Cultural Concepts of Distress

Ataque de Nervous – syndrome among individuals of Latino Descent, characterized by symptoms of intense emotional upset, including acute anxiety, anger, or grief; screaming; attacks of crying; trembling; heat in the chest rising into the head; and becoming verbally and physically aggressive

Dhat Syndrome – coined in South Asia characterized by young male patients who attributed their symptoms to semen loss

Koro - acute anxiety and a deep-seated fear of shrinkage of the penis and its ultimate retraction into the abdomen, which will cause death

Khyal Cap – syndrome found among Cambodians characterized by panic attacks

Kufungisisa – overthinking; idiom of distress and cultural explanation among the Shona of Zimbabwe

Maladi Moun – Haiti; sent sickness; interpersonal envy and malice cause people to harm their enemies by “sending illness”

Nervios – among latinos; general state of vulnerability to stressful life experiences and to difficult life circumstances

Shenjing Shuairuo – syndrome composed of weakness, emotions, excitement, nervous pain, and sleep

Susto – distress and misfortune prevalent among some latinos in US, attributed to a frightening event that causes the soul to leave the body and results to unhappiness and sickness, as well as functioning in key social roles

Taijin Kyufusho - an intense fear that one's body parts or functions displease, embarrass or are offensive to others