Muscles

The influence of psychosomatic factors on the course of diseases of the digestive system. Psychosomatics of digestion - abdominal pain, gastritis and ulcers from stress

When problems with the intestines arise, you should pay attention to psychosomatic reasons their manifestations. After all, it has long been proven that most people “earn” illnesses of this nature by blocking emotional sphere. The mental sphere has specific impact when physical manifestations “grow.” Therefore, you need to clearly define how to identify the causes of intestinal problems in time.

When does a disease speak for itself?

To complete the information, you should understand what the intestines are? It consists of thick and small intestine, and it begins after the 12th ring. The main “work” is performed by the small intestine, because it is there that the “analysis” of nutrients occurs. The large intestine also performs an important job, but its work can be called the “place of dislocation” of body waste.

When complications begin with the abdomen, it is necessary to determine where the problem is coming from. This can be detected by consulting a doctor. After which it will be possible to draw conclusions and take action. After all, any disruptions in the functioning of the intestines indicate psychological difficulties, with acceptance of life as it is.

What do problems with the small and large intestines mean?

Psychosomatics of intestinal problems will help to understand the reasons for their occurrence. Here's what illnesses tell you about a person:

A person experiencing difficulties with the small intestine is very fixated on little things. The personality itself invents problems for itself, which it “multiplies” in quantity and size. The main purpose of this intestine is to absorb “useful” things. So in life, problems that arise prevent you from “absorbing” smart and useful moments and thoughts. All this leads to disorders, diseases and an unhappy lifestyle.
Difficulties with the colon appear when the personality blocks the perception of the “new.” Holding tightly to the “old”, which does not bring joy, benefit and pleasure, makes you suffer. This condition usually manifests itself as constipation. There is also difficulty in getting things done. Rejecting new ideas, criticizing and avoiding life can cause diarrhea. A person has a stomach ache, the body is trying to tell the person about the existing difficulty on the mental plane.
The feeling of restlessness, detachment from the world, does not cause the most pleasant sensations in the stomach. Constant suppression of anger and emotions can lead to inflammation and bleeding. The person will feel colic, bloating, heaviness and many other unpleasant symptoms. The main reason for the manifestation of all these unpleasant symptoms is coldness towards the world, uncertainty and fear.

How to overcome the disease?

The main factor influencing gut health lies in attitude towards life. Intestinal diseases occur when a person is in a difficult life situation. The right attitude, good thoughts, and positive thinking will help you heal. Psychosomatics will help you get rid of the stress that makes your stomach “suffer.” You need to benefit from emotions and direct them in the “right” direction. Recognize your integrity with the world, do not suppress emotions, and love life. This is how the body will live in harmony with the soul.

I have already written about the site “Beautiful and Successful”. But not only cancer has psychosomatic causes. As a rule, any disease is, to one degree or another, caused not only by external factors (environment, eating habits, habits of the sick person), but also the psychological state of the person.

Today we'll talk about how, under the influence of such a factor as psychosomatics, the stomach stops working normally.

How does the psyche affect health?

For the first time about communication mental processes and physical health, psychiatrist Pyotr Galushkin spoke. He compiled a list of pathological personality types and correlated it with the diseases to which each of them is most susceptible.

Even among individuals whose mental health is defined as the “norm”, it has its own character traits, habits and way of life. They are the ones who can tell a specialist what kind of diseases a particular person is most likely to be susceptible to.

Stomach diseases: psychosomatics

Stomach pain is often caused not only by poor diet, but is often of a mental nature. Moreover, experts believe that stomach ulcers, for example, are caused primarily by psychological reasons.

The stomach is an organ with which people not only digest food. It helps to “digest” various life situations, problems, survive them.

And, if a person feels that he is unable to do this, he is frightened by the situation in which he finds himself, he fears that he will not be able to find a favorable way out of the current situation - this may cause illness. The risk of developing stomach problems is especially high if a person ignores his condition, does not try to understand it and find the optimal solution.

Another psychosomatic cause of stomach illness is the desire to find help and support.

After all, food for a person is a way to fill the body with energy and gain satisfaction. The inability to accept help, to receive energy from other sources (for example, from communication) leads to the fact that the individual tries to compensate for the unmet need by excessively absorbing food - “seizes the problem”, as a result, the secretion of the stomach increases, which may well cause an ulcer or gastritis .

Psychosomatics, stomach and problems in its work

If your stomach hurts, psychosomatics, as a rule, plays the “first fiddle” in this unpleasant situation. It’s worth remembering how, before an important event, “it sucks in the pit of your stomach,” “your stomach cramps.” In especially sensitive people, before an important task, the stomach may seriously ache, vomiting or even “ bear disease».

As a rule, there is no reason behind such manifestations serious pathologies. In this way, the body demonstrates its reaction to a strong emotion that a person is trying to restrain: fear, excitement, etc.

But psychosomatics can also provoke more serious stomach diseases..

Gastritis usually develops in people for a long time those in a state of uncertainty: they are not sure of their future, they are convinced that nothing good can be expected from life. Gastritis can also be caused by an acute outburst of strong anger that has been suppressed, “driven inside.” The disease usually manifests itself some time after the event.

The psychosomatic cause is fear or suppressed aggression, for example, when life circumstances and the environment do not suit a person, but he stubbornly tries to convince himself that “everything is fine.”

If we talk about a disease like stomach ulcer, psychosomatics in this case may be more complex. Among the reasons that provoke ulcers are the following:

The patient’s confidence in his own inferiority, the so-called “inferiority complex.” It does not matter what position a person occupies in real life. All that matters is his level of self-esteem.
Almost all “ulcer sufferers” experience a deep contradiction between the desire for independence and the need to be cared for, patronized and supported.
Envy also not only figuratively “corrodes” a person from the inside, but also leads to a completely material ulcer.
The desire to prove something to yourself and others, to look as good as possible in the eyes of others, perfectionism can also be considered as psychosomatic causes of peptic ulcer disease.
, a tendency to worry about any reason, suspiciousness - all these are predisposing factors for the formation of a stomach ulcer.

Other diseases of the gastrointestinal tract can also be caused by the psychosomatics listed above, for example, stomach cancer. This diagnosis threatens those who, ignoring the signals of their own body, continue to leave psychological problems unresolved, forcing the stomach with all its strength to “digest” them.

When can a psychotherapist help?

It is sometimes difficult to distinguish a disease caused by external causes from diseases of a psychosomatic nature.

But there are several signs that allow you to understand that consulting a psychotherapist would not hurt.

The patient is treated for a long time by a gastroenterologist, but as soon as he gets nervous, the disease returns.
Violated normal process digestion, are constantly bothered by cramps, pain, feelings of bloating in the abdomen or diarrhea for no apparent external reason.
A person constantly, for a month or more, feels depressed, sleeps poorly and gets tired quickly, feels tense, and experiences discomfort in the abdomen or other gastrointestinal problems.

In all these cases, it is likely that among the causes of stomach pain, psychosomatics plays a leading role, and putting your mental state in order is a priority task.

Copying this article is prohibited!

A common situation in life. Here are people who eat approximately the same, but one suffers from a duodenal ulcer - PUD - and the other is completely healthy. One person suffers from gastritis and constant indigestion; he is found to have Helicobacter pylori during examination, while the other is fine.

Doctors classify gastric ulcers and peptic ulcers as psychogenic diseases, as there is a connection with the state of the nervous system, psyche and attacks of the disease. In the language of psychotherapy, this is real psycho somatic disease. What factors from mental life influence the development of psychosomatics of the digestive organs?

Stress and psychosomatics of the stomach and intestines

French physiologist Hans Selye developed the theory of stress while studying patients various diseases, wounded. He found the same symptoms in completely different lesions body and diseases, described a syndrome that is caused by various damaging agents. As a result, he developed the theory of stress, for which the level of action of stress factors and the duration of their action are important. His experiments with laboratory rats established a cause-and-effect relationship between stress and peptic ulcers. That is, if an ordinary rat in a cage is exposed to regular stress, it gets sick and its digestive organs suffer. Psychological testing and observation of patients extends the theory of the occurrence of psychosomatic gastrointestinal diseases to people.

Resistance to stress in different people varies quite a lot. And most importantly, strong exposure to stress produces psychosomatic reactions only if the body cannot respond adequately to a specific stress factor.

Stress occurs for a variety of reasons - as a result family problems, loss of work, separation from a loved one, loss of a loved one due to his death. Divorce, betrayal - all this leads to severe stress. All the troubles and rush work at the enterprise can also be the cause of the development of psychosomatic digestion - peptic ulcers of the stomach and duodenum; irritable bowel syndrome - IBS, which torments patients, is also known frequent diarrhea, indigestion, abdominal pain. But stress does not always lead to gastrointestinal diseases.

The strength of the stress factor can be great, and the person copes. But only for a limited time - then, to continue resisting troubles and facing serious problems, you need serious rest and recovery. A change of scenery. This is how animals act - having received some kind of damage or injury - they hide and try to rest in stillness when minimal activity. Sometimes a person does not have time to notice this fatigue. It happens that there are no conditions to rest.

To cope with stress, it is very important for a person to have a supportive environment, a favorable environment in relationships with friends and family members. In fact, more often than not, friends are the first competitors, and competitors cannot provide support. Family structure and functioning may also be disrupted - especially if psychological problems make home life an additional stressor and the person does not get rest at home - and he is stressed at work and does not get rest at home.

Why stress leads to damage to the digestive organs - diseases of the stomach and intestines.

When a person is faced with a sudden emergence of problems in life - this may be related to work, to relationships - he, like a biological organism, is preparing for a fight. The glands produce stress hormones, the heart, as they say, fills with blood - a readiness to fight appears. Or, conversely, a person must run and hide. Stomach and intestines, and everything digestive system as if she switches off, she has no time to digest food.

If we are talking about an animal, then after a fight it rests. A person, depending on his character, may unconsciously continue to fight after a fight, especially after an unsuccessful fight, and even if consciousness accepts the changed conditions that there is no threat, the ancient parts of the brain may not sleep and continue to command the production of hormones that force the body to respond to stress. The psyche itself becomes a stress factor, in the depths of which the battle, the experience of loss, traumatic memories continue to remain real.

Common diagnoses in cases long-term stress this is irritable bowel syndrome, chronic gastroduodenitis - inflammation of the duodenum, biliary dyskinesia - a violation of the flow of bile from the gallbladder into the intestine, peptic ulcer.

Factors associated with stress are sleep disorders - insomnia, circulation of thoughts, restless sleep with awakenings, nightmares.

If the duration of the stress factor exceeds the body's resources, then nervous exhaustion, vegetative-vascular dystonia occurs, increased sweating, feeling of weakness, so-called syndrome chronic fatigue. That is, the listed symptoms and diseases are pure psychosomatics. Especially if objectively, in comparison with normal reactions surrounding people, the person seems to be able to cope, but it doesn’t work out.

So, the psychosomatics of digestion associated with inflammation of the gastric mucosa - gastritis, gastric ulcer and ulcer, irritable bowel syndrome - require psychotherapy, special psychotherapeutic methods of self-regulation, and sometimes the use of psychotropic drugs that can only be prescribed by a psychotherapist.

Psychotherapy for psychosomatic gastrointestinal diseases

Psychotherapy for psychosomatics of the stomach and intestines consists of turning off the stress mode of the body - digesting food normally, restoring the mucous membrane of the stomach and intestines, healthy microflora- you can only do it at rest, not under tension.

Psychotherapy techniques include hypnosis, autogenic training, training and development of coping strategies.

If you are diagnosed with DU, PU or IBS, you must take the treatment prescribed by the gastroenterologist. And run straight to a psychologist or psychotherapist.

What will the psychotherapist do, how will he treat the psychosomatics of the digestive tract with you?

The focus will be on identifying all the stressors that have an impact. Stress from dysfunctional relationships in the family, from conflicts at work - this is precisely the area of psychotherapy. A therapist can work with you to address your behavior and relationship issues. Internal conflicts are also stressful, especially if a person cannot make an important decision for a long time.

Methods of psychological self-regulation are a special training; you will be taught to do the exercises yourself, using them precisely to reduce the body’s response to stress.

Yoga, oriental holistic arts, martial arts, and there are also Russian national practices are of great benefit in tuning the body to the right anti-stress wave.

When should you consult a psychotherapist for stomach and intestinal psychosomatics?

1. You have been treated by a gastroenterologist for a long time and there are no results - in stressful situations ulcer and colitis return

2. You feel that psychosomatic diseases of the stomach and intestines are your experiences and stress, but you don’t understand which ones and don’t know how to cope with them

3. If digestion is disturbed and you are bothered by pain, bloating, diarrhea or cramps in the intestines and stomach

4. If you smoke and cannot quit, but want to quit smoking

5. If your mood is bad and depressed for more than a month

6. If you, along with stomach and intestinal symptoms- pain, indigestion, upset stomach, feeling tired or tense, poor sleep or insomnia

If you follow modern view for DU and PU, then contacting a psychotherapist should be done immediately after visiting a gastroenterologist and diagnosing an endoscopy

What gastrointestinal diseases require consultation, and sometimes the help of a psychotherapist?

Often they will tell you that you eat irregularly and incorrectly, and besides, you smoke. Therefore gastritis and ulcers. But psychosomatics cannot be written off, if you are exhausted by stress and do not rest, no matter how well you eat, gastritis and ulcers are very likely.

Is our psychological condition one way or another affects the health of the body. It will be useful to understand how psychosomatics and the intestines are interconnected in order to understand the main causes of ailments of this organ and find out the possibilities for recovery. The psychosomatic nature of the disease means that, among other things, the occurrence of the disease was influenced by the mental state of the individual. It is believed that the psyche and body are inextricably linked and everything that happens in the soul is reflected on the physical level. This can be doubted, but it is not for nothing that they say that “all diseases are from nerves.” And in the appearance of any disease there is a psychosomatic component, which should definitely be taken into account during treatment.

Psychosomatic bowel diseases

The intestines perform a number of important digestive functions. In the small intestine, all nutrients obtained from food for the body are disassembled and absorbed. In the large intestine, food waste is formed and prepared for release. Next, the rectum removes all excess from the body. The precise implementation of all these processes is a prerequisite for the normal functioning of the remaining systems of our body.

If a failure occurs at any stage of digestion and elimination of food, then along with drug treatment it is necessary to find out what psychological factors led to this. In most cases, intestinal diseases are the result of our destructive thoughts, attitudes, and emotional problems.

An example of this is irritable bowel syndrome, a common and undefined disease of our time. A condition when, with absolutely normal results of examinations and tests, a person exhibits all clinical symptoms illnesses: frustration, flatulence, spasms, pain. This is caused by everyday stress, fears, anxieties, experiences that accumulate and do not find a way out. Let's imagine that leftover food will remain in the body for years. Everything, of course, will end in poisoning and destruction. They have the same influence powerful emotions and feelings, if they are suppressed and not expressed adequately, but left to oneself. So what do psychosomatic diseases of different parts of the intestine indicate?

Obsession with little things provokes diseases in the intestines.

Often the cause of diseases of the small intestine is a person’s fixation on trifles, inventing and multiplying difficulties for himself, and complicating the perception of reality. This lifestyle, when every little thing, every insignificant event causes a lot of strong emotions, and especially suppressed anger, can easily lead to disorders and, as a result, illness. Common diseases of the small intestine with psychosomatic causes include tumors, diarrhea, diverticulitis, and Crohn's disease. The latter can develop if the person surrounds himself obsessions, and does not let them go, rejecting everything positive, including himself.

Colon diseases

Colon problems occur in people who hold tightly to outdated thoughts and attitudes. For those who live in the past and do not want to notice positive points present. Irrelevant beliefs have not brought them any benefit for a long time and cause suffering, making it difficult to accept the constantly updated reality. In situations such as a psychosomatic symptom, constipation may occur, as if trying to retain something irrelevant on the physical level. This attitude to life can cause other diseases of the colon:

Accumulations of intestinal gases. This is how the fear of loss or too severe anxiety due to the possibility of getting into difficult situations.
Colitis occurs when a person lacks flexibility in his outlook on life and experiences extreme anger about this.
Cramps indicate the presence of fears that need to be dealt with before moving on.
Worms appear in those who are under the influence of another manipulating person in life. Which negates the opportunity to live freely and independently.