Stress And Somatization: How Are They Related?

The headache that accompanies us every day ends up exhausting. Like the discomfort in the back, the persistent stomach pain or that sudden hair loss that scares us so much because we do not know the cause … If all these realities are familiar to you, you should know that the cause of it lies in stress and somatization.

The body speaks, but sometimes there is no one to listen to it. Because we are busy, because the concerns are many and the time to attend to us as we deserve very little. We go quickly, with our eyes fixed on the front and never on the inside to see what hurts, what worries and how to give ourselves the best help so that life stops hurting so much.

Somatization is that state in which psychological factors cause physical or physiological discomfort and ailments. This condition is very common in children. When they have a problem and lack the resources to express them in words or feel helpless, they begin to manifest alterations such as sleep problems, enuresis, vomiting …

The link between mind and body is very close, but also complex. These situations are not easy to handle. We analyze it in detail.

Stress and somatization, a very common problem

Somatization hurts, invalidates and supposes receiving erroneous diagnoses for a long time. Palpitations, digestion problems, dizziness, neck pain … Diagnostic tests do not reveal any organic problem and, nevertheless, the discomfort is there, it is real and leads the person to a poor quality of life.

What is striking about all this is that, as studies such as those carried out at the Medical College in India explain, there are many medical professionals who still do not give the relevance they deserve to somatization disorders. It is a more common reality than we think, so much so that it accounts for almost 25% of consultations in primary care.

Why happens?

We have all experienced this reality at some time. Stress and somatization are part of our life more times than we think. After that discussion at work and that disagreement with co-workers, it is very common to come home with a stomach ache.

Likewise, sometimes it is enough to have a small problem in our relationship to instantly experience physical discomfort, headache, etc.

• The cause behind this relationship is still not 100% clear. Research works such as those carried out at the University of California indicate that we need to collect more genetic, neurobehavioral and psychoneuroimmune analyzes in order to reach concrete conclusions.

• However, there seems to be a correlation between the states of exhaustion associated with stress and a more hyperactive central nervous system.
• On the other hand, it also appears that there is a relationship between post-traumatic stress and somatization. Having suffered an adverse experience in the past and sustained over time, can make us more vulnerable to this psychological reality.
• Stress and somatization are also linked to the anxiety factor and concern for one’s own health. In general, we are dealing with people who monitor their symptoms a lot …

Stress and somatization: associated symptoms

In order for us to suffer the effects of this bond, it is necessary that we are (or have been) exposed to a stressful situation for a long period of time. Thus, factors such as workplace harassment or mobbing , school bullying, going through a bad family or emotional relationship are directly correlated with stress and somatization.

These are the symptoms that usually appear:

• Constant physical fatigue.
• Neck or back pain
• Changes in diet (more hunger or lack of appetite).
• Greater tendency to suffer infections due to a weak immune system.
• Digestive or intestinal disorders.
• Dizziness
• Tachycardias
• Headache.
• Sleep disturbances
• Hair loss.

Coping measures in the face of somatization states associated with chronic stress

When stress and somatization are installed in a person’s life constantly, very disabling states can be reached. The psychological deterioration is aggravated, above all, because it usually takes a long time until they get a conclusive answer to what is happening to them.

It is common to spend long periods of time watching certain medical approaches have no effect. Drugs, undergoing new tests to obtain more accurate diagnoses or following certain therapies such as physiotherapy, etc., do not always solve the problem. In many cases, the patient feels worse because their experience of stress is further increased.

On the other hand, and as a curious fact, it is common for patients with somatization disorder to suffer to a greater degree from the side effects of drugs. This reveals the need for other types of approaches.

Multidisciplinary teams in the treatment of stress and somatization

Feeling pain, seeing life limited and perceiving that this experience, far from diminishing, worsens over time, puts the person in a state of great helplessness. We need professionals who know the indicators of stress and somatization. Once this reality is detected, multidisciplinary teams are very useful:

• We need doctors who specialize in somatic disorders and who attend and monitor physical symptoms.
• Psychology professionals play a decisive role in the treatment of stress and somatization: cognitive restructuring, for example, aimed at detecting and transforming dysfunctional attitudes is essential. Likewise, it is also useful to offer strategies for stress management, problem solving, emotional regulation and the activation of healthier behaviors.

Finally, it is only possible to emphasize once again the need to give relevance to this physical symptomatology which, in many cases, has a direct correlation with a state of stress, anxiety or depression. It is also important to know how to see it in children.