According to the All-Russian Labor Safety Week conference, more than 40% of Russians suffer from stress at work. European studies say 36%. And the International Labor Organization states that every 15 seconds, 1 person in the world dies from stress at work.

Asthenic neurosis is the most common disease caused by stress. The general characteristic of the disease is imbalance and exhaustion of the nervous system. Symptoms of asthenic neurosis include increased excitability and fatigue, sleep disturbances and headaches.

Occurs against a background of prolonged physical or mental stress. How long the disorder lasts depends on the form and stage. We will talk about this in the article.

What causes the disorder

High workload

Physical and emotional. A person’s involvement in different circles besides studying is good. But you need to know when to stop. Adults should also be able to refuse to work overtime. After all, with every extra hour of overexertion, asthenic neurosis can threaten.

Emotional turmoil

From this point of view, great joy is no better than great grief - both “shatter” the nervous system.

Duration of irritant

Misunderstanding in the team, tension, fear of error or punishment - all factors seem to fall on the person. Doctors also call hormonal disorders, somatic diseases, infections and intoxication as provocateurs. It is believed that the neurasthenic was initially genetically predisposed to the disease. The condition of the mother during pregnancy is also of great importance.

Forms of neurosis

In neurology, there are three forms of the syndrome. They are also stages of the disease.

Hypertensive

This is where asthenic blues begins. A person in this stage is very irritable. He doesn't like everything, and everything makes him nervous. A person loses his attention span - he cannot concentrate, and absent-mindedness appears. With such neurosis, difficulties with sleep appear: waking up often in the middle of the night is the norm for a neurotic person. Gradually, a “neurotic helmet” forms – pain that “embraces” the head.

Irritable weakness

The next step is increased excitability and fatigue. Intolerance to irritating things increases significantly. Sleep becomes even worse, heartburn appears, and appetite disappears. A person may suffer from constipation.

Hyposthenic

The most difficult stage. If the disease is not treated, a pronounced pathological neurosis appears. The patient is greatly bothered by physical pain. He chronically does not get enough sleep and is extremely tired. Melancholy or anxiety becomes a faithful companion.

How can you diagnose

Diagnosis of the syndrome is carried out similarly in children and adults. Only the manifestations that the doctor pays attention to are different.

If symptoms of neurasthenia are detected, you should consult a neurologist.

He will prescribe treatment based on:

1. Patient's complaint. Standard survey procedure.
2. History. Means the study of medical history, living conditions and hereditary tendencies.
3. Inspection. An attempt by the doctor to verify the correspondence of complaints to physical manifestations.
4. Consultations with related specialists. Asthenic neurosis requires complex treatment, so consultation with medical colleagues is necessary.

During the examination, the neurologist may prescribe:

• Computer tomography of the brain;
• X-ray;
• Electroencephalography;

Treatment methods

First, the provoking factor is determined, then it is eliminated. Two methods are used together:

Medication

To relieve irritability - daytime tranquilizers, to suppress headaches - muscle relaxants, to activate the brain and general condition - nootropics and vitamins.

Psychotherapeutic

Used to encourage the patient to rethink irritants. Psychoanalysis and psychotherapy are carried out. During the sessions, the specialist helps the patient resolve internal conflict.

In big cities, with their daily intense physical and mental stress, it is extremely difficult to maintain optimal mental balance. Therefore, it is the urbanized population that is most susceptible to the occurrence of symptoms of so-called chronic fatigue or neurasthenia - an alternative name for such a mental disorder as asthenic neurosis.

This disorder of mental functions occurs in people of both sexes, but men get it much more often. At the same time, its manifestations in women are more dramatic and massive.

Asthenic syndrome, which is characterized by fatigue and loss of strength, is not specific to neurasthenia and can form the basis of many other mental illnesses, starting with depression and ending with schizophrenia, therefore this syndrome in itself is not considered as an independent diagnostic sign, but for diagnosing neurasthenia it is necessary comparison with other patient complaints. Differential diagnosis requires extensive knowledge and experience from the specialist.

In a general sense, neurasthenia is a neurosis characterized by easily occurring irritability and fatigue, as well as decreased productivity in everyday work due to a drop in mental tone.

The reasons causing this condition may be:

• acute or chronic traumatic situation;
• intense mental work combined with physiological deprivation (for example, lack of sleep);
• intrapersonal and interpersonal conflicts;
• infectious diseases;
• chronic intoxication (including alcoholism);
• endocrine disorders;
• malnutrition.

The neurasthenic process is heterogeneous and occurs in stages. The first manifestations of asthenic neurosis are moderate, they do not lead to significant maladaptation, and if adequate therapeutic measures are taken at this initial stage, aggravation of symptoms can be avoided at subsequent stages of the disease.

There are three main stages of asthenic neurosis:

• hypersthenic form of neurasthenia;
• irritable weakness;
• hyposthenic form.

At the first, hypersthenic stage, unreasonable irritability and increased excitability arise. A person begins to react painfully to the most insignificant stimuli, for example, the sound of the TV or the sound of rain outside the window.

Those around them, surprised by such a person’s loss of self-control, easily fall under the hot hand. It becomes difficult for the patient to cope with professional responsibilities, however, not due to fatigue or exhaustion, but due to scattered attention and distraction from the task, inability to concentrate on it. A person has difficulty falling asleep, often wakes up, and does not feel the usual vigor in the morning. During this period, there are frequent complaints of weakness, fatigue, constant headache, loss of strength, various unpleasant sensations in the body and rapid heartbeat.

At the second stage, the stage of irritable weakness, much more pronounced exhaustion and fatigue are added to excitability and irritability. Reactions of irritation become violent and numerous, and the reasons for this become more insignificant. Cognitive impairments, in particular attention deficits, become obvious to the person himself.

Concentration drops critically, work falls out of hand. The patient still complains of somatic ill health - poor sleep, pain in various parts of the body. In some cases, depression may develop or libido may decrease, leading to impotence in men. If treatment of the disease is not undertaken at this stage, it progresses to the final hyposthenic form.

At the hyposthenic stage of neurasthenia, the manifestations of the disease reach their maximum. Patients experience increasing apathy, impotent weakness, explosive irritability, they are completely absorbed in their unpleasant sensations. Mobilization to carry out everyday tasks is unthinkable for them, since persistent fatigue makes them inactive and passive.

All this gives rise to intense hypochondriacal complaints, of which there is no shortage. The depressive mood background is visible to the naked eye. Anxiety may appear, and in some cases patients become tearful.

Seeking psychiatric help is necessary for such manifestations of asthenic neurosis, since a chronic course with periodic exacerbations can lead to the development of cyclothymia.

What are the common symptoms and signs of neurasthenia?

Regardless of the stage of the pathology, asthenic neurosis is characterized by:

• asthenic-hypochondriacal and depressive-hypochondriacal complaints;
• sleep disturbances with superficiality, difficulty falling asleep or frequent awakenings;
• increased tendon reflexes, eyelid tremor and some other neurological signs;
• increased sensitivity (hyperesthesia) of the skin;
• sexual dysfunction in the form of decreased libido, erectile dysfunction, impotence, vaginismus, etc.;
• patient-perceived cognitive decline.

Despite the abundance of complaints from patients with neurasthenia, their subjective painful perception of their illness as extremely severe, which is caused by a depressive background mood, it is extremely important to convey to them the understanding that asthenia of this type responds well to therapy and can pass without a trace, leaving no changes in the psyche and human personality.

Diagnosis of asthenic disorders

Being a mental illness of the neurotic spectrum, neurasthenia is diagnosed by a specialized specialist. In this case, the psychiatrist must, based on a face-to-face conversation with the patient and his medical history, distinguish the pathology from other related diseases that occur with asthenic syndrome. Such differential diagnosis will allow you to select an adequate therapeutic regimen.

Many people suffering from manifestations of neurasthenia have been trying for a long time to cope with it in other ways, but if the pathology has gone far and requires medical intervention, then such efforts will not bring results.

How is neurasthenia treated and what can you do yourself?

Treatment of asthenic neurosis is complex and involves the application of known efforts by the patient himself, since the first recommendation of therapy is to eliminate the causes that provoked the disease. It is in this matter that, in addition to drug support, you can do a lot yourself.

So, everyone can identify the cause of physical or mental fatigue, irritability and nervousness. If the patient is busy with an overwhelming job with constant rush jobs and hassle, it is worth simply changing it to a simpler and calmer one, which requires vacation and mandatory weekends for proper rest.

If a person falls ill due to constant conflicts and turmoil in the family, it is worth reviewing and adjusting the style of relationships between its members in order to create comfortable conditions at home that are conducive to recovery.

Mental exhaustion due to insufficient and malnutrition (for example, as a result of a special tendency to varied diets) can be well treated by establishing a balanced diet of proteins, fats, carbohydrates, vitamins and microelements.

Acupuncture and similar alternative medicine methods also sometimes work if the patient believes that it will help him get better. You can resort to massage, therapy with pleasant aromas and music.

In each specific case, it is better to begin treatment of asthenic neurosis immediately; it is reversed, first of all, by changing the patient’s lifestyle with the elimination of all factors that provoke an exacerbation, be it intense intellectual stress or a morally suppressive boss.

In the case of an infectious nature of neurasthenia, it is worth starting with treatment of the underlying disease, and if the genesis is intoxication, it is necessary to exclude the effect of toxic substances on the body.

Regardless of the reasons for the origin of asthenic neurosis, sanatorium-resort treatment is indicated, in which balneotherapy will be an advantage.

Drug therapy and psychotherapeutic assistance

As for psychotherapy, designed to help a sick person eliminate the cause of his condition, it is effective both as individual conversations with a specialist and as group and family therapy.

A psychiatrist, based on the clinical picture of a particular patient, may prescribe:

• benzodiazepine tranquilizers, which will have a sedative (calming) effect, including reducing excitability and anxiety;
• small doses of antipsychotics (in extreme cases);
• antidepressants (if depression develops as a result of the disease).

Of course, side effects may occur during psychotropic therapy, so choosing a suitable regimen may take some time. In severe cases, it is carried out in a hospital setting.

In addition to psychotropic drugs, it is advisable to take general strengthening vitamin and mineral complexes, and in case of apathy, activating herbal tinctures with psychoactive properties, for example, eleutherococcus or Chinese lemongrass.

Prognosis and prevention of the disorder

If all recommendations are followed, the prognosis for asthenic neurosis is positive and complete recovery is highly likely. When provoking chronic factors continue to influence the patient and cause further crises, the disorder can last for decades and significantly affect the quality of life, therefore, when its first symptoms appear, it is worth taking the necessary measures immediately.

The best prevention is social and psychohygienic measures - the creation of favorable living and working conditions, rational career guidance, avoidance of emotional overload and occupational hazards.