Teens who have frequent unexplained pain such as severe stomach aches may be suffering from a range of problems, from physical maladies to stress, anxiety and/or depression.
And according to a Dec. 26 article by Dr. Peter Gott, the problem could be due to a little-known condition called Pain Associated Disability Syndrome (or PADS):
Pain-associated disability syndrome is a fairly new term. It is defined as chronic pain that causes more severe restrictions than what the underlying condition would cause.
Imagine not being able to use your arm because of a sliver in your finger. This is essentially what PADS does. A usually minor condition, such as acid reflux, suddenly causes severe pain, nausea, vomiting and an inability to eat and do other normal daily activities. Normal treatment fails, and there is no other explanation for the severity of symptoms.
I found one small analysis of 40 patients ages 7 to 21. Thirty had abdominal pain, five had regurgitation, three had nausea, and two had chest pain. All met symptom-based criteria for functional gastrointestinal disorders, such as irritable bowel syndrome or acid reflux.
Thirty-nine of the people also had trouble sleeping. Most underwent mental-health evaluations to rule out eating disorders and psychosis.
Labels: health, mental_health
Posted By: Aspen Education Group