This psychologist and coach tells us about psychological therapy and its influence on the general health of the patient.
In addition, the management of emotions can have important consequences at the level of our physical health .
Interview with Rubén Camacho, psychologist and coach
Precisely about this link between emotions and physical health is the main topic of our conversation with psychologist Rubén Camacho , a therapist with extensive experience behind him.
With him we will learn more about the importance of the therapeutic bond and the influence of our thoughts on our physical health.
Bertrand Regader: Is the link between emotional management and physical health often underestimated?
Rubén Camacho: First of all, many thanks for the interview with the HealthyMortel team and greetings to all the readers. Perhaps both things happen: it is undervalued by orthodox or conventional medicine, because doctors deal with organic and not psychological or emotional causes in relation to health, and therefore do not know about the importance of managing emotions in our daily well-being and health, but its importance is also distorted by a multitude of non-scientific approaches that put all the weight of our problems on “disorders” or emotional difficulties without really understanding what the role of emotions is in our health and well-being.
Emotions and how we understand and manage them is a weighty factor, but not the only one. The way in which we manage our emotions favors health or worsens it, but it is not the only cause or the precipitating factor.
Does a long time have to pass between the moment when the person’s emotional state changes and the moment when the first symptoms of health problems appear?
In reality, the human being is an emotional being and, therefore, is excited 24 hours a day. Every second of the day we feel emotions. Even when we dream, we get excited. So emotions not only affect our state of mind, but also every decision we make, our behavior, our way of seeing life, communicating and relating. The influence on health is actually constant.
Each emotion we feel is accompanied by a physiological reaction (how we breathe, sweating, body posture) as well as a different secretion of hormones and chemicals. One minute of repressed or poorly managed anger can be equivalent to almost 24 hours of cortisol in the blood. The anger may arise now, but the health problem will not come from that episode of anger, but from not knowing how to manage that emotion on a regular basis (with the passing of days or weeks).
Would obesity and overweight be examples of how trying to improve the state of health (by losing weight) can worsen the situation if the psychological aspect is not taken into account?
Yes, they are very clear examples. Why do we overeat or malnourish ourselves with junk food? They are habits, social, cultural, palatability factors (we have become accustomed to artificial flavors that keep us from enjoying authentic food), but, above all, it is an emotional factor.
We eat to feel good in order to calm the anxiety of hunger, and it is not a natural or functional hunger, but the hunger or anxiety of lack of nutrients, which we satisfy with a new intake of food without nutrients (salt, sugar, chemicals, flavorings, etc.). It seems like a vicious circle with no way out and stomach reductions are actually a radical and somewhat clumsy solution, as well as invasive. The solution lies in understanding our emotions and knowing how to manage them, in addition to re-educating ourselves in a nutritional sense.
Do you think there are certain emotions with special potential when it comes to degrading our state of health?
Our entire emotional spectrum (all the emotions we feel) affect our behavior, way of seeing life, decisions, and also our body. Are there certain emotions with special potential? I would rather say that it depends on how you manage them. Anger in itself is not negative and helps us realize what we don’t like or want to change. The problem is when we manage them in a dysfunctional way.
Anger, usually, when we do not know how to manage it and conditions our lives, generates problems in the immune system, cardiovascular problems or simply great exhaustion. But it can also happen with insecurity, anxiety or anguish, which although they are not basic emotions, they do imply an emotional state. Living based on fears, guilt or frequent insecurities exhausts us and does not allow us to live in a healthy way. Sometimes, the eating problems that we talked about before or even addictive substances usually occur precisely because of difficulties in managing our emotions.
Based on your experience with clients, what are the most common problems with which people contact you and that have to do with a compromised state of health in part due to poor emotional management?
I would like to answer this question in reverse: what is one of the most common problems of patients of almost any age (except very young children) when they go to the doctor? They are tired. They suffer from tiredness, exhaustion, joint pain, also sleep problems… And what usually causes all this?
Usually it is something as simple and at the same time as annoying as living with frequent conflicts, anger, stress, insecurity, guilt or fear. Probably the emotion that causes us the most health problems is anger. Going through the day in anger, stress , or frustration often takes its toll.
Regarding the way in which psychologists intervene on this class of problems, what therapeutic techniques and tools do you think are most useful?
More than a technique or tool, I would say that it is a matter of method. If there were a universal technique or tool that would work for everyone, it would be easier. The main keys in relation to the method are in the company, listening, accompanying in a non-directive way, change and commitment. That is to say: the psychologist must accompany the person in a genuine and human way instead of being so limited by time (the famous 50 or 60 minutes of weekly or fortnightly sessions, which are sometimes insufficient, which is why people seek so often courses that are also not particularly useful except for entertainment).
The company must be non-directive, that is: it is about accompanying like a clean mirror, without advice, opinions, guides, or letting itself be carried away by previous theories (as is the case today with many “emotional theories” without any foundation in the field of the pseudo therapies or rather the paraphernalia of the courses and new therapies). Change: not only serves to let off steam, but to really learn to understand our emotions and know how to manage them in another way, more functional, with specific changes. And finally the commitment: live the processes from start to finish (not just a few relief sessions).
In what way does the situation of clients and patients usually improve once the psychologist teaches them to regulate their emotions?
It really is the person who learns to regulate or know how to manage their emotions through an action plan, their own experience, self-knowledge and personal awareness. The psychologist should only accompany in an expert way. How does it improve? For many intense emotions (such as anger), changes are often felt within days. Improves mood, weight, sleep, as if a great weight had been lifted. In relation to more subtle and elusive emotions, such as fears, more time is usually needed, but the result is more in well-being than in health. Quite simply, people are happier when they know how to have their emotions on their side instead of against them.
To the classic question “what do you do?” I always answer “basically I am a psychologist”. In fact, my academic training has revolved around the psychology of development, education and community, a field of study influenced my volunteer activities, as well as my first work experiences in personal services.