cardiac neurosis

an anxiety reaction precipitated by a heart condition, the suspicion of having a heart condition, or the fear of developing coronary disease. In some cases, a cardiac neurosis develops when the patient detects a harmless heart murmur, palpitations, or a chest pain due to emotional stress. In other cases, it may be caused or aggravated by a physician’s examination (see iatrogenic). Cardiac anxiety is a common symptom of panic disorder; it may also be a focus in hypochondriasis.

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Psychology term of the day

March 17th 2025

enactment

1. the acting out of an important life event rather than expressing it in words. See psychodrama.

2. in some forms of psychoanalytic psychotherapy, the patient’s reliving of past relationships in the transference relationship with the therapist and, conversely, the therapist’s move away from active neutrality to unwittingly intertwine personal issues into symbolic interactions with the patient (a countertransference phenomenon). Attunement to the relational patterns that emerge in this therapeutic relationship offers the therapist an opportunity to help the patient acknowledge and work through similar patterns in the patient’s relationships with others. See also relational psychoanalysis; self psychology.

3. in some forms of couples therapy, a technique in which the therapist recreates areas of conflict between partners in order to facilitate bonding moments.

4. see structural family therapy.