Journal
PSYCHOLOGY & HEALTH
Volume 21, Issue 1, Pages 19-31Publisher
TAYLOR & FRANCIS LTD
DOI: 10.1080/14768320500105346
Keywords
worry; somatic complaints; intervention; ecological momentary assessment; stress
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This study examines whether worry is prospectively associated with somatic complaints and whether a worry reduction intervention can decrease these complaints. One hundred and seventy-one high school students (16-17 years old) kept a log of their worry duration and frequency for 6 days, of whom half were instructed to try to postpone worrying to a special 30-min worry period each day ('postponers). Somatic symptoms during 'the last 3 days were assessed before and after the 6 days. At follow-up, postponers reported fewer complaints than controls, controlled for baseline. This reduction appeared to be mediated by worry duration, and pertained to, amongst others, lower back pain, neck pain, coughing/bronchitis, breathing difficulties and stomach pains. Thus, daily worry appears to be prospectively related to a broad set of somatic complaints, and its effect might be reversed by a simple intervention. Possible underlying mechanisms include prolonged physiological activity and illness-related perseverative cognition.
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