Question

If Hong’s stress is making her gastroesophogeal reflux (GERD) worse, which of the following conditions seems most likely?

A. factitious disorder

B. psychological factors affecting medical condition

C. conversion disorder

D. illness anxiety disorder

Answer 1

Worse GERD most likely due to psychological factors affecting medical condition

Stress has adverse effect on human body and mind, It decreases the production of prostaglandins that usually protect stomach from the effects of acid and perhaps this increses the perception discomfort. Stress will lead to increased acid reflux in our stomach and affect our body.

In the given question, stress is making Hong to feel GERD, and psychological factors affecting medical condition might be the reason for this medical situation. GERD is a disease related to digestion and it occures in which stomach acid or bile disturbs or irritate the food carring pipe and its inner lining. The common indication of GERD is acid reflux and heartburn more than twice a week. Thus, as I have said, acid reflux in the stomach can happen when one is over tensed or under stress. Psychological factors affecting medical conditons can lead to gastroesophogeal reflux and even to a worse situation and this might be also due to stress. Generally all medical illnesses are ultimately affected by psychological and behavioural factors. For example, when someone has an exam the next day and if he has not studied anything, probably this would be a stressful situation. He might not have food and even will not sleep. Thus sever stress make sever disruptions in our mind and body.

Fectitious disorder is a situation in which someone pretends to be sick by purposely getting sick or by self injury. This is purposeful deceive and is challenging to identify and difficult to treat. Symptoms include mimicking or pretending illness and exaggerating impariment to deceive others and most likely this disorder cannot be a conditon connected with GERD.

Conversion disorder is where one has physical symptoms of a health problem but no illness ot injury to explain them. Here the patient feels like having some problem and finds difficult to communicate through symptoms and signs and medical evaluation is difficult. For instance, think like you fell on the toilet floor and not being able to lift your arm, but your arm is not hurt. Researchers say that this kind of disorder happens as a way for the brain to deal with emotional stress that you undergo,thus conversion disorder cannot be the reason for GERD.

Illness anxiety disorder is termed Hypochondria or health anxiety, is worrying excessively that one may become ill. It is the obcession of having undiagnosed and terrible medical condition. This unwanted anxiety results in sever distress and destroys life.

Gastroesophogeal reflux (GERD) due to stress may happen through psychological factors affecting medical condition. Since Hong's stress is making her GERD worse, conditions like fectitious disorder, conversion disorder, and illness anxiety disorder may not likely the reason of GERD.