What is psychosomatics?

Psychosomatics is a field – which discovers the connections between our psyche and the body. At the same time, we can imagine the psyche as a huge space that includes everything we think about or live through, our experience. We have it all stored in us, even if we don’t think about it or don’t even remember it. In addition, if such experiences are threatening, (they could cause extreme stress to our body) our desire to maintain harmony can suppress these experiences. At that moment, the body activates, and reacts stronger the more we resist its natural inclination.

What are the most common psychosomatic diseases?

The origin, development and course of each disease is related in varying degrees to our psyche. At the same time, every disease affects our lives retroactively at all its levels (physical, mental, social and spiritual). For example, pain in various parts of the body (migraines, pain in limbs, joints, painful movement, toothache, etc.) is common. Chronic psychosomatic diseases include asthma, rheumatoid arthritis, atopic eczema, allergies or Crohn’s disease. Individual organ systems (heart disease, gastrointestinal diseases or psychosomatic sexual problems) are also affected. Which part of the body shows a symptom may be related to its function, but also to a symbolic similarity that may be linked to a specific memory or previous experience.

How do I know that my illness is of psychosomatic origin?

You may have been suffering from headaches for years. Your suffering will sometimes get worse, and other times it will seemingly subside. Over the years, you have undergone a number of examinations, always with a negative result. You may even doubt yourself. You have to be completely healthy. So where does the stubborn pain come from? A typical feature of a psychosomatic illness is that it lasts for a longer period of time (it is chronic), its symptoms occasionally subside to subsequently intensify, and professional medical examinations often do not yield a positive result. Psychosomatic illness can also be just the opposite. The first thing that is revealed can be a symptom without consciously experiencing it ourselves. For example, a cancer patient or a couple confronted with infertility.

How are psychosomatic diseases treated?

Psychosomatics is a complex field. At specialized workplaces, a team of experts is available to the patient, including a doctor, psychologist and physiotherapist. Their goal is to provide a person with comprehensive care that will allow them to capture the disease in its entire context and continue to work with it so that its origin and development is understood.

It is a long-term process, the essential part of which is to make precisely those changes in your life that will help a person to live consciously and in accordance with their own needs towards healing.

How can psychotherapy help me in the treatment of psychosomatic diseases?

Psychotherapy helps to connect the life story of the client with his or her physical being. If emotional injuries permeate your life and you feel that you need to be constantly alert in your relationships with others, then your body will use that as an opportunity to store fat and create a protective armor that forms a safe distance between you and your surroundings. Finding connections through a life story then opens up the right possibilities for change. In this case, the client would probably deal with relationship formulas and self-worth. The client’s relationships are also reflected in their relationship with the therapist, one task of the therapist is to help the client look into them. Other tools of psychotherapy include body-oriented techniques such as autogenous training, body perception therapy or focusing. Online psychotherapy offers similar opportunities to work with psychosomatic illness.