"Sick of his own free will." Why is hypochondria dangerous and how to overcome it? Hypochondria Hypochondria or suspiciousness
OK. 1860-1862.
Philadelphia Museum of Art)
The autonomous functions of the organs are monitored with care and fear. As a result of this pathological focusing of attention and anxious attitude, the functions of autonomic innervated systems can be disrupted, since autonomous regulation is influenced by emotions.
For the diagnosis of hypochondriacal disorder according to ICD-10, the presence of a persistent belief in the presence of no more than two serious somatic diseases (bodily, not mental diseases) is required, which has been observed for at least 6 months. At the same time, preoccupation with the belief in the existence of illness or disease should cause constant suffering or social maladjustment in everyday life. There must also be persistent refusals to accept medical assurances that there is no physical cause for the somatic symptoms.
Conditions of occurrence
Treatment
The approach to hypochondriac patients is complicated by the fact that they attribute their suffering to physiological diseases and try to find all the data to confirm this opinion. In most cases, psychotherapy is indicated. To eliminate disturbing thoughts about a possible disease, the method “
The heart hurts, the stomach aches, the intercostal neuralgia has worsened - the hypochondriacs themselves can diagnose themselves on the fly. At the same time, there will be no confirmation from the point of view of medicine - all analyzes and research results are "clean" At the same time, the "imaginary patient" will continue to regularly call ambulancefeeling "serious discomfort" - according to statistics, among patients "03" such patients from 4 to 6%. How to distinguish a real illness from hypochondria and suspiciousness, as well as how to overcome the passion of making diagnoses - in the material AiF.ru.
Life cycle
By itself, hypochondria is a psychological problem, when a person is sure that a serious illness is "eating away" from the inside. People aged from 30 to 50 suffer from it, less often it is noted in adolescents, as well as people over the age of 60. Most often, it seems to hypochondriacs that pathologies concern of cardio-vascular system, brain and genital area. Often, hypochondria is associated with the instinct of self-preservation, when, against the background of taking care of one's health, a person develops excessive obsession.
One of the main dangers of such a problem may be the fact that an imaginary disease will develop over time into a real one. And this is a feature of the brain. When a person long time convinces himself that he has cancer or diabetes, the likelihood that he will “program” himself to destroy and get the same pathology increases significantly. In addition, hypochondriacs are constantly nervous, and stress leads to the development of serious ailments.
The reasons for the development of hypochondria have not yet been reliably identified. But doctors name physiology among them (for example, low pain threshold) and psychological trauma (serious illnesses suffered in childhood, any tragic events associated with serious illnesses of close relatives).
Hypochondria or suspiciousness?
Often, hypochondriacs are called suspicious people. But this is not the case. And to distinguish a real psychological problem from ordinary speculation is not so difficult. First, the hypochondriac will not be able to easily switch from his inner feelings to discussing yesterday's series. If he "hurts", then it hurts persistently and obsessively. He does not invent diseases for himself, he really feels them.
In addition, hypertrophied sensations are inherent in hypochondriacs. For example, if this is pain, then it is simply unbearable. If it stabs in the chest, then the sensations will be very deep, sharp and painful.
Constant pessimism is another point that distinguishes a true hypochondriac. After all, his disease is necessarily the most difficult and incurable. A common cold can make him literally prepare for a funeral.
Also, hypochondriacs are lovers of walking around doctors, and they will not be scared even by any queues. At the same time, the diagnosis "healthy" upsets him extremely, as well as the refusal of doctors to prescribe additional examinations for him because they are unnecessary.
To distinguish ordinary hypochondria from a real disease can only be based on the results of examinations - for this, a standard set is used: general analyzes, Ultrasound, fluorography. If there really is a pathology, analyzes will show it. In all other cases, specialized treatment from a psychotherapist is required, which will help get rid of obsessive thoughts and sensations.
How to treat?
A person with hypochondria really needs treatment. But not the plan he expects. So, he will definitely need the advice of a psychotherapist who will help identify the causes of such a disorder. Also, in some cases, a neurologist's consultation is required to determine the normal operation of connections in nervous system and the brain. He can also prescribe his own treatment to normalize the work of the central nervous system.
All drug therapy should be prescribed and adjusted exclusively by a doctor - no self-medication is allowed here. The course of getting rid of the problem will be individual, since everything depends on the severity of the situation, and on the type of person's personality, and on his age.
Already in the days of Hippocrates, hypochondriacs were considered difficult patients who were difficult to treat. Now this opinion has not changed. Relatives of the "imaginary patient" only support the doctors, but what is it like for the hypochondriacs themselves?
Hypochondria is considered a form of psychosomatic disorder: a person experiences fear - most often unreasonable - of illness, he is not looking for trouble in outside world, but in your own body. According to scientists, almost 80% of people notice some kind of malfunction in their body: somewhere something pricked, suddenly dizzy, or a stomach ache, but then almost everyone forgets about it. Except for 5-6% of people who have symptoms of hypochondria. Well, tell me I'm sick!
However, these figures are constantly changing. For example, in Europe, almost 10% of the population is considered "imaginary sick", and American doctors complain about 20% of their patients, which they believe is wasting their time. The newspaper for general practitioners "Health", which is distributed throughout America, once asked readers to fill out a questionnaire to find out how many hypochondriacs there are. It turned out that according to 30% of doctors, almost half of those who asked for help have no physical health problems. Of course, it is difficult to comment on these figures, since there is always a danger that the doctor will consider the patient's complaints unfounded and will miss a serious pathology.
Today, the phenomenon of "Internet hypochondria" has become relevant. A huge number of sites helpfully offer to find a lot of signs of the most terrible diseases, read about the illiteracy and indifference of doctors, and at the same time learn how to be treated, because the salvation of drowning people is the work of the drowning themselves. Vicious circle: the more a suspicious person knows, the more often he finds in himself the causes of a wide variety of diseases.
Sick of his own free will
A reverent attitude towards one's own health is formed in childhood. For example, if someone in the family was seriously ill, the child himself grew up sickly, or the mother and grandmother were too anxious and constantly took care of the child. After grandmother's lamentations: “Well, let the other children walk around lightly dressed, they can, they are healthy, and you are so weak here,” everything that is associated with physical ailments is perceived as a mortal threat. Especially if there is suspiciousness and anxiety in the character. Psychologists are convinced that hypochondria is nothing more than a desire to feel love and care. If in the case of an anxious grandmother, the baby was bathed in attention, then in a huge number of families where the child is treated too dry, paying attention only to the fact that he has food, clothes and a diary with good grades, the baby is forced to attract bad attention to himself health - the only way he can get warmth and affection.
This model of behavior is fixed in the first and second cases, it works great later, in adulthood. The hypochondriac does not deceive - because of worries, for example, about his loneliness, he really feels some kind of heaviness in his chest, only interprets it in his own way.
The flip side of the coin is a scrupulous commitment to leading healthy way life, raw food, vegetarianism and so on. The cult of health is an action from the opposite, when a person is afraid of getting sick and does everything to prevent this from happening. 
How to help yourself?
If your peculiarity does not greatly poison the life of you and those around you, it may make sense to try herbal medicine - herbal remedies help in the initial stages of psychosomatic disorders. Excellent natural antidepressants and sedatives - mint, motherwort, anise, St. John's wort. Get a medical examination to make sure that you are healthy. Take care of your body: it is proven that most hypochondriacs, to relieve anxiety, smoke, take alcohol, even in small amounts, self-prescribing medication. Find a hobby. If you feel that anxiety has gone far, try to find a therapist you trust. How to help your loved one Listen carefully and empathize. The pain for a hypochondriac is not fictional, but real, and the fact that he is not taken seriously aggravates the situation. Do not try to re-educate him, convince him that he is healthy, based on logic. If you find it hard to listen to long lists of all the symptoms and health complaints , limit this time yourself. Let your hypochondriac talk out (no more than half an hour), and then turn the conversation to something else, interesting to both of you. Do not force to go to the doctor: he must make such a decision himself, you can only help to find a good doctor. And the last thing: do not hide medical literature, the hypochondriac will still find where and how to read about the disease. 
British experts conducted a large-scale study, the results of which once again confirmed the danger of redundant examinations.
You can find information about the symptoms of your (suspected) disease on "Mail.Ru's Health" in the "Diseases" section, but this does not exclude the need to visit a doctor. On our website you can enroll in a public or private clinic.
- a mental disorder from the group of somatoform disorders. It is manifested by constant concern about the state of their own health, persistent suspicions of the presence of a serious, incurable or fatal dangerous disease... Complaints of a patient with hypochondria are usually concentrated around one or two organs and systems, while the assessment of the severity of his condition and the degree of conviction in the presence of this or that disease is constantly changing. The diagnosis is established on the basis of complaints, anamnesis and additional research data. Treatment - psychotherapy, drug therapy.
General information
Hypochondria (hypochondriacal disorder) - mental disorder , manifested by constant concern about their own health and persistent suspicions of a serious illness. According to some researchers, patients with hypochondria make up 14% of the total number of patients seeking help in medical institutions general profile. Opinions differ about the prevalence of hypochondria among men and women.
Some experts argue that men suffer from this disorder more often, others believe that the disease equally often affects the weaker and stronger sex. In men, hypochondria usually develops after 30 years, in women after 40 years. In 25% of cases, despite adequate treatment, there is a deterioration or no improvement. In half of the patients, the disorder becomes chronic. Treatment of hypochondria is carried out by clinical psychologists , psychotherapists and psychiatrists.
Hypochondria causes
Mental health professionals identify several causes of hypochondria. The endogenous factors that provoke the development of hypochondria include hereditary traits of character and personality: suspiciousness, excessive impressionability, anxiety, increased sensitivity... It is assumed that a kind of interpretation of bodily signals is of some importance - a feature characteristic of all types somatoform disorders ... Patients with hypochondria and other similar disorders perceive normal neutral signals from various organs and systems as pathological (for example, as pain), however, with what this interpretation is associated - with disorders of the brain or with a change in the sensitivity of peripheral nerves - remains unclear.
As exogenous factors that determine the development of hypochondria, psychologists consider excessive anxiety of parents about the well-being of the child and severe or long-term diseases at an early age. A real or perceived threat to one's own health prompts a patient suffering from hypochondria to show increased attention to their bodily sensations, and the conviction of their own morbidity creates fertile ground for the formation of a "patient's position". A person, convinced of the weakness of his health, involuntarily looks for a disease in himself, and this can cause hypochondriacal feelings.
A certain role in the development of hypochondria is played by acute stress, chronic traumatic situations, depression and mental disorders neurotic level. Because of mental and emotional exhaustion the vulnerability of the psyche increases. The attention of a patient with hypochondria begins to be randomly fixed on various insignificant external and internal signals. Increased focus on work internal organs violates the autonomy of physiological functions, autonomic and somatic disorders occur, which the patient interprets as signs of a serious illness.
Experts believe that hypochondria is a pathologically sharpened instinct for self-preservation, one of the manifestations of the fear of death. At the same time, many psychologists consider hypochondria as "inability to get sick", which can manifest itself as pathologically acute and pathologically weak reactions to disturbances in the functioning of the body. It has been established that patients with hypochondria, when detecting a real-life somatic disease, pay less attention to such a disease than to their hypochondriacal experiences, sometimes perceiving this pathology as insignificant and insignificant.
Hypochondria symptoms
Patients with hypochondria complain of pain and discomfort in the area of \u200b\u200bvarious organs. Often they directly call the alleged somatic disease or, in a roundabout way, try to draw the doctor's attention to the possibility of developing a particular disease. At the same time, the degree of conviction in the presence of a certain disease varies from one reception to another. Patients suffering from hypochondria can "jump" from one disease to another, more often within one organ or system (for example, at a previous appointment, the patient was worried about stomach cancer , and now tends to diagnose peptic ulcer), less often there is a "migration" of painful sensations.
Most often, the fears of patients with hypochondria are associated with the state of the cardiovascular system, genitourinary system, gastrointestinal tract and brain. Some patients with hypochondria are worried about the possible presence infectious diseases: HIV , hepatitis A etc. A story about unpleasant sensations can be bright, emotional, or, on the contrary, monotonous, emotionally inexpressive. The doctor's attempts to dissuade the patient cause a pronounced negative reaction.
The complaints of patients with hypochondria are peculiar and do not fit into clinical picture a certain somatic disease. Patients with hypochondria often report the presence of paresthesias: a tingling sensation, numbness, or crawling creeps. The second place in terms of prevalence in hypochondria is occupied by psychhalgia - pains not associated with the pathology of an organ. Senestalgia is possible - unusual, sometimes bizarre pain: burning, twisting, shooting, everting, etc. Sometimes, with hypochondria, senestopathies are observed - difficult to describe, but very unpleasant sensations that are difficult to associate with the activity of an organ. In addition, patients often complain of general malaise, a feeling of vague, but global somatic ill-being.
Hypochondria affects the character of patients and their relationship with others. Patients become selfish, completely concentrating on their painful sensations and emotional experiences. They interpret the calm attitude of others to their condition as a sign of callousness and soullessness. Possible accusations against loved ones. Other interests become insignificant. Patients with hypochondria, sincerely convinced of the presence of a serious illness, spend all their energy on preserving the "remnants of their own health", this becomes the reason for the breakdown of close relationships, problems at work, a decrease in the number of social contacts, etc.
Types of hypochondria
Depending on the nature and degree of thinking disorders in psychiatry there are three types of hypochondria: obsessive, overvalued and delusional. Obsessive hypochondria occurs during stress or is the result of being overly impressionable. It is more often detected in sensitive, emotional patients with a rich imagination. This form of hypochondria can develop after the careless words of a doctor, another person telling about his illness, watching a program dedicated to a particular disease, etc.
In a mild transient form, hypochondriacal experiences often arise in medical university students ("third-year illness"), as well as in people who first came into contact with medicine due to their profession, life circumstances or ordinary curiosity (the famous "found in myself all diseases except maternity fever "From the story" Three Men in a Boat, Excluding a Dog "by Jerome K. Jerome). In most cases, these experiences are not clinically relevant and do not require special treatment.
A distinctive feature of obsessive hypochondria are sudden attacks of anxiety and fear for their health. The patient may be afraid of catching a cold when going outside in bad weather, or fear of poisoning when ordering food at a restaurant. He understands that he can take specific measures to protect himself from illness or significantly reduce the risk of its occurrence, but this does not help to cope with fear. Criticism for this form of hypochondria is preserved, reflections on a possible disease are hypothetical, but anxiety does not disappear, despite logical conclusions and attempts at self-persuasion.
Overvalued hypochondria is a logically correct, understandable to other people, but extremely exaggerated concern for one's health. The patient makes many efforts, trying to achieve the ideal state of the body, constantly taking measures to prevent a certain disease (for example, cancer). With overvalued hypochondria, self-medication attempts, excessive use of " folk methods health improvement ”, attempts to build pseudoscientific theories, etc. Health becomes an absolute priority, other interests fade into the background, which can lead to tension in relationships with loved ones, worsening financial situation and even dismissal or destruction of the family.
Delusional hypochondria is a disorder based on pathological inferences. Characteristic feature there is paralogical thinking, the ability and need to “connect the unconnected”, for example: “the doctor looked askance at me - it means I have AIDS, but he deliberately hides it”. Delusional ideas with this form of hypochondria are often notable for their implausibility and obvious fantasticness, for example, "a crack has appeared in the wall - it means that the wall is built of radioactive materials, and I develop cancer." A patient with hypochondria interprets any attempts at dissuasion as deliberate deception, and the refusal to conduct treatment measures perceives as evidence of the hopelessness of the situation. Delusions and hallucinations are possible. This type of hypochondria is commonly seen with panic disorder and generalized anxiety disorder.
Depending on the severity of hypochondria, treatment can be carried out both on an outpatient basis and in a hospital ( environment therapy). The main treatment for hypochondria is psychotherapy ... Rational psychotherapy is used to correct erroneous beliefs. In the presence of family problems, acute traumatic situations and chronic internal conflicts, use gestalt therapy , psychoanalytic therapy , family therapy and other techniques. In the process of treating hypochondria, it is important to ensure the conditions under which the patient will constantly be in contact with one general practitioner, since contacting a large number of specialists creates a favorable environment for manipulation, increases the risk of unnecessary conservative treatment and unjustified surgical interventions.
Due to the high risk of developing addiction and possible fears of severe somatic pathology, which doctors allegedly hide from the patient with hypochondria, the use of drugs with this pathology is limited. With concomitant depression and neurotic disorders, tranquilizers and antidepressants are prescribed. For schizophrenia, antipsychotics are used. If necessary, beta-blockers are included in the drug therapy regimen, nootropic drugs, normotimics and vegetative stabilizers. The prognosis depends on the severity of the hypochondria and the presence of concomitant mental disorders.