Each time a client is scheduled for a therapy session she develops headache and nausea. The nurse might interpret this behavior as?

Appeared in: RAK Nursing Officer - 2019

Explanation

Conversion is an unconscious defense mechanism where psychological stress or conflict is 'converted' into physical symptoms.
In this case, the client's anxiety or distress related to the upcoming therapy session manifests as genuine physical symptoms like headache and nausea.
The key feature is the direct link between a psychological stressor (the therapy session) and a physical symptom that has no underlying medical cause, often serving to avoid the stressful situation.
The symptoms are not intentionally produced or feigned; they are a real experience for the client resulting from intrapsychic conflict.

Why Other Options Were Wrong

Option B: This involves expressing the opposite of one's true feelings. The client is showing physical distress, not acting overly happy or eager for therapy.
Option C: This involves attributing one's own feelings to someone else. The client is experiencing symptoms herself, not accusing the therapist of being hostile or nauseous.
Option D: Suppression is a conscious, intentional act of pushing thoughts away. The physical symptoms of headache and nausea are involuntary and unconscious manifestations of distress.

Related Visual

Clinical Relevance

Nursing practice connection: Use the key finding related to Identification of psychological defense mechanisms to guide bedside assessment, documentation, and the next nursing action.
Nurses must recognize that conversion symptoms are real to the patient and not feigned (malingering). The patient is not consciously faking the illness and requires empathetic care.
The nursing approach involves acknowledging the reality of the symptom to the patient while focusing on exploring and managing the underlying stress and encouraging continued participation in therapy.
What if? If the client consciously decided to pretend to have a headache to get out of therapy, the behavior would be Malingering, not Conversion. The key differentiator is conscious intent for secondary gain.

How to Approach the Question

Identify the core event: The client develops physical symptoms (headache, nausea).
Identify the trigger: These symptoms consistently occur before a specific stressor (therapy session).
Analyze the relationship: A psychological trigger is leading to a physical manifestation.
Evaluate the options based on their core definitions. Ask: Is the process conscious or unconscious? Is it an internal experience or projected onto others? Is it a thought, a behavior, or a physical symptom?
Select the defense mechanism that describes the unconscious transformation of psychological distress into physical symptoms, which is the definition of conversion.

Concept Tested & Keywords

Concept Tested: Identification of psychological defense mechanisms.
Stem keywords: therapy session, headache, nausea, behavior
Lead-in keywords: interpret this behavior as
Clinical cues: The consistent timing of the symptoms (before therapy) is a key clue linking a psychological stressor to a physical manifestation.

Question ID

QgPCRbUW9-zLA-pUw4Kok-

Reference Book

E6 Psychology Applied Sreevani 6e Sem1 p. 69-71

E6 Psychology Applied Sreevani 5e p. 68-70

E6 Robert Boland, Marcia L. Verduin - Kaplan and Sadock's Comprehensive Text of Psychiatry-Wolters Kluwer Health (2024) (pp 1-16525 of 16525) p. 1600-1602

Practise the full RAK Nursing Officer - 2019

Attempt every question from this paper in a timed mock, then review the full solution for each one.

Attempt this paper Attempt in the NPrep app