Definition
Psychosomatics is a special field of psychiatry. In psychosomatics it is mainly about taking into account the physical (somatic) illnesses and the mental problems (psyche) of the patient and to see if they are related to each other. Psychosomatics thus combines the patient’s mental condition with physical reactions.
For example, a patient may suddenly experience severe abdominal pain due to a stressful event. These pains occur although the patient has no organic diseases and no infection. Nevertheless the pain is real. In this case they were triggered by the psychologically stressful event.
What is psychosomatic medicine?
Psychosomatics is a special field of psychiatry. To understand what psychosomatics is, it helps to translate the term into the German language. The psyche stands for the soul, soma means body.
Thus, psychosomatics is a specialty that deals with the physical and mental state of the patient and tries to treat both in harmony. Here it is mainly about treating the physical problems of the patient, even if no organic cause can be found. What psychosomatic medicine is and what diseases it deals with can best be explained by means of a few examples.
For example, psychosomatic medicine deals with patients who suffer from an addictive disorder. The addictive disorder can lead to physical illnesses, for example tachycardia, increased sweating or liver disorders. Nevertheless, the addiction itself is due to a psychological or mental problem, for example depression.
In psychosomatic treatment, the doctor will first of all help the patient to treat the drug problem and the underlying mental illness (for example, depression). Treatment of the mental illness often leads to an improvement in the physical symptoms as well. Thus, the physical illness (e.g. tachycardia) was also treated by stabilizing the patient psychologically.
With the help of this example one can clearly understand what psychosomatic medicine is and that this specialty focuses on the whole person in order to treat him/her holistically. In addition to addictions, there are other diseases that are treated in psychosomatic medicine. These include eating disorders such as anorexia, mental disorders that lead to physical symptoms (for example panic attacks), post-traumatic stress disorders and many more. Take the test here: Do I suffer from depression?
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