Abnormal Psychology 8
Somatic symptom disorder is characterized by the presence of multiple somatic symptoms, whether localized or diffused and specific or nonspecific, at one time which impact daily functioning.
Illness anxiety disorder is characterized by concern over having or acquiring a serious illness, and not the actual presence of somatic symptoms. Individuals spend a great deal of time scanning and analyzing their body for “clues” of potential ailments.
Functional neurological symptom disorder is characterized by one or more symptoms of voluntary motor or sensory function.
Factitious disorder is characterized by deliberate falsification of medical or psychological symptoms of oneself or another, with the overall intention of deception.
Though prevalence rates for somatic symptom disorders are hard to determine, it is believed that between 1 and 10% of the population suffer from one of these disorders.
Females are more like to be diagnosed with somatic symptom disorder and are as likely as males to be diagnosed with illness anxiety disorder.
Anxiety and depression have a high comorbidity with somatic symptom and related disorders.
Functional neurological symptom disorder and illness anxiety disorder frequently occur with personality disorders.
PTSD and OCD are comorbid with somatic symptom disorder.
Central sensitivity syndrome also has high comorbidity with somatic disorders.
Psychodynamic causes of somatic disorders include primary and secondary gains.
Cognitive causes of somatic disorders include negative beliefs or exaggerated fears of physiological sensations.
Behavioral causes of somatic disorders include reinforcers such as attention gained from others or receiving disability.
Sociocultural causes of somatic disorders include familial influence and culture.
The biopsychosocial model of treatment is one of the most effective for somatic disorders as it considers the various biological, psychological, and social factors that influence the illness and presenting symptoms and includes a multidisciplinary approach.
Psychotherapy options include interpersonal psychotherapy, CBT, and behavioral.
Psychopharmacological interventions are rarely used for somatic disorders due to the side effects of the medication producing more harm than good. When used, they deal with comorbid disorders such as depression or anxiety.
Psychological factors affecting other medical conditions has as its primary focus the physical disorder, and not the mental disorder.
The most common types of psychophysiological disorders include headaches to include migraines and tension, gastrointestinal to include ulcers and IBS, insomnia, coronary heart disease, and hypertension.
Common treatments for these other medical conditions include relaxation training, biofeedback, hypnosis, traditional CBT treatments, and group therapy.