Decode the mystery of false pregnancy

Too expecting children, many people have external clinical manifestations as well as inside the pregnant people, but in reality, there is no pregnancy in the abdomen.

According to Pavlop theory, the disease usually occurs in people with a weak artisan type, when stressed (here is the pressure to have children), there will appear symptoms of false pregnancy through self-marketing mechanism. .

False pregnancy with English names are false pregnancy, child phantom, hysterical pregnancy, jestation , but the most common is pseudocyesis . According to the 10th international classification table (ICD10), false pregnancies are classified as mental disorders.

The disease is less common, often related to psychological factors, causing the endocrine system changes the most is the hypothalamus axis - pituitary gland - adrenal gland , leading to increased secretion of hormones (estrogen, prolactin and cortisol), changes the body like a change in pregnancy.

According to US data, in the 1940s the incidence of this disease was about 1/250 pregnant. This rate is declining sharply, now there are about 1-6 of 22,000 pregnant women. More than two thirds of people with this condition are married, one third are pregnant at least once.

Photo: personal.Psu.edu.

Symptoms of a false pregnancy are also common in Indian men (there is a custom that the husband will replace his wife so that people can come to congratulate after birth).

In Vietnam, in 1984 the Institute of Mental Health also received treatment for a woman diagnosed with a false pregnancy after 10 months of unborn birth. The patient is diagnosed with a false pregnancy and hysteria is treated with psychotherapy.

Reason

So far, there are many different explanations for this phenomenon but no explanation is accepted because of the complexities related to the cortex, the hypothalamus, the endocrine and the psychological causes.

- According to Freud's psychoanalysis: It is because of the conflict between the unconscious of the sick (always longing for a child) with consciousness, the unconscious control and the pressure of the supernatural (family, husband, and others) relatives . want the patient to have children quickly.

- According to the neuro-endocrine of Hans Selye : When stress impacts the brain, changes neurotransmitters, impacts on endocrine glands (Under the hill - pituitary - adrenal gland) changes Excretion of hormones, in this case increases the secretion of estrogen, prolactin and cortisol.

- According to Pavlop theory: The disease often occurs in people with weak artists' nerves (emotionally heavy, anxious, easy to touch, light in reason, lack of lucidity, easy to be obsessed and self-obsessed Marketing), when stressed (here is the pressure to have children) will appear symptoms of false pregnancy through self-marketing mechanism.

The disease appears completely unconscious, unintended, patients always believe that they are pregnant, not intentionally, what many people consider them to be pretending, lying, ghosts . leading to discrimination with the sick.

Clinical manifestations

Symptoms of false pregnancy are similar to real pregnancy and difficult to differentiate if only based on clinical symptoms. Manifestations: loss of menstruation, morning nausea, breast tenderness, possible weight gain of milk, enlarged abdomen such as real pregnancy, uterine enlargement, soft cervix .

The disease is common in poor people, low education level, lack of medical care, people with early childhood sexual abuse, incest, lack of care of parents .

Previously, the incidence was high due to clinical diagnosis only. But now with the advancement of science, the high awareness of the people, the disease is less and less common. In order to have early conclusions, patients should go for routine pregnancy check-up, fetal ultrasound is a cheap, simple fake technique, for accurate diagnosis or testing of detected urine, etc.

When determining a false pregnancy, the patient should be referred to a psychiatrist. Treatment mainly with personal psychotherapy, family psychotherapy . Anxiolytic drugs can be combined if needed but should not be prolonged, causing drug dependence.

The best way to prevent disease is to raise awareness for women about issues related to maternity, to strengthen reproductive health care for women. Fostering personality for patients.