Psychological pain what is, types and how to treat it

Life brings difficult times such as the loss of a loved one, a disappointment or a betrayal. Psychological pain is, in fact, a condition that, sooner or later, affects anyone. It is not an official diagnosis term, but it is used to describe the pain that can be attributed to psychological factors, which can understand certain beliefs, fears, memories or emotions that we detect at the beginning or the worsening of pain.

With this psychology-online article, we will try to make a summary on the subject, addressing The psychological pain to understand what it is, the different types and how we can treat it.

1. What is psychological pain
2. The algic disorder
3. Types of pain and duration
4. How to recognize psychological pain
5. How to treat psychological pain

What is psychological pain

Thinking about pain as psychological means assuming that it has a purely psychic origin. Psychological pain is the experience of mental discomfort, feeling unpleasant and painful emotions. Although it can also be a pain with a physical sensation, but with a psychological origin.

Let's look at the psychic causes of pain. Psychological pain is caused by a stimulus, also psychic, which could be a dream, a hallucination or a memory. This does not mean that psychological pain is a dream, or a hallucination or a memory, but only means that such pain can derive from a mechanism similar to that which derives an event considered only of psychic origin like a dream.

Psychological pain can also be explained in an identification process; This can happen, for example, when a subject loses a loved one, who has suffered a lot.

On the other hand, psychological pain can also refer to psychogenic pain or somatic pain. Complex to define, even more difficult to treat, Psychogenic pain remains a challenge for contemporary medicine From the pathophysiological and therapeutic point of view. The definition of the MDE IV of "ietic disorder" better reflects the clinical characteristics of this phenomenon, among the many nuographic definitions that have happened in the last 30 years.

The algic disorder

Over the years, and with the extension of knowledge about pain, psychological pain has found and changed different definitions and diagnostic criteria; What best reflects its characteristics seems to be the definition of the melth disorder MDE, psychic diagnosis that best suits psychological pain.

Is registered in the chapter of the Somatoform disorders, but little is used in clinical practice; a diagnosis that can be used when The pain represents the main component of the clinical picture and generates a clinically significant discomfort, Limiting, in the absence of pathological psychic conditions but in the presence of some psychological factor that plays a determining role in the beginning, implementation or maintenance of pain itself.

In the following article, you will find more information about what somatization is and how to cure it.

Types of pain and duration

Pain, being a personal experience, is subjective and not easily quantifiable, but we can distinguish different types according to its duration:

• Sharp. The sensory component seems more important; It usually disappears with the repair of the damage.
• Chronic. Affective and evaluation factors acquire greater importance, associated with deep changes in personality and lifestyle.
• Transient. Disappears with the end of the stimulus.
• Recidivist. Repeat psychological pain.
• Persistent. Permanence of the nociceptive stimulus.

Psychological pain is complicated to handle and must be addressed from several perspectives. In the next section, we will see how to treat psychosomatic pain.

How to recognize psychological pain

Let's now see some elements of frequent coincidence, often in combination, in patients with pain with psychological component:

1. History of disease in a family member or known with symptoms similar to those of the patient.
2. Child abuse or adult history. In this article, we talk in depth about child abuse.
3. History of "multiple allergies" and medication intolerance.
4. Background of somatoform symptoms or medical conditions of a doubtful nature.
5. History of useless therapeutic attempts, invasive with iatrogenic damage.
6. History of forensic contentious with absence in the history of psychiatric pathology.

Clinical features

1. Pain that begins suddenly and grows over time.
2. High intensity pain, qualitatively variable, which is not modified with postures, movement, circadian variability.
3. Lack of response or only transitory response to analgesics.
4. Choice of location and type of symptom with a symbolic background.
5. Existence of a serious disability, disproportionate to clinical objectivity.
6. Negativity of diagnostic tests or clear disproportion/incoherence between evidence of pathology and clinical picture.
7. Presence of sensitive disorders and engines associated with the "non -anatomical" distribution.

Behaviors and convictions

1. Conviction of having an organic pathology and rejection of possible psychological or psychiatric interpretations.
2. Presence of defensive attitude, anger and great criticism of the background.
3. Omission of documents and medical information that support psychogenicity.
4. Description of symptoms and disability with intense emotional participation.
5. Pain Behaviour exaggerated in the presence of "sensitive" people (health workers, spouses and family members, colleagues and employers).
6. Incongruity between the high estimation of pain and Pain Behaviour very poor or absent.
7. Manipulative behavior to the environment to ensure primary and secondary advantages.
8. Phenomenon of Dr.
9. Unemployment and lack of motivation to return to work.

How to treat psychological pain

¿How to remove psychological pain? Psychological pain is not an invention, it is not crazy, but it must be the starting point to recognize a real situation of suffering. The person must, above all, feel understood so that you accept and legitimates discomfort as such And then be able to take a treatment path.

¿How to cure psychosomatic pain? In recent years, chronic pain studies have shown that multidimensional treatment is extremely effective as a strategy in patient treatment. On the one hand, a psycho-rehabilitative treatment, on the other, the pharmacological treatment. Let's look at the treatment options for psychosomatic pain:

• The Psychological interventions such as cognitive-behavioral therapy, relaxation techniques or hypnosis or simply support intervention, have a remarkable effectiveness in nocicence.
• The physical therapies (acupuncture, magnetotherapy, electroanalgesia, etc.) and the Pharmacological therapies Made with analgesics, neuromodulators or psychopharmaceuticals, they also have an important efficacy on psychosocial aspects of pain.
• He pain management Psychological can be similar to chronic pain. However, in this type of multidimensional approach for patients with psychological pain, it is necessary to carefully evaluate the use of medicines and, therefore, avoid those who have a high potential for abuse, such as opiates and benzodiazepines, which can cause addiction.

The simultaneous use of several techniques is essential for effective multidimensional management.

This article is merely informative, in psychology-online we have no power to make a diagnosis or recommend a treatment. We invite you to go to a psychologist to treat your particular case.

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