Querulantism is the human tendency to constantly argue, litigate and defend one's interests by any means, to the point of disregarding the rights of others. The name of the disease comes from the Latin word "complain", which reveals the very essence of this phenomenon. So what is querulism? Let's figure it out.
Syndrome Description
Querulant people tend to constantly complain about the infringement of their rights, social injustice, deceit from all sides, non-compliance with legal norms and laws. The meaning of life for such people is going to courts and human rights centers, many years of proceedings in order to achieve the only possible, in their opinion, justice. The search for "victims" for their attacks gives querullants visible and undisguised pleasure. The thirst to defend their rights in the hospital, in the store, at work or on the street is obsessive and irresistible for such people. He althypeople call it all a hard case.
Quite often querullants can become quick-tempered and even aggressive, they have a very high psycho-emotional background, they are characterized by cruelty and perseverance in achieving their goals. A querulant can be cunning and treacherous, disregarding the concepts of morality, kindness, and humanity. Litigation can be either a separate pathology or just a symptom of a more serious mental disorder of the brain.
Psychopathic personalities are most susceptible to this ailment.
Definition and signs of litigation
Already in the 19th century, they began to study such a phenomenon as a querulant reaction. K. T. Jaspers, a psychiatrist from Germany, placed this condition on the border between psychopathic fanaticism and delusions, calling querulism a psychosis of passion. Later, persistent complaints received another name - litigation. In the modern world, the litigious syndrome is practically not studied. This is due to the recently widely developed tendency to defend the rights imposed by the West, in particular the United States. The line between the norm in this matter and the pathology has blurred, and it is quite difficult to define querulism.
Querulantism is a syndrome that arises and develops according to the following pattern. A person is captivated by the idea of an injustice done to him. Sometimes this is due to a real court decision not in favor of the querulant. This becomes the starting point and the emergence of a protest against the infringement of his rights.
After this followsprolonged bureaucratic activity in various instances, endless complaints, lawsuits, appeals, etc. Cases of decisions not in favor of the litigator are perceived by the latter as a biased attitude, and everything starts all over again. Such a person is not able to soberly assess the situation, the interests of others fade into the background. The purpose of life becomes to prove one's case.
Querulantism is a syndrome that occurs in both sexes and peaks between 40 and 70 years of age. Especially strongly and often querulism manifests itself in times of severe social and political crises. Unemployment, low pensions, infringement of rights and freedoms - all this is a trigger for litigants.
There are two hypotheses for the development of querulism.
Genetics
Querulantism is considered as a hereditary pathology that manifests itself in the presence of certain psychogenic factors. The risk of developing a litigious syndrome is especially high in stuck individuals. The most susceptible to the development of the syndrome are people with an increased emotional background, touchy, susceptible to any criticism.
Sign of a mental disorder
This is a more severe case. As mentioned above, querulism can only be one of the symptoms of another disease, schizophrenia or paranoia. In this case, the litigants are considered as mentally ill people. Litigation can lead to aggression. There have been cases in psychiatry when litigants staged riots andeven went for the kill. Querullants are characterized by the absence of hallucinations, but false memories, which become the basis of litigious delusions, are not excluded. The aggravation of the situation occurs during periods of exacerbations and depends on their duration. Formally, the behavior of querullants is correct, but often too aggressive and inappropriate.
Symptoms
The main symptoms of querulism are:
- Sensitivity and high emotionality.
- Endless criticism of the political situation, he alth care, work.
- Persemania.
- Paranoia.
- Controversial nonsense.
- Aggression towards others.
- Disregard for the rights and interests of others.
- Egoism and egocentrism.
- Negativism.
- Exaggerate the scale of your own problems.
- Demonstrative behavior.
- Superior ideas.
- Confidence in your worth.
- Denial of an existing illness.
Many people wonder what querulism is and how it is treated. With the first part of the question sorted out, it's time to move on to the second.
Need for hospitalization
In some cases, it is urgently necessary to place the litigant in a psychiatric clinic. This leads to a negative reaction of the patient, causing in some cases a state of passion. Therapy is usually long and without a guarantee of a complete cure.
Querulants are often quick-tempered and suspicious, selfish and prefer not to turnattention to the interests of others. Their behavior is demonstrative and aggressive, and quite often it is only veiled under the defense of their rights. The complaints of such people usually have a threatening connotation (this can be a threat of dismissal, payment of compensation for moral damage, and even physical violence). Most often, the threats are exclusively verbal, but there have also been cases of illegal acts.
Self-interest only
If we consider querulism as a syndrome of litigation, then people suffering from this disease tend to defend only their own rights and freedoms, and not society as a whole. They do not listen to the opinions of others and fight their imaginary enemies alone.
The litigants are very persistent in their aspirations, they have been litigating for many years. As a rule, the decision rendered by the court does not satisfy them, and the proceedings continue. Their own imaginary inferiority gives querullants a hidden pleasure, they love to be pitied. Lost cases spur litigants to commit new "feats". The Guinness Book of Records recorded a case when a US resident filed about three thousand lawsuits in seven years.
Treatment
Querulantism in psychiatry is considered a fairly common ailment. Two approaches are used in the treatment of strife syndrome:
- Drug treatment involving antipsychotics and tranquilizers.
- Psychotherapy, which includes psychoanalysis,cognitive behavioral therapy and psychodynamic approach.
What can play a positive role?
Only patience and high qualifications of a specialist can play a positive role in the treatment of querulism by the psychoanalytic method. Litigious personalities skillfully spread their negativism to others. Often they accuse the psychotherapist of incompetence, especially during the theoretical analysis and search for the causes of the disease.
Cognitive behavioral therapy is aimed at eliminating conflict situations. The specialist helps the querulant to understand the underlying cause of the appearance of pathology, remove obsessive ideas, explain suspiciousness on the topic of infringement of interests and rights.
How long does a flare-up last?
The stage of exacerbation can last up to several years, followed by the onset of remission. However, a new round of the disease can begin against the background of psychosocial changes. Unfortunately, sometimes the treatment of strife syndrome can backfire, making the situation worse.
Relationships with Querullants are quite complex and ambiguous. If this pathology has developed in a family member, it is urgent to consult a specialist and start treatment. The problem in this case is that it is impossible to forcibly place in a medical institution if a person does not pose a danger to others and himself. And the querulant will not give his consent to hospitalization due to the lack of criticism regarding his condition.
We looked at the meaning of the word"Querulantism". We hope you never have to meet such people in your life.
