Jahnavi Sarma
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Written By: Jahnavi Sarma | Published : March 24, 2020 8:04 PM IST
People with this condition withdraw into themselves and they may also stop speaking completely. @Shutterstock
Walking corpse syndrome is a rare psychiatric disorder that is also known as Cotard's syndrome or Cotard's delusion. People who suffer from this condition believe that parts of their body are missing. They may also believe that their soul is missing or that they are dead. This condition is so rare that only about 200 known cases are there in the entire world. Mental health experts have connected this disorder to a dysfunction in the areas of the brain that has the responsibility for recognizing and associating emotions with faces, including their own. Patients suffer a complete emotional detachment. They also tend to remove any sense of personal identity when looking at their bodies. Though doctors try to treat this condition with medications, electroconvulsive therapy works better in most cases.
People with this condition withdraw into themselves and they may also stop speaking completely. They may hear voices in their head, which tell them that they are either dead or dying. They may stop eating and bathing and sometimes may also inflict self-injury.
Psychiatricts are not clear about what exactly causes this condition. But many believe that it may be a side-effect of another medical condition like dementia, Parkinson's disease, stroke, multiple sclerosis or epilepsy. Encephalopathy, a condition where a virus or toxin affects how your brain works, may also be behind this condition. Sometimes, migraine, brain damage and subdural bleeding can also lead to the Walking corpse syndrome.
This is not a gender or age-specific condition and anybody, at any age, can be a victim to this disease. But people with a history of mental health problems are more at risk. Depression and anxiety, schizophrenia and substance abuse can also increase your risk of this condition.
This is a difficult condition to diagnose and sometimes, doctors may confuse it with some other psychiatric disease.
Most doctors try out a combination of medication and therapies to treat walking corpse syndrome. Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and psychotherapy may be recommended. A doctor may also recommend anti-psychotics and anti-anxiety medications. Anti-depressants may also be used in the treatment of this condition. In severe cases, a doctor may recommend electroconvulsive therapy (ECT).
