How does it feel to have alexithymia?

People who do have alexithymia may describe themselves as having difficulties with expressing emotions that are deemed socially appropriate, such as happiness on a joyous occasion. Others may furthermore have trouble identifying their emotions. Such individuals don’t necessarily have apathy.

Can alexithymia cause anxiety?

Alexithymia may increase anxiety, depression, and stress and can be a predisposing factor to poorer HRQOL and social support.

What is alexithymia linked to?

Several studies have shown that alexithymia may be associated with suicidality in general population samples (56–58) and in a variety of clinical samples, including those with; obsessive-compulsive disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, adjustment disorder, binge eating disorder, schizophrenia, traumatic …

How can I help alexithymia?

Treatments for Alexithymia Don’t punish, shame or mock their emotional unresponsiveness. Instead, practice patience. Consider explaining your needs in briefer terms, “I’m feeling tired, I don’t want to cook. Let’s get take-out for dinner.” Or helping them label emotions, “You look angry.

Is alexithymia a symptom of depression?

A person with alexithymia is twice as likely also to experience depression. But at the same time, research shows that symptoms of alexithymia decline with a reduction of symptoms of depression. It is not clear whether alexithymia is a cause or consequence of depression. People who experience PTSD are more likely to develop alexithymia.

How does alexithymia affect your personality?

If you have alexithymia, you do not only have trouble knowing how you feel, and you also struggle to tell how others feel. This can make you socially anxious as you cannot read non-verbal cues. You may come across as socially awkward or lacking in humour.

What is alexithymia and how is it treated?

Alexithymia is not a condition in its own right, but rather an inability to identify and describe emotions. People with alexithymia have difficulties recognizing and communicating their own emotions, and they also struggle to recognize and respond to emotions in others.

Do you fall on the alexithymia spectrum?

Surprisingly, given how generally unrecognized it is, studies show that about 1 in 10 people falls on the alexithymia spectrum. New research is revealing what’s going wrong — and this work holds the promise not only of novel treatments for disorders of emotion, but of revealing just how the rest of us feel anything at all.