Re: Is it all in my head?
- From: "Michael Baugh" <baughfam@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Wed, 07 Sep 2005 10:16:58 GMT
A while ago, one of the women in the support group
was complaining that her doctor had told her that FMS
was the body's way of telling her to slow down. And that
she knew it and was using it to enable her to be able to
step back from being 'the strong one'.
She retorted that "acute testicular compression" was her
way of reminding him that she was not "using her illness"
and that opinion needed to be abandoned.
Knowing her, she probably did say it, and her hand was
probably in a very threatening position as well.
Randy wrote:
> http://articles.health.msn.com/id/100108081?GT1=7003 (via Psychology
> Today)
> "What you believe about your illness influences how sick you become."
>
> Hard to believe this kinda crap is still making the rounds, but I know
> it is because I've heard it:
>
> Excerpts:
>
> In one study conducted by Wayne Katon, professor of psychiatry at the
> University of Washington in Seattle, 90 percent of fibromyalgia
> patients had a prior psychiatric diagnosis. Another study, at the
> University of Leeds, found that patients who had developed chronic
> fatigue were nine times more likely to have suffered stressful events
> and difficulties in the three months before the onset of disease than
> were healthy subjects. The implication is clear: Unlike other
> diseases, these disorders are closely connected to psychological
> distress, whether it takes the shape of a major psychiatric disorder
> or simply poor coping mechanisms.
> ...
>
> According to Katon's clinical observations, patients with chronic
> fatigue or fibromyalgia tend to be highly driven overachievers
> unaccustomed to feeling any loss of control. When injured or sickened,
> those who decide that the pain or illness has overwhelmingly and
> permanently damaged their bodies come to feel victimized and unable to
> cope. Learned helplessness sets in, and patients can find themselves
> perpetually depressed and inactive.
> ...
>
> Patients with chronic fatigue who attribute their illness solely to
> external causes, such as a virus, seem to stay sicker than those who
> acknowledge the possible interplay of psychological factors. "Your
> beliefs about the illness are important," says Buchwald. "If you're
> wedded to an idea that your illness has a single specific cause, your
> chances of getting better are diminished, because you're not
> addressing parts of the illness that could be prolonging it."
> Instead, she suggests, patients should focus on actively following
> treatment advice and avoiding social isolation.
> ...
>
> Because beliefs have such a powerful impact on well-being, the
> techniques that people use to cope with other diseases can backfire in
> the case of chronic fatigue. Ironically, patient advocacy groups may
> be more harmful than helpful, studies have suggested, possibly by
> reinforcing a sense of victimization or by giving misguided advice,
> such as actively discouraging all exercise.
>
> "The support groups are very anti-psychological," says Katon. "A lot
> of times they act to inadvertently reinforce illness beliefs [such as
> fear of relapse or exhaustion] that are potentially harmful to
> patients." Those in support groups often report more severe illness,
> and say that they feel worse since joining the group than do dropouts.
> ___________
>
> Unbelievable.
> And I've heard that very message about support groups before. Damned
> shrinks. "If you think it's not psych-based, you are the problem."
> Resistance is futile. You will be assimilated. Pay at the door,
> please.
.
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