Information for patients

Optimizing the conditions for the recovery of physical complaints. That is what practitioners do when treating patients with persistent physical symptoms (PPS) based on diagnostics according to the maintenance model (DMM). The practitioner will ask you in detail about the physical complaint, your ideas about the complaint, and the consequences. This is done carefully, and you will notice that the practitioner often asks follow-up questions. The information is used to fill out the maintenance model and to form the vicious circle. This vicious circle describes how the response to your complaint prevents the recovery of the complaint. Breaking this circle is the goal of the treatment. After all, if the circle is broken, the conditions for the recovery of the complaints will be favorable, and the complaints can decrease. The practitioner creates a treatment plan based on the vicious circle and presents it to you. If you agree with the treatment plan, the treatment can begin.

Treatment

The treatment of PPS usually consists of cognitive behavioral therapy, possibly supplemented with other methods such as relaxation exercises, trauma treatment (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR)), or medication. Below is a brief description of these methods and when they are used.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

Cognitive behavioral therapy is often recommended when emotions or behaviors maintain physical complaints. For example, if you have become anxious or insecure because of the complaints and you avoid physical activity by resting a lot. Excessive rest can deteriorate physical condition and hinder recovery. In such a case, the treatment will focus on the fears and help you regain confidence in your body and restore your physical condition. It may also be that the limitations frustrate and irritate you, and you resist the limitations by ignoring your complaints. However, this overloads your body, preventing recovery. The practitioner can teach you to stop in time and alternate your activities to allow for recovery. For more information about cognitive behavioral therapy.

Relaxation Exercises

Relaxation exercises may be offered when the complaints are accompanied by muscle tension. Muscle tension is an automatic response of the body to pain but can also occur with other complaints, such as stomach and intestinal issues. If the muscles remain tense for a long time, the complaints worsen. With the help of relaxation exercises, you can learn to recognize and release muscle tension, thereby improving the conditions for recovery.

Trauma Treatment

Trauma treatment can be a solution when your physical complaints evoke memories of a significant event that you have not properly processed. This could be the event that caused the complaints, such as an accident or surgery, but also a completely different event that the complaints remind you of. Such memories of unprocessed traumatic events prevent recovery. The practitioner may then recommend trauma treatment such as Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR). This method allows you to process significant experiences relatively quickly, thereby improving the conditions for recovery.

Medications

If you have become depressed or anxious because of your complaints, medications may be an option.

The methods mentioned above are examples; the practitioner will work with you to create a plan tailored to your complaints and situation.