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The guide is divided into several chapters. Each chapter deals with a set of disorders which have a psychosomatic component.

1 Introduction

2 Definitions and Terms
2.1 Somatopsychic Presentations
2.2 Profiles and Associated Hypotheses
2.3 Typicality of Life Events and Situations
2.4 Multicausality
2.5 Syndrome Shift
2.6 Superstability
2.7 Alexithymia
2.8 Hypochondriasis
2.9 Placebo Effect
2.10 Conversion Hysteria Versus Psychosomatic Disorder: Diagnosis

3 Psychosomatic Disorders: Who Should Treat Them?
3.1 A Need for Greater Clinical Exposure
3.2 Why Clinicians Gave up Referring Classical Psychosomatoses
3.3 The Team
3.3.1 Weekly Nurses' Meeting
3.3.2 Combined Hospital and General Practitioner Care
3.4 Support Groups
3.5 Couple Therapy
3.6 Group Therappy
3.7 Reassurance

4 Psychodynamic Concepts and Mechanisms
4.1 Transference
4.1.1 Hazards of Parent-Child Transference
4.2 Ambivalence
4.3 "Identifying With"
4.4 Defences
4.5 When Illness Is Gainful
4.6 Stages of Personality Development

5 Interviews
5.1 The First Interview
5.1.1 The Appointment
5.1.2 The Setting
5.1.3 The Doctor's Appearance
5.1.4 Taking the History
5.1.5 Biographical Anamnesis
5.1.6 Facilitations
5.1.7 Hesitations and Qualifications
5.1.8 Silences
5.1.9 "Tin-Opening" Questions
5.1.10 Typicality
5.1.11 Non-Verbal Communications
5.2 Subsequent Appointments and Spacing of Interviews
5.2.1 Breaks in Care Continuity: Holidays
5.2.2 Termination
5.3 An Additional Note for General Practice
5.3.1 Confidentiality
5.3.2 Certification

6 Alimentary Tract
6.1 The Aphthoses
6.1.1 Aphthous Ulcer of the Mouth
6.1.2 Behçet's Syndrome
6.2 Sjögren's Syndrome/Sicca Syndrome/Kerato-conjunctivitis Sicca
6.3 Nervous Dysphagia/Oesophageal Spasm and Aerophagy
6.4 The Splenic Flexure Syndrome
6.5 Persistent Severe Disabling Aerophagy and/or Dysphagia
6.6 Duodenal Ulcer
6.6.1 Prophylaxis for Duodenal Ulcer and Ischaemic Heart Disease
6.6.2 Psychological Management for Duodenal Ulcer and Ischaemic Heart Disease
6.6.3 Typicality of Double-Barrelled Stress
6.6.4 Transcript
6.7 Whipple's Disease (Intestinal Lipodystrophy)
6.7.1 Case History
6.8 Coeliac Disease (Idiopathic Steatorrhoea)
6.9 Appendicitis
6.10 Crohn's Disease (Regional Enteritis)
6.10.1 Previous Reports
6.10.2 Psychological Management
6.10.3 Case Histories and Transcript
6.10.4 Summary
6.11 Ulcerative Colitis
6.11.1 Psychological Management
6.11.2 Transcripts and Case History
6.11.3 Summary
6.12 Irritable Bowel Syndrome
6.12.1 Psychological Management
6.12.2 Case Histories and Transcripts
6.12.3 Summary
6.13 Proctalgia Fugax
6.14 Chronic Relapsing Amoebic Dysentery
6.15 Chronic Constipation

7 Respiratory Tract
7.1 Hyperventilation Syndrome
7.1.1 Psychological Management
7.1.2 Psychosomatic Management
7.1.3 Case Histories
7.2 Vasomotor Rhinitis
7.2.1 Psychological Management
7.3 Asthma
7.3.1 Allergic and Psychogenic Causes
7.3.2 Mechanisms of the Expiratory Wheeze
7.3.3 Psychological Management
7.3.4 Transcripts

8 Cardiovascular Disorders
8.1 Essential Hypertension
8.1.1 Psychological Management
8.1.2 Case Histories and Transcript
8.2 Cardiac Arrhythmias
8.2.1 Premature Contractions (Ectopic Beats)
8.2.2 Paroxysmal Auricular Tachycardia
8.2.3 Auricular Fibrillation and Flutter
8.3 Ischaemic Heart Disease
8.3.1 Psychological Management
8.3.2 Psychological Management After Infarction
8.3.3 Transcript
8.4 Raynaud's Phenomenon

9 Certral Nervous System
9.1 Migraine, Vascular Headache and Premenstrual Tension
9.1.1 Diagnosis and Examination
9.1.2 Treatment
9.1.3 Summary
9.1.4 Premenstrual Tension
9.1.5 Transcripts
9.2 Multiple Sclerosis
9.2.1 Typicality
9.2.2 Case Histories
9.2.3 Childlike Appearances and Behaviour
9.2.4 Life Event Research
9.2.5 Psychological Management
9.3 Stroke
9.3.1 Psychological Management
9.4 Subarachnoid Haemorrhage
9.4.1 Psychological Management
9.5 Idiopathic Parkinsonism
9.6 Guillain-Barré Syndrome
9.7 Myasthenia Gravis

10 Immune System: Disorders of Immunological Competence and Autoimmunity
10.1 Rheumatoid Arthritis and Autoimmune Disease
10.1.1 Typical Coping Responses and Attitudes
10.1.2 Psychological Management
10.1.3 Transcripts and Case Histories
10.2 Infectious Mononucleosis
10.2.1 Psychological Management
10.3 Sarcoidosis
10.4 Cancer and Malignancy: Psychosomatic Aspects
10.5 Guillain-Barré Syndrome
10.5.1 Case Histories

11 Endocrinological Disorders
11.1 General Considerations
11.2 Diabetes Mellitus
11.2.1 The Education of Diabetes Educators
11.2.2 The Group Approach
11.2.3 Patients as Educators
11.2.4 Future Considerations
11.2.5 Summary
11.3 Dwarfi sm: Emotional Deprivation and Growth Retardation
11.4 Idiopathic Hirsutism
11.5 Hyperprolactinaemia
11.6 Thyroiditis

12 Musculoskeletal System
12.1 The Dropped Shoulder Syndrome - Costoclavicular Compression
12.1.1 Diagnosis
12.1.2 Psychological Management
12.1.3 Case Histories
12.2 Intervertebral Disc Disorders
12.2.1 Acute Disc Prolapse
12.2.2 Psychological Management
12.2.3 Case Histories

13 Urological Disorders
13.1 Case Histories
13.2 Urethral Syndrome, Detrusor Irritability or Pseudocystitis
13.2.1 Psychological Management
13.2.2 Case History
13.3 Hunner's Ulcer - Interstitial Cystitis
13.3.1 Psychological Management
13.4 Factitious Haematuria

14 Disorders of Blood
14.1 Pernicious Anaemia
14.2 Infectious Mononucleosis
14.3 Acquired Haemolytic Anaemia and Essential Thrombocytopenia
14.3.1 Case History
14.4 Hypereosinophilic Syndrome
14.4.1 Case Histories
14.5 Psychogenic Purpura: Autoerythrocyte Sensitisation
14.6 Thrombosis
14.7 The Haematological Stress Syndrome

15 Disorders of the Skin
15.1 Psoriasis
15.1.1 Consultation
15.1.2 Communication
15.1.3 Psoriasis Associations
15.1.4 Learning to Live with Psoriasis
15.1.5 Summary
15.2 Atopic Dermatitis
15.2.1 Psychophysiological and Psychoimmunological Mechanisms
15.2.2 Personality and Other Psychological Triggering Factors
15.2.3 Case History
15.2.4 Psychological Management
15.2.5 Therapeutic Approach to Atopic Dermatitis Patients
15.2.6 Psychotherapy
15.3 Chronic Urticaria
15.3.1 Psychophysiological Aspects
15.3.2 Psychological Treatment
15.3.3 Patient Management

16 Gynaecology, Obstetrics and Sexual Function
16.1 Menstrual Disorders
16.1.1 Amenorrhoea
16.1.2 Menorrhagia
16.1.3 Dysmenorrhoea
16.2 Vaginal Discharge
16.2.1 Teenage Discharge
16.2.2 Leucorrhoea
16.3 Irritable Colon, Colon Spasm, Spastic Colon
16.4 Infertility
16.4.1 Fertility Drugs and Fertilisation Techniques: Psychological Hazards
16.5 Pregnancy and Labour
16.5.1 Hyperemesis Gravidarum
16.5.2 Premature Labour
16.5.3 Uterine Inertia
16.6 Breast Feeding
16.7 Disorders of Sexual Function
16.7.1 Female Disorders
16.7.2 Male Disorders

17 Anorexia Nervosa, Bulimia, Induced Vomiting and Purging
17.1 Psychopathogenesis
17.2 Psychological Management
17.4 Outpatient or Inpatient Management or Both
17.5 Family Therapy - The Systems Model
17.6 Prognosis

18 Ear, Nose and Throat and Eye Disorders

19 Psychosomatic Medicine: Past, Present and Future
19.1 Distant Past
19.2 Past
19.2.1 Years of Promise
19.2.2 Years of Confusion
19.3 Recent Past and Present
19.3.1 The Retreat from Patients
19.3.2 Personality Inventories: An Unhelpful Diversion
19.3.3 Behavioural Science: Another False Lead
19.3.4 Resistances to Psychosomatic Medicine
19.4 The Future
19.4.1 Holistic Medicine Is Not Psychosomatic Meidcine
19.4.2 A Plan for the Future: New Departments of Clinical or Applied Medicine
19.5 Summary