In Shakespeare's Macbeth, after Lady Macbeth helps assassinate King Duncan, she laments that no matter how hard she tries, she will never be able to wash her hands.
Physicians today face a similar problem. Like Lady Macbeth, many patients deal with this symptom - the constant sensation of dirty hands, even when there seems to be nothing to contaminate them.
“We often come across patients who have an obsessive desire to wash their hands as often as possible. This is usually a symptom of an obsessive-compulsive disorder (obsessive-compulsive disorder), as well as a consequence of physical or emotional trauma,”explains psychologist Stanley Rahman.
The irrational fear of dirt and germs causes a persistent desire to wash in people suffering from obsessive-compulsive disorder. So, some patients suffering from obsessive-compulsive neurosis deliberately limit their intimate life to lovemaking only in a certain room at home, fearing sexual discharge.
However, sometimes the fear of contamination does not apply to real contaminants - a condition psychologist Rahman calls "mental contamination."
“It's a persistent feeling of internal pollution caused by a psychological or mental disorder,” says Rahman. "The source of dirt in this case is not external pollutants such as blood or dust, but human interaction."
Mental degradation, humiliation, painful criticism, betrayal - all this can lead to the formation of mental pollution. Patients may experience a sense of contamination when in direct contact with the individual who deceived them, or even at the mention of that person.
Just as the heroes of the novel by J. K. Rowling "Harry Potter" completely refuse to say aloud the name of the evil ruler Voldemort, so such patients may steadfastly refuse to name their abuser. Therefore, the treatment of a disease with an undetermined pathogen is extremely difficult.
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Typically, a form of therapy is used to heal the fear of a particular physical agent, which involves repeated exposure to the source of the phobia. For example, patients suffering from a fear of germs should overcome their phobia and at least touch the trash can.
According to Rahman, a quarter of such patients usually refuse treatment after the first sessions or cannot stand it. And out of 10 patients undergoing this form of therapy, three do not experience any improvement. In these cases, treatment may have no effect at all, since the cause of the disorder lies only in the brains of people.
Rahman conducted an experiment to observe 50 young girls who were sexually abused. Many women reported that they were haunted by the persistent feeling of "pollution" after the incident, and they obsessively try to wash off this dirt from themselves. However, some women were never able to get rid of the persistent sensation even after many months.
Rahman and his colleagues believe that they have come close to an effective method of treating mental pollution, which has already yielded results in 12 patients suffering from obsessive-compulsive syndrome. The researchers are now planning a more extensive experimental process that will allow them to fully verify the preliminary results of previous therapies.
If the chosen method of treatment demonstrates its further effectiveness, then “we will be able to help all those in need who are now, like Lady Macbeth, beyond our capabilities,” says psychologist Rahman.
Dmitry Buinov