Psychosomatic

gal03Nobody is alone in his anxiety– one out of four people will suffer serious anxiety-attacks at some time in their lives (intelligent people are the most common victims) – but only one in ten is properly diagnosed. And only 4% receive appropriate medication.

Anxiety always leaves its mark on the body. For a physician, anxiety disorders are often hard to recognize, because the symptoms are quite varied. Each individual has a different organ that reacts with particular sensitivity: anxiety gives some people stomach aches, while others feel their heart sink down into their shoes; in other anxiety-sufferers, aches and pains spread throughout the body.

The victims generally have an odyssey of doctor’s appointments behind them. Even if the doctors cannot find anything wrong, they continue to believe that they are sick, and for good reason. Many anxiety patients also suffer from panic: the feeling of losing control. They experience choking sensations, a lump in their throat, shortness of breath. They are afraid of dying or going crazy. Such problems may be exacerbated by very personal fears: the fear of growing old, the fear of being unattractive, the fear of public speaking, fear of decision-making, etc.