Psychosomatic Therapy in Children and Adolescentts. Manifastation, Symptoms and Diseases.
by Dr. Christos Kokkinos

Living conditions in modern society have changed dramatically in recent decades, exposing children to seemingly increased levels of stress in many ways, highlighting their impaired self-reported psychological health. However, the current situation does not show signs of improvement. On the contrary, despite the rapid development of medical science and the field of psychology, the state of children's psychosomatic health is alarming, and the statistics are discouraging.
Psychosomatic manifestations in children and adolescents increasingly concern the field of psychosomatic pediatrics, as the symptoms affect the functions of daily life and their participation in school and social life. With this reality as a starting point, the need to maintain the health of children and adolescents at the level of physical, mental, and social well-being is obvious. The promotion of a balanced psychosomatic state, especially during childhood, is essential, as this ensures, in turn, the smooth development of health in adolescence and later in adult life.
This book uses this finding as a starting point and attempts to study the manifestation of psychosomatic disorders in developmental ages. Through a thorough review of the literature, an in-depth examination, interpretation, and analysis of the data concerning psychosomatic diseases in childhood and adolescence is attempted.
As far as the structure of the book is concerned, it is developed in two parts. In Part 1, a rough description of the most frequent psychosomatic symptoms encountered in children and adolescents is attempted, the main causal factors are presented, while at the same time, the main interpretation theories for the psychosomatic manifestations are analyzed through the various psychological and psychotherapeutic approaches.
In Part 2 that follows, there is a thorough analysis of the psychosomatic diseases found in children. Specifically, there are separate analyses of Anxiety Disorders, Skin Diseases, Asthma, Eating Disorders, Enuresis, Allergies, Headaches/Migraines, Spasms/Convulsions, Recurrent Accidents, and Gastrointestinal Diseases. There are descriptions of the disorders that fall into each disease category, the symptomatology of each disease separately, the etiology or pathology attributed to it according to different interpretive theories, and the way in which its manifestation and course are affected. Psychotherapeutic interventions are also described for each disorder. At the end of the book, the main conclusions are presented, in the context of a critical review.