Somatic symptom disorder is characterized by an extreme focus on physical symptoms — such as pain or fatigue — that causes major emotional distress and problems functioning. You may or may not have another diagnosed medical condition associated with these symptoms, but your reaction to the symptoms is not normal.
What are the three somatic symptom disorders?
Some previously distinct somatic disorders— somatization disorder, undifferentiated somatoform disorder, hypochondriasis, and somatoform pain disorder —are now considered somatic symptom disorders. All have common features, including somatization—the expression of mental phenomena as physical (somatic) symptoms.
What does somatic mean?
Somatic is a fancy word that just means dealing with the body . You may be tired of hearing your great-grandfather’s somatic complaints, but give him a break – his body has been working for 80 years! Soma means body in Latin, so somatic means of the body and is most often used in connection with one’s health.
Somatic symptom and related disorders are mental health disorders characterized by an intense focus on physical (somatic) symptoms that causes significant distress and/or interferes with daily functioning .
What are some examples of somatic symptoms?
- Pain. ...
- Neurological symptoms such as headaches, movement disorders, weakness, dizziness, fainting.
- Digestive symptoms such as abdominal pain or bowel problems, diarrhea, incontinence, and constipation.
- Sexual symptoms such as pain during sexual activity or painful periods.
Is Fibromyalgia a somatic disorder?
In the wider literature, however, including non-US studies, fibromyalgia is considered to be one of a series of “medically unexplained syndromes.” These illnesses are sometimes called somatic symptom disorders (SSD) or functional somatic syndromes because the main symptoms, pain, fatigue, cognitive disturbance, and ...
What is somatization example?
Somatization occurs when psychological concerns are converted into physical symptoms. For example, a person who has just lost a loved one may somaticize their grief through severe fatigue . The prefix “soma” stems from the Greek word for body.
What are somatic symptoms of anxiety?
The emotional distress of anxiety is often accompanied by specific physical symptoms associated with a state of autonomic arousal, such as sweating, dizziness, and shortness of breath (most notable in patients with panic attacks), or more generalized somatic complaints, such as insomnia, restlessness, and muscle aches ...
What are the 5 somatoform disorders?
They include somatization disorder, undifferentiated somatoform disorder, hypochondriasis, conversion disorder, pain disorder, body dysmorphic disorder, and somatoform disorder not otherwise specified. 1 These disorders often cause significant emotional distress for patients and are a challenge to family physicians.
How do you get rid of somatic symptoms?
Cognitive behavior therapy and mindfulness-based therapy are effective for the treatment of somatic symptom disorder. Amitriptyline, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, and St. John’s wort are effective pharmacologic treatments for somatic symptom disorder.
Are somatic cells passed onto offspring?
A somatic cell is any cell of the body except sperm and egg cells. Somatic cells are diploid, meaning that they contain two sets of chromosomes, one inherited from each parent. Mutations in somatic cells can affect the individual, but they are not passed on to offspring .
What causes somatic dysfunction?
Causes. Somatic dysfunction can be caused by acute or chronic postural deviations or alterations of a body part or region . Most commonly this occurs from sudden movements during a slip or fall, but can also be from biomechanical deviations as well as postural abnormalitites.
Is somatic symptom disorder a mental illness?
Somatic symptom disorder (SSD formerly known as “somatization disorder” or “somatoform disorder”) is a form of mental illness that causes one or more bodily symptoms, including pain .
What is the main cause of somatic pain?
Somatic pain occurs when pain receptors in tissues (including the skin, muscles, skeleton, joints, and connective tissues) are activated . Typically, stimuli such as force, temperature, vibration, or swelling activate these receptors. This type of pain is often described as: cramping.
Which of the following is an example of a somatic symptom of depression?
Symptoms of depression include classic psychological symptoms, such as low mood, loss of interest, poor concentration, and associated anxiety, and somatic symptoms, such as changes in appetite , lack of energy, sleep disturbance, and general aches and pains.
Is somatic disorder curable?
Although there is no known cure for somatoform disorders , they can be managed. Treatment focuses on helping the person who has the disorder to live as much of a normal life as possible. Even with treatment, he or she may still have some pain or other symptoms.
