Have you heard of pseudocyesisalso called psychological pregnancy? It is a psychological disorder that can generally appear in women between the ages of 20 and 40.although there are known cases of girls and women in menopause with this problem.
Find out in the following lines what psychological pregnancy is, why it occurs and everything you need to know. Don’t miss out on the details.
What is psychological pregnancy?
Pseudocyesis is the medical term for a false pregnancy, i.e. the belief of a woman that she is carrying a child when in fact she is not. But what exactly is a psychological pregnancy?
This disorder, also called Rapunzel Syndrome, is not simply a thought or a feeling, it is the authentic belief that you are pregnant It is evident not only on an emotional level, but also on a physical level.. That is to say, the body behaves as if there really were a fetus in gestation. And this is highlighted research conducted by Dr. Ana Cecilia Márquez.
Causes leading to a false pregnancy
The etiology of psychological pregnancy is not yet fully understood.However, the vast majority of currently accepted causal theories point to a correlation between psychological factors, such as intense desire or fear of pregnancy, misperception of pregnancy symptoms, and depressive disorder and the reproductive system. And this is highlighted research published in the Indian Journal of Psychiatry.
However, other psychological factors that influence the development of this psychological disorder can be as follows:
- Feeling of loneliness and desire to be a mother.
- acute depression.
- Low self-esteem.
- Belief that “without a child, her husband or partner will leave her.”
- Peer pressure to get pregnant.
- Extreme fear of getting pregnant.
- Situations of sexual abuse in childhood or adolescence.
- Emotional stress.
- infertility.
- Having suffered one or more miscarriages or having suffered the death of a child.
- Menopause is approaching and the desire to have children.
Symptoms and diagnosis of pseudocyesis
The incidence of utopian pregnancy in the population is low. It is estimated that 1 in 22,000 pregnancies are psychological.. Now, let’s find out together the symptoms of this disorder as indicated by this information of American Pregnancy Association:
- absence of rule: the LH and FSH hormones decrease, so that the woman does not ovulate and, therefore, the menstrual cycle “freezes”.
- Appearance of tiredness
- Feeling nauseous and even vomiting: This is due to an increase in prolactin and progesterone.
- Breast enlargement and sensitivity.
- abdomen growth
- Sensation of fetal movements in the uterus.
- milk production.
- Contractions: If the disorder is not treated, the pregnancy, even if false, will continue its course, between the growth of the belly, the feeling of the baby’s “kicks” and labor pains.
As you can see, the mind influences the body and generates an organic or psychosomatic response in which hormones are altered and symptoms similar to those of an ongoing pregnancy appear. For this reason, to make a diagnosis, the most recommended and necessary is to carry out the following procedure:
- Scan the woman.
- Request a lab test: A urine or blood test will show the dosage level of the hCG hormone (human chorionic gonadotropin hormone). When the test is negative, the presence of a utopian pregnancy is highlighted.
- ultrasound: The absence of a fetus in the uterus makes the diagnosis obvious. The woman suffers from a psychological disorder that needs to be treated as soon as possible.
If the woman was producing milk, tests would be needed exclude the presence of a prolactinomathat is, a tumor of the pituitary gland that could stimulate prolactin, the hormone responsible for milk production.
Psychological treatment of pregnancy
The doctor will indicate the most appropriate treatment based on the physical and emotional condition of the woman. As a general rule, psychological counseling is recommendedit is a psychosomatic disorder.
woman’s mind He sought an outlet for his concernsTherefore, it is necessary to treat it psychologically to resolve the physical symptoms.
In short, pseudocyesis is a psychological disorder that It can cause embarrassment to sufferers.. If this is your case, please note that you are not guilty of what happens to you. Rely on your doctor and family to get you through the process.
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