Why does conjunctivitis occur? Psychosomatic factors in the appearance of conjunctivitis: opinions of psychologists

Conjunctivitis is an inflammatory disease of the organs of vision, most often affecting the mucous membrane of the eyeball and the inner surface of the eyelids. Without affecting visual acuity, this disease, however, significantly reduces the quality of life: the patient is accompanied by itching and burning in the eyes, tearing, purulent discharge and many other unpleasant symptoms.

You can find out the nature of the occurrence and receive appropriate recommendations for treatment at an appointment with a doctor. But sometimes conjunctivitis occurs for no apparent reason, and even after using medications it returns again. In this case, we can assume a psychogenic cause of the disease - inflammation can develop against the background of stress and increased anxiety. Without proper treatment, conjunctivitis develops into a sluggish chronic form with periodic exacerbations.

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Features of the disease

Most often, conjunctivitis begins suddenly and makes itself felt with the following symptoms:

itching, burning and pain in the eyes;
hyperemia and redness of the eyelids;
red veins in the eyeball;
lacrimation;
photophobia;
purulent discharge;
difficulty opening eyes after sleep;
sensation of a foreign object in the eye.

Associated symptoms may include hyperemia of the nasal mucosa, runny nose, general weakness, apathy, appetite and sleep disturbances.

Treatment

The main recommendation, in addition to visiting a doctor, is to work with a psychotherapist. It is necessary to understand in detail the underlying causes of the problem.

Etiology

Conjunctivitis is divided into two types:

exogenous (self-occurring disease);
endogenous (the process accompanies another infectious disease: rubella, measles, etc.).

In most cases, this disease is infectious in nature, more often caused by viruses than bacteria. Manifestations of conjunctivitis may occur due to an allergic reaction or due to prolonged exposure to an external irritant. The disease usually affects both eyes, but can begin in one and gradually spread to the other.

Viral conjunctivitis is most often caused by pathogens from the adenovirus group. This is a contagious disease that is easily transmitted through household objects or contact. The peak incidence occurs during the cold season.

With the bacterial type, the causative agents of the disease can be on the skin or in the upper respiratory tract of a person, and can also be transmitted from another person suffering from conjunctivitis.

Other causes of the disease include the following factors:

eye injury;
exposure to ultraviolet radiation;
side effect when taking certain medications;
violation of hygiene rules or wearing contact lenses;
chronic inflammation of the maxillary sinuses or tear ducts;
chemical irritants;
dust;
concomitant pathologies of the visual organs.

IMPORTANT! Official medicine denies the possibility of psychological causes influencing the occurrence and course of conjunctivitis.

But with frequent causeless relapses and lack of treatment effectiveness, one can assume the psychogenic nature of the disease.

Psychological reasons

To determine the psychosomatics of conjunctivitis, it is necessary, first of all, to understand the psychosomatics of the eye as a whole.

The eye is the organ of vision with which we perceive information from the outside world. Accordingly, all psychological causes of eye diseases arise from a reluctance to see someone or something in everyday life, dissatisfaction with the environment and the current state of affairs. Negative emotions, such as anger, irritation, envy, anger, can only aggravate a person’s condition.

In adults

There are psychological factors that can provoke the development of conjunctivitis in an adult:

Usually this disease occurs during a period of difficulties in life, when a person is faced with troubles or problems. He does not want to see them and strives to get rid of irritating factors as soon as possible, but if the result is negative and new problems arise, the person experiences constant irritation and resentment towards fate.
Often, inflammatory eye diseases accompany those who do not have good relationships with the team or a tense situation in the family. Constantly hushing up problems, trying to avoid conflict and turn a blind eye to unpleasant situations negatively affects both the visual organs and the general condition of the body.
Another cause of the disease may be fear for one’s future. If a person faces any difficult trials, or the future is foggy and lacks clarity, fear and reluctance to see what is happening and become a participant in difficult trials naturally arise. A person strives to slow down the course of events, remaining in the present, and conjunctivitis “helps” him with this. If you suffer from this disease, you may have had a negative experience in your past when joyful expectations were not met, and you are afraid of a repeat of the situation.
The eyes may hurt due to the accumulation of negative energy. If you constantly wish harm to another person, feel envy, commit meanness, remember the boomerang law, when all negative messages are returned to their author. Eyes are one of the most sensitive and receptive organs.
According to many psychologists, a person’s left eye is associated with vision of oneself, perception of the future, and the influence of mother’s upbringing. The right eye symbolizes the perception of negativity, analyzes the past, and expresses the masculine side of upbringing.

Psychology of diseases: Conjunctivitis

Conjunctivitis is an inflammatory process affecting the mucous membrane of the organ of vision. It can occur against a background of stress and increased anxiety. If it is difficult to establish the cause, the doctor assumes the psychosomatic nature of the disease. It is important to know how the psychosomatics of conjunctivitis manifests itself.

Psychological causes of conjunctivitis in adults

Typical symptoms are hyperemia and itching of the eyelid, the appearance of pus, and red streaks on the white part of the eyeball. In the morning, dried discharge accumulates on the eyelashes, making it difficult to open the eyes. There is a runny nose and swelling of the nasal mucosa. Without proper treatment, the process becomes chronic.

In official medicine, the reasons for the development of conjunctivitis are identified:

damage by viruses;
bacterial infection;
eye injury;
allergic reaction;
influence of ultraviolet radiation;
side effect of the drug;
lack of vitamins;
non-compliance with the rules of wearing contact lenses;
chronic inflammatory processes in the maxillary sinuses, lacrimal ducts.

But long-term unsuccessful treatment or constant relapses of the disease, subject to the doctor’s recommendations and hygiene rules, may indicate a psychogenic form of the disease.

The occurrence of conjunctivitis according to famous psychologists

Vision is a unique system. The left eye responds and looks into the future, the right one analyzes the past. Events of long past days influence the perception of the present and leave an imprint on future life.

Many famous psychologists and psychotherapists have expressed opinions about the nature of inflammatory processes in the visual analyzer system. Among them are Louise Hay, Liz Burbo. Their recommendations are similar, but differ in details and approaches to working with patients.

According to Sinelnikov

Dr. V. Sinelnikov in the book “Love Your Illness” notes that inflammatory processes in the eye system occur when there is an unwillingness to see any object or subject. The thought of this provokes an attack of anger, hatred, and, in some cases, resentment.

The stronger the negative emotions associated with the object, the more active the inflammatory process. This is due to a reverse loop, a rollback of the negative reaction. The target organ can be any organ, but if the immune defense is reduced in the visual analyzer system, then conjunctivitis develops.

Possible psychological causes of conjunctivitis according to Sinelnikov:

gloat;
malice;
the desire to harm, but with the wrong hands.

Rituals of inducing damage and the evil eye have a similar side effect. If you carried out similar actions in relation to another person, then the result may be illness in the person sending the damage. But more often - at the customer of the process.

By Liz Burbo

Conjunctivitis according to Liz Burbo affects only the outer membranes of the eye. This condition occurs due to rejection of problems in life.

The patient has had some unpleasant events in the past. They cause severe attacks of anger. There is a fear that a similar incident will happen again. The lesion in the left eye develops against the background of the patient’s mother’s negative attitude towards past events. If the inflammation affected only the right one, then the patient’s father played a significant role in assessing the situation.

Such people divide the world into 2 colors - only white and black. Frequent inflammatory processes in the visual analyzer system are an attempt by the body to consider life in all its colors and manifestations. But the patient extinguishes these aspirations with an effort of will.

This is a form of self-defense. A person sets himself the idea that one should expect only troubles from life. And a joyful event is an accident.

Rejection of the world, anger gives rise to psychosomatic symptoms of conjunctivitis:

difficulty opening your eyes after waking up;
excessive lacrimation and pus discharge;
swelling of the eyelids;
pain in bright light;
redness of the mucous membrane of the eyes.

Treatment of a psychosomatic illness lies in an adequate perception of life with its joys and sorrows, the desire to see only positive moments and create them.

By Louise Hay

The treatment, according to the author, is to rethink the past, accept events and analyze the situation. Perhaps the patient had no choice, and this was the only opportunity to get out of trouble with minimal losses.

After rethinking the events of the past, it is recommended to change your attitude towards the present. Try to love the world in all its manifestations, begin to look at life with loving eyes.

Psychological methods of getting rid of illness

According to psychologists, a person perceives the world in a complex way. In this case, the body is involved, which is the first to perceive information and transmit it to the emotional sphere. Further, under the influence of feelings, a rational perception of the event is formed.

Based on 3 components, a spiritual attitude to the event is formed. In this sequence, you should get rid of anger, fears, and negative life experiences.

The following will help cure conjunctivitis caused by nervousness:

Movement and sound - dancing, sports, long walks in pleasant places increase the production of endorphins.

Under their influence, the perception of life changes, and active actions leave no room for sad thoughts, digging into the past and experiencing the negative again.

Sound activity – laughter, singing, accompanying sports activities with music. They have a positive effect on the formation of emotional perception of life.

Creativity - it is believed that a healthy person can express his feelings through activities not related to survival in environmental conditions.

But the emotional sphere is limited by moral requirements and rules of behavior in society. In creativity, a person can express exciting thoughts and problems, and his attitude to the surrounding reality.

This is a big step for a harmonious holistic perception of yourself.

The psychosomatic causes of inflammatory processes in the visual analyzer are easy to identify independently. In the vast majority of cases, solving them does not require the participation of specialists. If you couldn’t cope on your own, and the doctor was unable to identify the objective reasons for the development of the inflammatory process, the best solution would be to contact a psychotherapist.

Conjunctivitis is an unpleasant disease, but not dangerous for humans. Constant inflammation brings discomfort.

It is difficult to identify the nervous nature of the disease, since there are signs of an allergic reaction, viral and bacterial infection.

If traditional treatment methods do not bring relief, perhaps you need to take control of your own nerves and try to look at life from a different angle!

Psychosomatic causes of conjunctivitis in children and adults

Inflamed eyes can often be seen in adults, but children suffer from conjunctivitis more often. However, some complain of inflammation of the eye membrane in almost every case of a viral or other disease.

This disease is quite dangerous, and if not properly treated, it can lead to serious consequences for the health of the visual organs. But a person, regardless of age, needs to be treated not only with prescribed ointments and eye drops, but also psychologically, since eye inflammation has clear psychosomatic causes. They will be discussed in this article.

general information

Conjunctivitis is an inflammatory process located in the conjunctiva (the membrane of the organs of vision). Up to 85% of all cases of eye inflammation are caused by adenoviruses, and only up to 15% of cases in both adults and children are caused by pathogenic bacteria. There is also a non-infectious type of disease when the eyes become inflamed due to a severe allergic reaction.

Conjunctivitis can be either acute or chronic, in which the eyes are exposed to an irritating factor for a long time. Circumstances such as vitamin deficiency, metabolic disorders, and chronic nasal diseases are considered predisposing to the onset of the disease.

Symptoms include swelling of the eyelids, watery eyes, inflammation of the eyes, and discharge of pus from them (in the bacterial form).

Conjunctivitis, in addition to allergic conjunctivitis, is contagious and easily passes from one eye in which it appears to the other.

More often than others, people with blue eyes suffer from the pathology, since they have a higher level of photosensitivity.

Psychosomatic reasons

At first glance, according to the description of the disease, there is absolutely nothing psychosomatic in it - viruses, bacteria, allergens. With them everything is more or less simple and clear.

But this is an erroneous opinion, since medicine cannot clearly explain the predisposition to inflammation of the conjunctiva.

In other words, there are people who have suffered from eye inflammation at most once in their lives, and there are those who are forced to treat conjunctivitis with enviable regularity.

Psychosomatics, which studies the connection between bodily changes and the psychofactor and emotional state, considers the problem in a complex manner, and psychoanalysts have been able to establish a fairly clear connection between certain psychotypes and behavioral habits and frequent diseases of the visual organs.

The eyes, from the point of view of psychosomatics, are an organ that allows you to see a picture of the world, visually perceive events and information coming from the outside. Therefore, conjunctivitis and almost all other eye diseases develop not only due to the ingress of bacteria or viruses, but also due to the fact that the person himself makes this infection possible. He just doesn't want to see anything or anyone. He can “close his eyes” and try not to notice certain events, people who are unpleasant to him, and his own shortcomings.

If a person has conjunctivitis, this means that something from the outside, what he sees, gives him internal discomfort, mental pain. In response to it, a defense mechanism is subconsciously activated: if pain comes through a vision, then this vision needs to be reduced. This is how, in general terms, conjunctival disease develops.

Predominant damage to the right eye usually indicates a negative vision of the world, as well as a hostile and painful vision of everything masculine (often associated with childhood psychological trauma, with a father, brother and their influence). If the problems are mainly with the left eye, psychosomatic symptoms indicate that the person sees himself negatively or has childhood traumas due to difficult memories of his mother.

Many researchers emphasize that this is a reasonable approach, because it is the mother who shapes the child’s attitude towards himself, and the father who opens that big world to the child, and how the child communicates with his mother and father affects how he perceives himself , peace and yourself in the world.

A person who suffers from conjunctivitis with enviable regularity, according to psychoanalysts, is usually quite cowardly. He is afraid to face the truth, to open his eyes to reality, he tries to run away from the problem instead of working on solving it. He really doesn’t like what he sees, and he would be glad not to contemplate it, but instead of reconciling with the unpleasant, he begins to get irritated, offended, and angry at this negative thing, which leads to an inflammatory disease.

Psychosomatic patients note that those who most often suffer from exacerbations of chronic inflammation of the eyes are those who experience strong fear for their future; for them it is fuzzy, unclear, scary and, for this reason, painful.

In children

Children's conjunctivitis is most often caused by the fact that children are forced to look at what is unpleasant for them - their parents' quarrels. Also, the presence of a stepfather or stepmother in the house may be unpleasant for a child; some children react this way to their own grandmothers if they are overprotective.

Source: https://anti-guru.ru/psihosomatika-zabolevanij/psihologiya-boleznej-konyunktivit

Opinion of famous psychologists

Many famous psychotherapists and psychologists expressed their point of view about the nature of inflammatory eye diseases. Among them are Valery Sinelnikov, Liz Burbo, Louise Hay. Their approaches have much in common, but differ in details and have their own characteristics of working with patients.

Sinelnikov

Dr. Valery Sinelnikov, author of the famous book “Love Your Illness,” connects inflammatory processes in the visual analyzer system with a reluctance to see any object or subject in one’s environment. Thoughts about an irritating factor become a source of anger, aggression, hatred or resentment.

The amount of negative emotions experienced is directly related to the activity of the inflammatory process. Any organ can act as a target for the reverse influence of negative energy, but if the immune defense of the organs of vision is reduced, conjunctivitis occurs.

Ways to Heal

A person perceives the world in a complex way. The first link in the path of information transfer is the body, which receives information and transmits it for analysis to the emotional sphere. Under the influence of feelings, we form a rational perception of what is happening. And only on the basis of these three components is a spiritual awareness of the event formed, which resonates in a person’s general worldview.

Expert opinion

Slonimsky Mikhail Germanovich

Ophthalmologist of the highest qualification category. Has extensive experience in diagnosing and treating eye diseases in adults and children. More than 20 years of experience.

Efficiency and effectiveness on the path to recovery from psychosomatic conjunctivitis depends solely on the patient. During therapy, it is important to be ready to change your perception of the surrounding reality, let go of the negative experiences of the past and discover the full colors of life. The difficulty is that many patients are simply not ready to part with their negative experiences, cherishing their mistakes and suffering.

A person paints objective reality in his own colors, and the body obeys this perception, reacting to what is happening with various physical states.

On the path to healing, it is important to understand that in the world around us a person often sees only what comes from himself: an aggressive person sees violence, an angry person often encounters negativity, and only a wise and optimistic person is able to accept the world in all its colors.

Psychosomatics of conjunctivitis in adults

If a disease torments a person for a long time and treatment turns out to be useless, it is worth thinking about the deeper causes of the pathology. Thus, the inflammatory process on the mucous membrane of the eyeball or conjunctivitis can develop against a background of increased anxiety and negative emotions. What is the psychosomatics of conjunctivitis and how does it manifest itself?

Symptoms of the disease

Conjunctivitis is infectious in nature and occurs as an independent or concomitant (secondary) disease against the background of existing infections. The mucous membrane of the eyeball and the inner surface of the eyelids become inflamed when exposed to a variety of factors, ranging from allergies (external irritants) to a failure in metabolic processes (internal causes).

The development of conjunctivitis can be detected by the following signs:

pain and pain in the eyes;
itching and irritation;
fear of bright light;
lacrimation;
swelling and redness of the eyelids;
purulent discharge.

Due to suppuration, the eyelids stick together in the morning, and general swelling of the eyes is observed. Often the disease occurs against the background of inflammation of the nasal mucosa and runny nose. Sometimes infectious processes occur in parallel in the maxillary sinuses or tear ducts.

According to official medicine, conjunctivitis cannot be explained by psychological factors. There are more specific and definite reasons for the development of pathology. But prolonged and unsuccessful treatment and constant relapses indicate the psychogenic nature of the disease.

Psychosomatics of conjunctivitis

The organ of vision is unique: it allows you to reproduce events of the present and reflect moments of the past, and draw pictures of the future. Receiving information from the outside world with the help of our eyes, we filter it, discarding what is unnecessary, and store what is necessary in memory.

Typically, eye diseases reflect a reluctance to see people around you, current events, and difficult relationships. The information passing through the visual organ does not bring joy to a person, but only causes pain. Psychologists see the reason for the development of conjunctivitis in the following negative aspects of life:

The emergence of problems and troubles that irritate and anger.
A psychological trauma from the past that you don’t want to remember, but your memory continues to “replay” the previous plot.
Fear for one's future, fear of future events to which a person wants to close his eyes.
Showing anger or disappointment at the sight of a certain event in life.
Reluctance to open your eyes in the morning in order to disconnect from the world around you.
A negative experience that makes you want to close your eyes and not look forward, so as not to get another disappointment.

It is believed that if the right eye is inflamed, this indicates a negative perception of the world and masculinity. With problems with the left eye, a person does not accept himself and denies the feminine principle (for example, bad memories of his mother).

The occurrence of conjunctivitis is often associated with negative energy that undermines health. Moreover, this energy does not come from the outside, it accumulates inside a person and cannot find a way out. A negative energy impulse “hits the eyes.”

Psychosomatic causes of childhood conjunctivitis

Children develop conjunctivitis more often than adults. And it needs to be treated not only with eye drops, but also with psychological methods, since there are causes of childhood psychosomatics. Long-term observation of children reveals a clear connection between behavioral reactions, the child’s psychotype and eye diseases.

The psychological aspect of childhood conjunctivitis is expressed in the following:

Constant quarrels between parents and an unhealthy family environment. The presence of not a relative, but a stepmother or stepfather. Reaction to grandmothers who direct close attention to the child, showing overprotection.
In adolescence, these are internal conflicts, unwillingness to come to terms with the situation and the inability to change it. The manifestation of strong emotions - anger or disappointment - can affect vision.
When experiencing feelings such as anger or gloating, and when peers fail, eye diseases are possible (according to Sinelnikov).

Chronic exacerbations of the eyes are typical for unbalanced people with poor resistance to stress. Most often, eye pathologies are observed in those who are afraid to “look into the eyes” of the future, which looks uncertain and therefore scary.

Psychological treatments

For conjunctivitis, drug treatment is prescribed to help get rid of the disease. But if frequent relapses are observed, then you should look for the psychological aspect of the problem. You need to find the emotion that can provoke the disease. This could be fear, aggression, anger, hatred, which prevents you from restoring a state of psychological balance.

It takes time to change your attitude towards life and accept the world as it is. You shouldn’t isolate yourself, you need to go to people, communicate, find support and receive positive emotional support.

Three components influence the emotional background, helping to get rid of the disease:

Movement: passion for dancing, sports, simple physical activity contribute to the production of endorphins (hormones of joy). Gradually, sad thoughts recede and negativity becomes a thing of the past.
Sound: positive emotions and laughter, singing, musical accompaniment of physical exercises have a positive effect on the state of the psyche.
Creativity: Expressing your feelings and emotions through the creative process helps you “blow off steam” and get rid of worries. Vague, exciting moments in life are expressed in specific activities.

Psychologists agree that conjunctivitis occurs due to the difficulty of recognizing the past. The first step to healing is to understand that the events of the past are behind you and will not come back or be repeated.

If conjunctivitis recurs in a child, he needs to consult a child psychologist. The baby's behavior reflects what he sees.

With domestic aggression, he becomes angry, greed and stinginess cause greed, and with betrayal, cowardice develops. The child needs to be shown in a playful way what feelings and fears need to be fought.

If a teenager is afraid of the future, they offer relaxation and motivational therapy.

If an adult has realized his problem, he is able to solve it himself. In some cases, the help of a psychotherapist is necessary when the inflammatory process in the eyes occurs constantly for unknown reasons. In the absence of the desire to perceive the surrounding reality in all its manifestations, which leads to eye diseases, a person needs the help of an ophthalmologist and a psychologist.

Source: https://oculistic.ru/bolezni/konyunktivit/psihosomatika-konyunktivita-kak-eshhyo-odin-faktor-razvitiya-zabolevaniya

Prevention

Of course, if symptoms of conjunctivitis appear, you cannot do without consulting an ophthalmologist. Only by excluding the infectious or allergic nature of the disease can we draw a conclusion about the psychological origin of the disease.

Prevention of conjunctivitis consists of observing basic hygiene requirements:

Wash your hands regularly.
Do not touch the eye area with dirty hands.
Use disposable tissues.
Do not use towels in public places or use other people's personal hygiene products.
During the period of colds, try not to come into contact with carriers of the disease, take precautions.

To avoid the development of conjunctivitis of a psychological nature, psychologists recommend constant work on yourself:

Do not let external stimuli into your life in the form of sources of anger and negative emotions. Learn to react steadfastly to various life situations.
Remember that negativity belongs to the person emitting it as long as you do not react to it.
Let positive emotions into your life. Find a source of inspiration - get creative, exercise, or get a cat. Take time every day to do something that brings you joy or satisfaction.
Don't dwell on the past. Idleness is the main enemy of a stable emotional state, because an idle existence leaves a lot of room for soul-searching. But don't overdo it, leaving time for rest.
Control your emotions when communicating with loved ones. Constant conflicts and shouting can provoke conjunctivitis not only in you, but also in your child.

The basis for the health of not only the visual organs, but also the entire body, is acceptance of oneself and the surrounding reality. This is possible only in conditions of harmonious development of the individual.

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