2024 Author: Harry Day | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 15:43
Sometimes, in order to identify a destructive belief, confirm or refute your guesses, or simply grope a path along which to look for the cause of a psychosomatic disorder or illness, it is enough just to observe yourself in a structured way.
In the life of almost every "psychosomatic client" there is such a period of time when he realized that something was wrong with him, was examined, found out that his problem was of a psychogenic nature, BUT … ready. Not infrequently, this happens precisely because a person does not understand what the connection of a particular disease may be with his attitudes, thoughts, behavior and life in general. And a structured diary of introspection can help to discover this connection.
Keeping such a journal may differ depending on the problem you are dealing with. But for almost every disorder or disease, the framework outlined below will work. Since by disorder and disease we can mean anything, from a panic attack or obsessive thought, to a specific spasm, an attack of pain, hearing loss / vision loss, etc., we can combine all this with the term "symptom." That is, what bothers you and what you want to get rid of, we will call a symptom.
The rules for keeping a diary are simple and complex at the same time:
1. Make a decision about keeping a diary. If you do this from time to time, the information will be erroneous. In the case when there is no willingness to bring the matter to the end, there is no point in starting to keep a diary.
2. A record of the manifestation of a symptom must be done immediately the moment it manifested itself. Do not postpone it for the evening, 5 minutes and so on. For this, the diary (notebook) must be with you at all times.
3. Describe each of the points as fully as the first time. Regardless of whether it is repeated or not (completely, with all the details and details, write down every thought and sensation here and now, do not use phrases like: "see above", "the same", etc.).
4. Write with a pen or pencil, most importantly by hand
If the decision to keep a structured diary is made, you need to start a pen, and a compact notebook, spreading it out on following columns:
1. Date / Time
2. Place (where it happened - at home, on the street, in transport, etc.)
3. Environment (people and situation - who was next to you, what was doing, what was happening around)
4. Thoughts (what they thought, what pictures the imagination draws)
5. Sensations (what you feel in the body - tingling, itching, pain, etc.)
6. Where exactly in the body (stomach, head, chest, etc.)
7. Feelings (what do you worry about, what feelings do you experience - annoyance, fear, anger, etc.)
8. Actions (what actions are you taking)
9. Consequences (how it all ended)
After the diary is created, all that is required is to simply fill it out every time the "symptom" makes itself felt, regardless of its intensity. The first analysis can be performed no earlier than 2 weeks later. In order not to set a "false" direction, I will not write in what is most often the reason. Your task is to analyze any repetitions.
Options for the development of events can be different, but basically they can be reduced to the following:
1. I wrote and wrote, but I did not understand and did not see anything. Most often this happens either because the person does not follow the rules of keeping a diary, or because the person is not yet ready to get rid of the symptom. Then various defense mechanisms are triggered and what is called "I look into a book - I see … nothing" happens. If your symptom is some kind of disorder that affects memory, thinking, attention, etc., keeping a diary will be very informative for your psychotherapist, you cannot do without his help.
2. The symptom disappears. This most often occurs with so-called residual symptoms. When a psychosomatic disorder or illness has already fulfilled its communicative function. Structured journaling helped the subconscious mind piece the missing pieces together, and the brain quits with this symptom.
3. The symptom is intensified and resists (a person becomes worse, and keeping a diary gives more torment than benefit, interest, etc.). This happens when you are moving in the right direction, but there is a traumatic event behind the symptom, and the brain takes you away from it by hook or by crook. On the one hand, it is good that the brain is so actively protecting you from difficult experiences. On the other hand, if you do not recognize and correct the information that the brain so carefully conceals, this only leads to the formation of new symptoms. Working with such a symptom can be very long, since the therapist will have to try hard to bypass the many defense mechanisms that your subconscious mind will use each time.
Perhaps this all sounds complicated, but, believe me, structured journaling (along with other psychological techniques of introspection) is the most responsible and informative way to study the nature of your psychosomatic disorder or illness. Try it and see;)
To formulate a more specific request for dealing with psychosomatic problems, the exercise described in the following article will help you
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