Causes of Neurasthenia
The cause of neurasthenia is mental and emotional strain, somatic diseases, chronic fatigue. Neurasthenic complaints can precede all mental disorders, and by their nature it is often difficult to determine a further prognosis. For example, persistent neurasthenic complaints after the age of 55 often precede Alzheimer’s disease.
Symptoms of Neurasthenia
Often, psychogenic and somatic diseases debut with neurasthenia. There are two types of complaints, which, respectively, are caused by feelings and somatic disorders. The first type – complaints of fatigue after mental work, the inability to concentrate, unproductive thinking.
The second type – complaints of physical weakness and exhaustion, inability to relax. In both types of disorders, dizziness, muscular pain, and “neurasthenic helmet” are characteristic – a kind of compression of the scalp, irritability, lack of joy of life, depression, anxiety, and sleep disturbance. Often there is an increased sensitivity to sounds and light, pain in the eyes, a feeling of uncertain anxiety.
Diagnosis of Neurasthenia
It is difficult to distinguish neurasthenia itself from neurasthenic complaints in other mental and somatic disorders. Symptoms are transient if they are not signs of the initial phases of other mental disorders.
Treatment of Neurasthenia
Regime of work and rest, physiotherapy and sanatorium-resort therapy, tranquilizers, various methods of psychotherapy.