In one of the most striking poems written in the Spanish language, the Peruvian César Vallejo says: “There are blows in life, as strong…as the hatred of God, as if before them, the hangover of all the suffering pooled in the soul.” These verses portray a sensation that we have surely all experienced.
You undoubtedly know someone who, upon hearing the news of the death of a loved one or some other misfortune, has become ill. Or perhaps that person is yourself. Sometimes the blow does not even have to be tragic, but together with external circumstances, it can throw us off balance, emotionally and physically.
Can our emotions and thoughts make us sick? What is meant by psychosomatic illness? What does science say about this?
Mind-body connection
The psyche lives in a material, organic substrate, which is the cerebral cortex. This is part of the brain and, as such, cannot be separated from the rest of the body.
According to the MSD Manual, the relationship between the body and the mind is a two-way street. Emotions can trigger and aggravate diseases, while they are also capable of generating negative sensations and feelings in us.
It is not in vain that when we get stressed, we have, for example, digestive manifestations. This apparatus is strongly innervated by the portion of the nervous system in charge of managing our digestion. For the same reason, it is normal for us to suffer muscle contractures and migraines in stressful situations.
The relationship between the central nervous system and the immune system is much more complicated. This has given rise to a branch of science called psychoneuroimmunology, which is 50 years old. It is a young science, and is responsible for explaining the relationship between the psyche, the central nervous system and the immune system.
When we talk about this branch, we must refer to an experiment carried out in 1975 by Robert Ader and Nicolas Cohen, from the University of Rochester, in the United States. The researchers gave laboratory rats an immunosuppressant drug known as cyclophosphamide, while feeding them saccharin, that is, a flavoring. The animals became immunosuppressed as a result of the drug’s activity. In a second stage of the study, saccharin was administered to the same animals, and they rejected it. It was found that immune activity was depressed again, which was known from then on as “immune system conditioning.”
This finding was received with skepticism by the scientific community. How was it possible that saccharin could induce a decrease in immune activity? Is the immune system the same as the digestive system in responding to conditioned stimuli? The answer is yes. The experiment has been repeated with identical results. But the relationship between the two phenomena is still not fully known.
Another interesting element of psychoneuroimmunology is the relationship between brain injuries and the immune system. It is known that damage to the deepest regions of our brain, such as the hypothalamus, can cause a decrease in the ability of the immune system to perform its functions. The relationship between the two, however, is not yet well established.
On the other hand, it has been shown that at the level of the cerebral cortex, injuries can cause a decrease in immune activity. But this will depend on the cerebral hemisphere in which the injury occurs.
Finally, it is a known fact that stress is capable of causing a decrease in the ability of the immune system to perform its functions; that is, it can lead to immunodeficiency or immunosuppression.
The causes of this phenomenon are not as clear as they were 50 years ago, when it was believed that the presence of high levels of steroid hormones such as cortisol, triggered in manifestations of stress, were responsible for the decrease in immune activity.
Other hormones are apparently involved in this process, such as adrenaline, as well as the happiness hormones, which we referred to in a previous article.
What are psychosomatic illnesses?
In an effort to define what is meant by psychosomatic disorders, a committee of experts was convened in 1964 at the request of the World Health Organization (WHO). Even though the document that resulted from the work of this committee is more than 60 years old, I consider it to be still valid.
One of the most interesting aspects of this work is what they define as the “psychosomatic paradox.” This suggests that the existence of psychosomatic disorders tacitly implies accepting that in some pathology, disorder or disease the influence of the psyche is not manifest. This goes against the concept of the human being as a biopsychosocial unit.
The experts concluded that until that time there was no adjective capable of replacing the word “psychosomatic” to define disorders in which psychological influence is a determining factor in the onset, maintenance or increase of symptoms. To this day, the exact term has not been found.
Among the factors that influence the appearance of these diseases are biological predisposition, inadequate coping styles in life situations, as well as the presence of external stressors.
Also playing an important role are the consumption of psychoactive substances, a sedentary lifestyle, cultural background and elements of the individual’s own personality. All of this makes up the complex framework that defines how we assume the disease and how we react to it.
There is no list of psychosomatic diseases, however there is consensus that in the following pathologies the psychological component is decisive: high blood pressure, some types of cardiac arrhythmias; endocrine diseases such as diabetes and hyperthyroidism; chronic pain, mainly in the lumbar and cervical region, chronic headaches; dermatological pathologies such as psoriasis, vitiligo, seborrheic dermatitis, among others.
In the respiratory system there are some diseases such as asthma and allergies in which stressful situations can play an important role. In the digestive system, some cases of gastritis, peptic ulcers and, in particular, irritable bowel syndrome may appear.
The genitourinary sphere is also predisposed to the appearance of some conditions: decreased libido, sexual impotence, menstrual disorders, neurogenic bladder, etc.
To learn more about psychosomatic disorders, OnCuba had the opportunity to talk with the graduate in Psychology and Master in Natural Medicine and Bioenergetics Luis Enrique Cortés Pérez.
Can our thoughts and emotions affect physical health?
Cortés Pérez: The concept of health is not the absence of disease, but rather a biological, psychological or social imbalance. These three components are intertwined. Therefore, when there is an imbalance in one, the others are also affected. Thoughts are cognitive processes that generate imbalances in behavior, emotions and also in the body.
The ABC of rational and emotional therapy includes three elements. The “A” corresponds to the situations; “B” is the beliefs that these situations generate in us, while “C” corresponds to the effect they provoke. Of these three elements, only beliefs cause illness; neither situations nor their effects, that is, the thoughts that are generated from the situations, do.
Faced with the same situation, two people react differently. For example, faced with the complex reality of the country, some decide to start and create new businesses, others emigrate and some get sick. Thoughts, that is, the belief systems that people have, lead them to react in one way or another.
If we are invaded every day by pessimistic thoughts such as: “I can’t,” “this is too much for me,” “I’m very sad,” “I’m a failure,” we generate a negative effect on the different systems and organs of the human body and can make it sick.
The inability to identify and name emotions is closely related to psychosomatic illnesses. How frequent is this and what are its consequences?
Cortés Pérez: Freud said “in health patterns, the first thing we have to do is make the unconscious conscious.” People who do not know how to identify what they are feeling need the help of a professional to help them reverse those thought patterns and identify the causes that provoke them. It is a manifestation of emotional immaturity that has serious consequences for the relationships and health of these people.
From 2011 to 2019, you were part of a team of psychologists coordinated by the University of Medical Sciences of Holguin, which worked on the psychological component of patients with dermatological diseases through hypnosis. What results did you obtain?
Cortés Pérez: We worked with patients with alopecia, vitiligo and psoriasis. These are autoimmune diseases, that is, when the defense system attacks the body itself. In these diseases, stress plays a very important role, which is nothing more than a situation of sustained tension capable of producing different reactions in the body.
In alopecia areata, for example, natural killers, which are a type of defensive cells, attack the hair follicle and cause hair loss. Psychoneuroimmunology has tried to establish the causes of this relationship between the immune system and our mind.
Returning to the question, the results were good, because we combined drug treatment and work on the emotional sphere. Our team worked hand in hand with dermatology specialists, who informed us of the biological affectation of the patients and, in the case of alopecia, the results of the treatment were immediate.
This example of joint work between doctors and psychologists is worth imitating. But how often does this happen?
Cortés Pérez: Unfortunately, it is not very frequent. What happens in practice is that sometimes doctors refer patients to psychological consultations, but there is no real teamwork.
Is there a culture in Cuba of consulting a psychologist in certain situations that affect us?
Cortés Pérez: This is lacking a lot, we are very materialistic, we are used to thinking that illnesses are cured exclusively with a medicine, with a pill, and we are not aware that the psychic has great importance in the process. In addition, there is the prejudice that only “crazy” people go to the psychologist, which makes many people who need it not go to see one.
It is said that the relationship between the mind and the body is a two-way street: one can make the other sick. Could it also be said that the mind can help heal the body?
Cortés Pérez: Of course. There is a perfect unity between the mind and the body and, just as the action of one on the other can be harmful, thoughts are capable of acting in a positive way on health.
So, what would be your recommendation?
Cortés Pérez: That patients go consult a psychologist. There are predisposing factors and triggering factors in illnesses. Many times, when a patient comes to a doctor’s office with unbalanced diabetes or hypertension, the emotional sphere is also damaged.
We build our health and our illness. Some people, when they are depressed, tend to smoke a lot, alter their diet, not exercise, neglect themselves. The body also warns you of these states. Sometimes illness is the way through which emotional situations manifest themselves. To put it another way: illnesses are “the tears of the body.”
Sentinels of the mind
Personally, I do not believe in the concept of “psychosomatic illnesses.” Every illness, in its genesis, development or resolution stage, influences and is influenced by the psychological sphere. Perhaps it would be more correct to talk about illnesses in which the psychological component is decisive.
But this is not about delving into theoretical concepts, but rather emphasizing the importance of emotions, feelings and the ways in which we deal with health and illness.
The human body is inextricably linked to the mind, which is a product of our central nervous system. In turn, this can affect our health both positively and negatively.
That is why we have to be alert to negative feelings and thoughts, which, as we have seen, have the capacity to make us sick, but sometimes are also symptoms of an organic disease that warns us that something is not right in our body. We must create “sentinels of the mind” that alert us to these symptoms.
It is also necessary to dispel the stigma that only sick or “crazy” people go to psychologists, when in reality we should all be able to talk about our emotions with someone trained to guide us on how to deal with them. A healthier and fuller life is also an emotionally healthy life.
The psychological dimension is one of the three pillars of the concept of health. Without it, no one is truly healthy.
