Clinical Issues in Treating Somatoform Disorders for Couple Therapists

Although somatic symptoms have no clear medical etiology, they commonly present in primary care practices and have become a financial burden in healthcare due to unnecessary medical exams, medications, and surgeries. Despite repeated medical intervention, somatoform disorders are chronic conditions that perplex patients, their partners, families, and primary care providers. This article provides an overview of somatoform disorders and offers a relational paradigm to understand the maintenance of somatic symptoms in couple relationships. We suggest that couple therapists are in a unique position to collaborate with primary care providers to manage somatic patients. A case example is provided, along with caveats for couple therapy and directions for future research.