Sudden symptoms of symbolic nature developed under extreme psychological stress (e.g., war, loss, natural disaster) that disappear through hypnosis.

1. Assessment:
1. Neurological symptoms—paralysis, aphonia, tunnel vision, seizures, blindness, paresthesias, anesthesias.
2. Endocrinological symptoms—pseudocyesis.
3. Hysterical, dependent personality profile: exhibitionistic dress and language; self-indulgent; suggestible; impulsive and global impressions and hunches; little capacity to concentrate, integrate, and organize thoughts or plan action or outcomes; little concern for symptoms, despite severe impairment ("la belle indifference").
2. Analysis/nursing diagnosis:
1. Prolonged loss or alteration of physiological processes related to severe psychological stress and conflict that results in disuse, atrophy, contractures. Primary gain—internal conflict or need is kept out of awareness; there is a close relationship in time between stressor and occurrence of symbolic symptoms.
2. Impaired social interaction: chronic sick role related to attention seeking.
3. Noncompliance with expected routines related to secondary gain—avoidance of upsetting situation, with support obtained from others.
4. Impaired adjustment related to repression of feelings through somatic symptoms, regression, denial and isolation, and externalization.
5. Ineffective individual coping (e.g., daydreaming, fantasizing, superficial warmth and seductiveness related to inability to control symptoms voluntarily or to explain them by known physical disorder).