Psychosomatic complaints

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Psychosomatic complaints treated in integrative therapy

«The hurt soul speaks through the body»

Tension or stress related complaints and unexplained pain and fatigue are also called psychosomatic complaints.

A cause of a physical and / or mental nature

These are physical complaints that may be related to a disturbance in the balance between physical and psychological stress, in relation to the environment.

The connection between physical complaints and mental overload is initially not so clear. The physical signals are often first ignored or misinterpreted. If the symptoms increase over time, medical research will not yield much. It is often impossible to make a clear medical diagnosis what can give you a feeling of incomprehension.

In most cases, the relationship between cause and effect is quite clear in the case of physical complaints.

For example, someone falls down the stairs and has leg pain. Then he goes to the doctor and he finds that the leg is broken. Obviously, the pain was caused by the fall that broke the leg.

Compared to physical complaints, psychosomatic complaints seem a bit strange. Many people therefore prefer not to have anything to do with it. They find it easier to say that the pain is related to “something from the body” rather than to say that the pain comes from “the psyche.” This is strange. After all, everyone sometimes suffers from psychosomatic complaints.

For example: you have been busy all day and you have experienced many exciting moments. At the end of the day you have a headache. In this case you have physical complaints due to too much psychological tension. So the body makes it clear through the headache that there is a problem and that you need to slow it down.

Psychosomatic complaints are experienced when too much tension accumulates. Psychosomatic complaints indicate something. They are full of meaning. It is therefore important to listen carefully to the complaints and to check when and where they appear. You may find that you experience more pain and fatigue and are more irritable and tense. These phenomena can be related to certain living conditions such as: highly experienced workload, conflicts, emotional events, relational problems, loss of loved ones or serious disease processes. If these conditions persist for a long time, they can disturb your balance. As a result, your resistance decreases both physically and mentally and psychosomatic complaints can arise.

Manifestations of Psychosomatic complaints

Physical complaints such as:

  • extreme fatigue
  • cannot relax
  • pressure on the chest or palpitations
  • unexplained muscle and joint pain
  • shortness of breath, trouble breathing
  • headache, neck, back and pelvic complaints
  • unexplained stomach, intestine or abdominal discomfort

Psychological complaints such as:

  • being listless
  • sleeping badly or too much
  • being anxious and insecure
  • difficulty with concentration
  • are gloomy and worry a lot
  • general feeling of uneasiness
  • being irritable, restless or agitated
  • can no longer enjoy and relax
  • no sex drive or compulsive sex
  • excessive eating, alcohol, smoking and medicine use

In short … you are out of balance How do you get back in balance? You will be assisted by a therapist who has been specially trained in this and who works according to the biopsychosocial model. This means that in addition to the physical complaints, psychological and social aspects are also involved in the treatment.

The first conversation is therefore aimed at finding the relationship between the physical complaints and the mental condition. Depending on your request for help, the conversation and the research, the goals are determined and a therapy plan is drawn up with you. You are expected to make your own contribution and active commitment in the recovery and change process.
At the Institute for Bodymind Integration we guide you in restoring the balance between load and load capacity and between tension and relaxation.

The goal of the therapy

  • Gaining insight into the origin and consequences of the complaint.
  • Changing the factors that sustain the complaint.
  • Applying relaxation.
  • Improve breathing or breathing pattern through body awareness.
  • Increase your taxability.
  • Sensing and respecting physical and psychological boundaries.
  • Gaining insight into the perception of illness and daily functioning.
  • Learning to deal with the complaints in a different way.
  • Gaining confidence in physical functioning, which positively influences self-confidence and self-image.

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Individual therapy sessions

Dirk Marivoet psychotherapist in Belgium

Dirk Marivoet, MSc. is a European certified psychotherapist (ECP). He studied physiotherapy as well as psychomotor therapy at the University of Leuven. Next he worked in the clinics and taught for 11 years at this university. For over 30 years now he has worked in a holistic way and is especially interested in the integration of body, mind and spirit in service of individual, collective and global development.

Dirk Marivoet and his colleagues at the IBI (International Institute of Bodymind Integration) offer individual therapy sessions for those interested in this mind-body approach.

In Ghent (Belgium), Europe, the rest of the world and online.

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