{"id":120309,"date":"2020-09-03T11:00:56","date_gmt":"2020-09-03T10:00:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/?p=120309"},"modified":"2023-03-15T17:26:28","modified_gmt":"2023-03-15T17:26:28","slug":"what-is-conversion-disorder","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/what-is-conversion-disorder.htm","title":{"rendered":"What is Conversion Disorder?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"conversion<\/strong>by Andrea M. Darcy<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Been very ill of late? But doctors can\u2019t find<\/strong> a known cause? A doctor or psychiatrist might give you a diagnosis of ‘conversion disorder’. <\/span><\/p>\n

What is conversion disorder?<\/span><\/h2>\n

Conversion disorder involves having a physical illness that medical tests can\u2019t find the cause of.<\/strong> <\/span><\/p>\n

In some cases it\u2019s quite a serious set of symptoms, including vision loss, paralysis, or seizures. <\/span><\/p>\n

Mysterious medical illnesses are not a new problem. There have long been cases of<\/strong> people with illnesses doctors can\u2019t explain. At one point it was called \u2018hysteria\u2019. <\/span><\/p>\n

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Nor are they uncommon. The NHS estimates that 45% of all GP appointments in the UK qualify as for \u2018medically unexplained symptoms\u2019 (MUS)<\/span><\/a>. <\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

But with conversion disorder, your medically unexplained symptoms generally start after a mental health episode, such as<\/strong> depression or acute stress<\/a>. The idea is that your brain ‘converts’ stress into physical symptoms. And your symptoms are causing you considerable distress.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

This is not to say that the symptoms are ‘in your head’.<\/strong> Not at all. It just means that doctors don’t yet understand your particular set of symptoms, and that the connection between psychological and physical health is still not fully understood.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Is \u2018conversion disorder\u2019 still an official diagnosis? <\/span><\/h2>\n

It\u2019s on its way out as a diagnosis in the UK, where the main manual referred to is the ICD, put out by the World Health Organisation (WHO). The current version, the ICD-10, still refers to conversion order. <\/span>But they are in the process of releasing the ICD-11, which is replacing the diagnosis with<\/strong> <\/span>\u00a0\u2018dissociative neurological symptom disorder\u2019.<\/strong>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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In fact most British scientists and psychologists are already using the newer terminology coming out of America. Their manual, the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM)<\/span><\/a>, has renamed conversion disorder \u201c\u2018functional neurological symptom disorder\u2019. Or just \u2018functional neurological disorder\u2019 (FND) for short.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Functional neurological disorder no longer requires that you had a psychological trigger<\/strong> for a diagnosis to be made. If there was one, then you might still be given the older diagnosis of conversion disorder.<\/span><\/p>\n

What are they symptoms of conversion disorder and FND? <\/span><\/h2>\n

Symptoms of conversion disorder can be extremely varied. <\/span><\/strong>They affect your movement, or yours senses. <\/span>Most commonly seen are:<\/span><\/p>\n