There is an essential connection in the human being between his body and his mind. Over the years, the “psychosomatic” concept has maintained different approaches and the somatization It has generated a wide range of controversies and doubts that, even today, can be difficult to understand..
What is indisputable is the idea that certain "psychological factors" influence bodily functioning and this is where we do talk about consensus between different approaches to science, medicine and psychology, although with different perspectives, but existing at the time when professionals must deal with phenomena that are difficult to explain from the strictly physical or biological point of view.
The specialty that traditionally deals with this is Psychosomatic Medicine.
On this occasion, we are going to try to clarify some concepts about the somatization and how emotions can influence the onset of the disease.
As we have already indicated, the term "psychosomatic" has always been and continues to be highly debated due to its ambiguity, which has given rise to significant misunderstandings and in turn to the search for the pathways that lead to this term.
This word contains the concepts of "psyche" and "soma", or what is the same, mind-body. Similarly, the word "somatize" (with Greek roots) is composed of "soma" (body) and "izein" (to convert into), from which we deduce that somatize could then be defined as the involuntary transformation or conversion of the mental process into physical symptoms.
How many times have we not gone to the doctor without him finding some pathology associated with our symptoms (physical, fatigue, pain, etc.).
They perform different medical tests but the identifiable origin of our discomfort is not found, although the pain or ailment continues and even interferes in the life of the person, both personally, as well as at work or socially. This is then where the somatization.
We know that our childhood and how we live it will be decisive in the later development of our behavior and personality and likewise, unmet or unsatisfied basic needs can cause different types of posterior disorders..
If we speak in terms of emotions, emotional damage received in childhood and lived intensely or prolonged in time, will have an impact on us on an emotional level and consequently, on a physiological level.
An emotional wound can affect our body in multiple ways: gastric problems, pain, neurological symptoms, problems in sexual relations, affected organs, etc. Therefore, somatization would be the reflection of emotional pain "embedded" or not processed in our body..
There are many authors who tell us about somatization and this relationship between body and mind.
Alice Miller, in "The body never lies", reviews the biography of well-known characters, analyzing the damage they received in their childhoods and how their bodies reflected years later those "emotional ailments" in different diseases.
Emotions need to be freely expressed, verbalized, in no way hidden in the depths of our self, although sometimes it happens that we do not find respect, understanding or empathy when carrying it out and that can make us feel alone, lost, confused or helpless..
The University of Colorado Boulder Professor of Psychology and Neuroscience, Tor D. Wager, carried out a study in which he discovered that the brain areas that are activated when we suffer physical pain are the same as when we experience emotional pain: “Our brain does not know how to differentiate between one state or another, rather it cares about the intensity of what we have experienced and the resulting suffering ".
It seems that a state of continuous stress, long periods of pronounced anxiety or persistent emotional problems with poor emotional management, are the cause that leads to somatization.
In this sense, if we do not manage our emotions in a healthy way, if we do not know how to resolve with our own emotional conflicts and stop in time to work and heal said process, we will have more likely to get sick.
We will give an example: A person who supports a high level of ongoing stress, She leaves work and continues to work at home without resting the necessary hours, etc., and when that stressful period ends to supposedly enjoy her vacation, she falls ill.
When the mind relaxes, the body claims its attention and that is when it "faces" or shows the consequences of our previous emotional mismanagement. It is then when those "samples in our body" begin to appear, which can occur in various forms: headaches, back pain, joint pain, gastrointestinal problems (nausea, burning, diarrhea, vomiting ...), allergic reactions, etc..
Fortunately, the knowledge on how to manage our emotions in a healthy way is increasingly within our reach and today we have a whole range of possibilities so that this management can be carried out.
When an emotion invades us, such as feeling fear at a given moment, feeling sad about certain situations in our lives, or feeling anger, the first thing we will usually try is to rsqueeze that emotion, since we have lived for too long perhaps with many of what are now our limiting beliefs, such as when they told us: “Don't cry, crying is for girls”, “don't trust anyone”, “I don't know if you're going to be able to do it "and a long etc.
Allowing ourselves to feel our own emotions can be exhausting if we are not able to manage that emotion, but then we will not be able to reconcile with our emotional pain in order to heal what is ingrained within us and that at the time, hurt us, consciously or unconsciously.
The emotion remains encapsulated and we decided to bury her instead of looking at her head on, taking her out for a walk from our hand or accompanying her and giving her the space she deserves.
It is difficult for our body to stop somatizing and, even, certain people are more insistent in insisting that there is an underlying disease when the doctor does not find the origin of the physical cause of their pain and it is difficult for them to accept that our mind plays in the same way an important role when it comes to somatizing.
The Pharmacotherapy It is necessary for certain ailments but it is something that relieves in the short term; it's always possible complement with a professional who helps us manage our emotions in the healthiest way.
It is important that you ask yourself how you feel, what you need, that you can do an emotional self-check and see what the answer is, you may be surprised knowing that it is easier than you imagined.
Recognizing our current situation and the emotions that I am feeling at all times, is the first step towards our emotional well-being. What can I do when my body sends me signals:
Remember that it is always important to maintain a positive attitude towards life, bearing in mind that life is also full of difficulties and hard times. Behind every emotion, there is always a learning that perhaps you have not yet been able to recognize.
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