People experience various kinds of pain, with specific causes. Treating or resolving pain becomes easier after determining its physiological trigger or reason. Identifying the cause is the first step in pain management or resolution. However, it gets tricky when the cause is ambiguous. Most who feel psychosomatic pain face this difficult battle. It is a complicated task for them to comprehend the cause of the excruciating pain they suffer.
Since there is no physiological cause to speak of, in most cases, people who suffer from psychosomatic pain are often perceived as pretending, adding more pain, so to speak.
“Typically, people approach any physician to find the cause of the pain,” says Dr Aruna Kulkarni, a clinical psychologist from Pune, India. “If the test results come back negative, the doctor advises consulting a psychologist for further investigation. People tend to be a little insensitive regarding this condition. Since there is no physiological explanation, most people assume that the person is pretending. It is not fair because the pain is genuine, and the person is actually experiencing the pain.”
What is psychosomatic pain?
Psychosomatic pain refers to the pain which is caused by the mind. Any pain that does not have a physical cause is considered psychosomatic. Even though the root cause cannot be traced in the body, the pain is real and experienced by the person.
“Usually, an individual with a psychosomatic condition approaches a psychologist after a long struggle,” says Dr Mamta Jain, consulting psychologist from Hyderabad, India. “In the initial stages, they will see a physician who will try to get an MRI, CT scan or other tests done to identify whether there is any physiological condition causing the pain. According to the World Health Organization’s (WHO) guidelines, any pain that lasts for three months is a chronic condition. After three months, when the pain becomes unbearable, one realises that the reason behind the persistent pain is psychological. People may also experience pain in focused areas.”
What triggers psychosomatic pain?
Any sort of mental disturbance gets stored in the body and mind, retained as a whole or in elements. Over time, it builds tension and starts manifesting in the body as headache, back pain, stomach ache or any other form of pain for that matter. Psychological conditions such as extreme anxiety, depression, phobia and stress are factors that can trigger psychosomatic pain.
“Anxiety usually tops the list,” says Dr Kulkarni. “Children experience physical pain when they have anxiety about school, exams or their grades. Since parents cannot identify any medical cause, they assume that the child is pretending to be in pain. But the pain is genuine for the child.”
Major life changes can also result in psychosomatic pain. “It can be social changes, monetary loss, losing loved ones, moving out to a new place and so on,” says Dr Jain.
Treatment and prevention
Following the diagnosis, various courses of action can be taken depending on the person’s level of pain and psychological condition. “It is not a non-treatable condition. Therapy, medication and holistic approaches are all possible treatments for psychosomatic pain,” says Dr Jain.
Self-help techniques can be employed to either prevent or lessen pain. Deep breathing, progressive muscle relaxation and focusing techniques are a few of the practices which provide relief.
- Focusing technique
The first step in focusing technique is to concentrate on the precise body part that is painful. The pain is mentally manifested into a large ball by autosuggestion (the process of influencing one’s own attitudes, behaviours or physical health by thought patterns other than conscious cognition, focusing on a specific part of the body). Over time, conscious effort is made to make the ball smaller, which ultimately shrinks and disappears.
- Progressive muscle relaxation
Progressive muscle relaxation is the method of slowly tensing and then relaxing each muscle of the body. It begins with tightening the entire body and then relaxing various parts, one by one, starting from the toe to the forehead.
- Deep breathing
Taking deep breaths in a particular rhythm reduces the stress and anxiety that causes pain. Extreme anxiety and stress can make one’s breath shallow.
“Very shallow, just barely enough to keep ourselves alive,” adds Dr Kulkarni. “Deep breathing really helps to maintain one’s mental balance along with managing anxiety and stress.”
Takeaways
- Psychosomatic pain occurs when any mental disruption manifests as any form of pain including headache, back pain, stomach ache, etc.
- Psychological issues such as severe anxiety, depression, phobia and high stress are factors that can lead to psychosomatic pain.
- Treatment of psychosomatic pain includes therapy, medication and holistic approaches.
- Self-help techniques including deep breathing, progressive muscle relaxation and focusing techniques can also be employed to prevent or lessen psychosomatic pain.
2 Responses
Good article which is helpful to understand problem.
Thanks for the positive response!