Somatic Disorder Case Study - Paper Example

Introduction

The patient suffers from Somatization disorder which is currently known as Somatic symptom disorder is a method of cognitive sickness that causes a single or many physical signs, pain included (Bovin et al. 2016). The signs might be or might not traceable to a bodily cause comprising overall medical situations, additional mental sicknesses, or substance abuse. However, irrespective they cause extreme and uneven heights of distress. The signs include:

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Symptoms of Somatic Disorder

Undifferentiated somatoform disorder

This disorder is usually accompanied by unexplained physical illness extends for six months and are below the inception for a diagnosis of somatization disorder.

Conversion disorder

Somatic disorder includes unexplained symptoms or discrepancies affecting voluntary motor or sensory function which denotes a neurological or other medical condition. Psychological aspects are judged as being linked to the symptoms or deficits. (Kurlansik. & Maffei, 2016).

Pain disorder

Pain the primary focus of clinical attention when offering care of this disorder (Kurlansik, & Maffei, 2016). Moreover, psychological factors play a vital role in severity, onset, exacerbation, and maintenance of the disease.

Hypochondriasis

This illness takes in a concern with the panic of devising, or the impression that an individual has a severe sickness grounded on the people's misunderstanding of physical signs or tasks.

Body dimorphic disorder

This illness takes in a concern with an imaginary or overstated fault in body outlook as it believed that the patient's pain in the case study was from physical injury during the accident he experienced (Comer, 2012). The group recognized of somatoform ailments, but might present with bodily signs where there is no sufficient bodily cause does not cover the following conditions.

Chronic fatigue syndrome

This disorder mentions a sign intricate of noticeable and lengthy exhaustion for which no identifiable physical cause might be found.

Factitious disorder

This condition characterized by bodily or psychosomatic signs that are purposefully created to take up the sickening role.

Cause of Somatoform Disorder

Several factors might add to the development of physical sign disorder. Main stress in life might lead to the development of signs in some instances. Individuals with a negative outlook or temperament are more likely to emerge the situation, also those with a family experience of somatic indication illness. This disorder is more regularly noticed in individuals with a high sensitivity to discomfort or have past experience of alcohol use and constituent abuse.

Psychoanalytic Explanation

Somatic symptoms are connected to personality traits such as neuroticism. Neuroticism is a definite feeling to view distressing though quickly, such as anxiety, susceptibility, frustration, and depressive disorder. Neuroticism is one of the most significant predictors of somatic and alexithymia is another personality trait which is found to influence the disease. Riem, Doedee, Broekhuizen-Dijksman, & Beijer, 2018). Psychoanalytically, somatization is perceived as a defense mechanism against internal conflict whereby a patient finds it challenging to express himself directly.

Biological Explanation

According to Chen et al. (2015), the serotoninergic system is vital in particular overwhelming responses; the HPA axis is essential for the stress response. If the serotoninergic system fails to work accordingly, a person could react more frequently to stimuli from its environment.

Stressors: Risk Factors

The other some elements that could have increased the rate and severity for somatic symptom disorder comprises of a patient had anxiety or depression that resulted from the death of her wife; the stressful experience that he underwent when the boat capsized. Other stressors that are linked to this condition comprises of having experienced stressful life occurrences, being at risk of having a medical condition such having a strong family history of the somatic disorder, having experienced past trauma, such as childhood sexual abuse and, having a lower level of education and socio-economic status.

Management Approach to Somatoform Disorders

Patient with somatoform disorders majorly somatic disorder present substantial diagnostic challenges and most of the times is usually mistaken for physical pain only as in the case study. Hence achieving effective treatment can be challenging. Somatization should be best perceived as a process instead of a diagnosis. Several management approaches somatic form disorders record difficulties in handling with a somatizing patient. Referral times for patient to attend pain clinics, psychiatrists, and, psychologists fortified to control individuals with somatoform disorders are regularly long and unavailable. Often the patient fails to attend. Establishing a good working relationship with the patient is essential. Nevertheless, the critical challenge is formulating a common understanding of the problem. The best treatment to be offered is cognitive therapy and mindfulness based therapy as well as organizing frequent visits with a physician to ensure the patient that severe medical diseases have been managed. The disordered desire a procedure that can manage the behavior of the patient (Goldstein, & Mellers, 2016). Somatic symptom disorder is a chronic condition, however people with this disorder can recover and learn approaches to lessen their distress.

References

Bovin, M. J., Marx, B. P., Weathers, F. W., Gallagher, M. W., Rodriguez, P., Schnurr, P. P., & Keane, T. M. (2016). Psychometric properties of the PTSD checklist for diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders-fifth edition (PCL-5) in veterans. Psychological Assessment, 28(11), 1379. Retrieved from; https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2015-55809-001

Chen, J. A., Penagarikano, O., Belgard, T. G., Swarup, V., & Geschwind, D. H. (2015). The emerging picture of autism spectrum disorder: genetics and pathology. Annual Review of Pathology: Mechanisms of Disease, 10, 111-144.retieved from: https://www.annualreviews.org/doi/abs/10.1146/annurev-pathol-012414-040405

Goldstein, L. H., & Mellers, J. D. C. (2016). Psychologic treatment of functional neurologic disorders. In Handbook of clinical neurology (Vol. 139, pp. 571-583). Elsevier.Comer, R. J. (2012). Abnormal psychology. Macmillan. Retrieved from: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/B9780128017722000461

Kurlansik, S. L., & Maffei, M. S. (2016). Somatic symptom disorder. Am Fam Physician, 93(1), 49-54. Retrieved from: https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/Somatic-Symptom-Disorder.-Kurlansik-Maffei/da0f05a2d8b3e894bfadf8911857ef2bd405ce3d

Riem, M. M., Doedee, E. N., Broekhuizen-Dijksman, S. C., & Beijer, E. (2018). Attachment and medically unexplained somatic symptoms: The role of mentalization. Psychiatry research, 268, 108-113. Retrieved from: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0165178118306085