Psychosomatic aspects of rehabilitation of leprosy patients.

One important factor which makes the rehabilitation of a leprosy patient difficult is his common development of emotional aberrations. In the minds of the people, leprosy is so much associated with sin, punishment, physical disfigurement and social isolation that it is a very traumatic experience for the patient to accept the diagnosis . It is no wonder that leprosy patients often develop complexes, neurotic symptoms and even psychotic reactions. These are usually easy to identify and to treat; but sometimes these emotional reactions can be more subtle. The anxiety associated with the fact of having leprosy is repressed and complexes of guilt, fear and punishment are produced. These in tum, manifest themselves as subtle and vague behavioral disturbances which are difficult to understand. For example, a patient who has unconscious guilt feelings, may decide to continue as a leprosy patient as a vicarious suffering and may not cooperate with any treatment program. He may exhibit the mechanism of negation and this can produce an unwillingness on his part to take treatment. He may exhibit the mechanism of over-compensation and can become an aggressive and difficult patient. He may also show a gross degree of projection and become paranoid. Successful treatment will depend on understanding these mechanisms and helping the patient to overcome them. It is a common experience that in spite of the fact that