organs. Over time, obsessive thoughts can lead to the fact that disorders actually develop in these organs. This effect is explained by the influence of the psyche on the state of internal organs.

Obsessive states lead hypochondriacs to create all sorts of protective rituals for themselves. Often patients demand that family members adhere to the same rituals. Hypochondriacs actually like their condition, because they feel attention from others.

Hypochondria: treatment

Getting rid of hypochondria is a very difficult process. This is due, first of all, to the fact that the patient is completely confident in his incurable illness and does not want to be treated for a mental disorder. It is necessary to direct efforts to ensure that a person leads a normal lifestyle and changes his behavioral habits, which are the root cause of mental disorder.

The beginning of treatment is its most difficult period. At this moment, the hypochondriac seeks to get rid of the doctor and find another doctor who will confirm his independent diagnosis. In this case, the doctor needs to deceive the patient and pretend that he is monitoring the development of imaginary symptoms of the disease. Observation must be carried out over the patient’s mental state.

Then you need to develop positive thinking in the patient. It is necessary to cure with the help of psychotherapy stress the patient and teach him to interact with the world. In rare cases, antidepressants and drugs that reduce anxiety are recommended.

Even if you successfully get rid of hypochondria, it is necessary to constantly monitor the person’s condition. It must be remembered that a hypochondriac will not get rid of his illness only on his own; he needs the support and help of others.