2024 Author: Harry Day | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 15:43
A woman, a math teacher, applied for a consultation. She complained of a painful spasm in her leg, which occurred after experiencing unpleasant emotions during the lesson.
A bit of anatomy
Musculoskeletal system - a complex of bones, muscles and auxiliary formations that ensure the movement of body parts relative to each other and movement in the space of the body as a whole. Muscle contraction provides movement of the bones of the skeleton as levers. The coordinated activity of these muscles is controlled by the central nervous system.
In this article, I will only touch upon the psychogenic cause of dysfunctions of the musculoskeletal system, although organic causes, lack of trace elements, intoxication, hypodynamia and other factors should not be ruled out.
Therefore, the approach in the treatment process must be comprehensive. Consultations of an orthopedist, neurologist, medical diagnostic examinations are required. Only after the diagnosis is established or when medical treatment does not help, it is necessary to connect the help of a psychologist.
About the effects of stress
Under the influence of a stressor, the body mobilizes all resources, releasing a large amount of hormones (cortisol, adrenaline) into the bloodstream. This leads to increased muscle tone. When emotional stress is reduced, the body relaxes and begins to work as usual. But sometimes muscle tension does not go away, then a spasm occurs.
Spasm leads to movement disorders, pain. Chronic spasm can lead to diseases of bones, joints, and impair blood circulation.
Why does a certain organ become a target in psychosomatics?
It is difficult to say why one person starts having heart problems and another gets diabetes. Both a genetic predisposition and a self-damaging lifestyle affect: it is natural that unhealthy diet will sooner or later cause gastritis.
Researchers in the field of psychosomatics have identified a relationship between types of stress response and propensity to a particular disease. For example, the theory of personality profiles by F. H. Dunbar.
Fixation on a particular organ can also have a symbolic meaning.
So one client could not lose weight and constantly scolded her belly that it was big and because of this she looked bad. Often she caught herself thinking that if she had problems with digestion, it would be easier to refuse junk food. As a result, the woman did develop an intestinal disorder that took many months to heal. When the client realized her self-destructive attitudes, she abandoned them, began to show more care and love for her body, and not solve psychological problems at its expense.
Let's go back to the math teacher, let's call her Marina
I gave Marina the task of keeping track of my automatic thoughts that preceded or accompanied the spasm, and write them down in a special diary.
Thoughts were such that teaching mathematics is boring and I want to leave the class. However, Marina had to restrain herself with a strong-willed effort, after which a spasm appeared in her leg.
By nature, the client is a gentle person, worried about the evaluation of herself by others, inclined to constantly suppress hostile impulses, very conscientious, with a tendency to subordinate her desires to the desires of others.
Marina's restraint of spontaneous expression of feelings led to motor tension.
When we began to clarify what is behind boredom and loss of interest in teaching, Marina said the following:
"The head teacher promised me a promotion six months ago, but she is in no hurry to fulfill this promise, she constantly complains that it is difficult to find good teachers and persuades me to work more. I would like to argue with her, demand to fulfill the promise, but I just can't make up my mind and I follow her lead."
Having clarified Marina's inner conflict, we moved on to working with her limiting beliefs and training the skill to identify her needs and talk about them in a way that is acceptable to her.
In working with psychosomatic clients, alexithymia is often found. Therefore, the bulk of the hours of psychological assistance, in addition to identifying internal conflict, the formation of adaptive responses to stress, goes to the formation of the skill of identifying the feelings and needs of clients.
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