The setting: requirements
Privacy
Comfortable surroundings
An appropriate setting arrangement

Factors which influence doctor-patient communication

Patient-related factors (patient’s feel at that time)
Physical symptoms
Psychological factors related to illness and/or medical care (e.g. anxiety., depression, anger, denial)
Previous experience of medical care
Current experience of medical care

Factors which influence doctor-patient communication

Doctor-related factors
Training in communication skills
Self-confidence in ability to communicate’personality
Physical factors (e.g. Tirdeness)
Psychological factors (e.g. Anxiety)

Factors which influence doctor-patient communication

Others
The patient’s beliefs about health and illness
The problem they wish to discuss
Their expectation of the doctor will do (often based on previous experience)
How they perceive the doctor

The setting of the inteview

In each case every effort should be made to provide a setting that facilitates communication
Privacy is essencial
Try to avoid interruptions and make sure that the lighting and temperature are as comfortable as possible
The arrangements of the seat
There are 3 possible setting (see pictures)
Try to drag a chair when we’re having consultation with the patient is on the bed. This would create the same “level”, so the patient wont feel threatened

Guideline for conducting an interview

Beginning the interview
Greet the patient by name and shake hands, if it seems appropriate
Ask the patient to sit down
Introduce yourself
Explain the purpose of the interview
Say how much time is available
Explain the need to take the notes and ask if this is acceptable

The main part of the interview
Maintain a positive atmosphere, warm manner, good eye contact
Use open question at the beginning
Listen carefully
Be alert and responsive to verbal and non ferbal cues
Facilitate the patient, both verbally and non-verbally
Use spesific questions when appropriate
Calrify what the patient has told you
Encourage the patient to be relevant

Ending the interview
Summaries what the patient has told you and ask if your summary is accurate
Ask if the would like to add anything
Thank the patient

A circle of close friends and strong family ties can boost a person’s health more than exercise, losing weight or quitting cigarettes and alcohol, psychologists say.

Sociable people seem to reap extra rewards from their relationships by feeling less stressed, taking better care of themselves and having less risky lifestyles than those who are more isolated, they claim.

A review of studies into the impact of relationships on health found that people had a 50 per cent better survival rate if they belonged to a wider social group, be it friends, neighbors, relatives or a mix of these.

The striking impact of social connections on well being has led researchers to call on GPs and health officials to take loneliness as seriously as other health risks, such as alcoholism and smoking.

“We take relationships for granted as humans,” said Julianne Holt-Lunstad, a psychologist at Brigham Young University in Utah. “That constant interaction is not only beneficial psychologically but directly to our physical health.”

Holt-Lunstad’s team reviewed 148 studies that tracked the social interactions and health of 308,849 people over an average of 7.5 years. From these they worked out how death rates varied depending on how sociable a person was.

Being lonely and isolated was as bad for a person’s health as smoking 15 cigarettes a day or being an alcoholic. It was as harmful as not exercising and twice as bad for the health as being obese. The study is reported in the journal Plos Medicine.

Holt-Lunstad said friends and family can improve health in numerous ways, from help in tough times to finding meaning in life. “When someone is connected to a group and feels responsibility to other people, that sense of purpose and meaning translates to taking better care of themselves and taking fewer risks.”

Holt-Lunstad said there was no clear figure on how many relationships are enough to boost a person’s health, but people fared better when they rarely felt lonely and were close to a group of friends, had good family contact and had someone they could rely on and confide in.

Writing in the journal, the authors point out that doctors, health educators and the media take the dangers of smoking, diet and exercise seriously, and urge them to add social relationships to the list.

A report by the UK Mental Health Foundation in May blamed technology and the pressures of modern life for widespread feelings of loneliness in all age groups across Britain. The survey of more than 2200 adults found one in 10 people often felt lonely and one in three would like to move closer to their family.

Being unable to control blood sugar levels is the primary reason for diabetic men to suffer from erectile dysfunction. Arteries tend to get damaged by high blood sugar contents and as a result less blood is able to flow to certain parts of the body, the penis being among them.

However, diabetes isn’t the only condition that is known to cause erectile problems. Numerous physical conditions such as high cholesterol, hypertension, neurological conditions, heart diseases, hormonal imbalance and blood vessel disorders raise the risk of experiencing problems with erection. Moreover, erection issues can be cause by medication side effects and substance abuse (alcohol, street drugs, smoking, etc.) Besides, certain psychological conditions are also known to cause sexual disorders in men: depression, anxiety, relationship problems, mental illnesses, etc.

Truth is that it is possible to control and prevent the development of such sexual problems. Some of the easiest and most obvious ways to maintain sexual health include control over the sugar and cholesterol levels, loss of any excessive weight, regular exercises and healthy lifestyle. Numerous studies confirm that men who lose weight and are generally more active tend to have much lower risk of ED then overweight inactive men.

Sometimes, medications used for controlling diabetes and blood sugar levels can cause erectile dysfunction as a side effect. In this case you should contact your doctor and ask for your medication to be changed. You should also consult regarding any other prescription and non-prescription drugs that you are taking on a regular basis.

Unfortunately, medications such as Cialis and Viagra, which are very effective in relieving ED, often fail in men with diabetes because of the high sugar levels and damaged blood vessels associated with the condition. Still, if you choose to buy Viagra and use it for boosting your sexual abilities, you should consult with your doctor regarding the dosage as it may require adjustments to your condition.

Other methods of erectile function enhancement can have higher success rates than drugs like Viagra. Penile injections, vacuum pumps and implants are as effective as in all other men. However, if speaking of surgeries, the risk of infections in men with diabetes is higher and doctors rarely choose this type of treatment to restore sexual functions in diabetic men. Testosterone therapy can also be used, however it should be done under strict doctor supervision, especially in men with diabetes who are still producing testosterone.

As you see, even having diabetes doesn’t necessarily mean that you are doomed. There are many ways to help retain sexual abilities even in diabetic men and it’s up to you to make the necessary lifestyle changes in order to control and prevent the development of such problems in the future.

Until recently, studies have had conflicting findings about the effect of moderate caffeine consumption on pregnancy complications but a College committee has reviewed the evidence.

“I think it’s time to comfortably say that it’s OK to have a cup of coffee during pregnancy,” Dr. William Barth, the chair of the College committee, told Reuters Health. The College’s Committee on Obstetric Practice said that 200 milligrams of caffeine a day — about the amount in a 12-ounce cup of coffee — doesn’t significantly contribute to miscarriages or premature births.

That definition of “moderate caffeine consumption” would also include drinking about four 8-ounce cups of tea or more than five 12-ounce cans of soda a day, or eating six or seven dark chocolate bars. The committee said the evidence was not clear on whether consuming more than 200 mg of caffeine a day might increase pregnancy risks.

The group considered two recent studies, each of which followed more than 1,000 pregnant women. One study, led by Dr. David Savitz of The Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York, found no increased rate of miscarriage for women who consumed low, moderate, or high levels of caffeine at different points in their pregnancy.

In the other, Dr. De-Kun Li and his colleagues at Kaiser Permanente’s Division of Research in Oakland found a higher risk of miscarriage in women who consumed more than 200 mg of caffeine per day, but no extra risk at lower levels. The committee also pointed to two other studies that found that a mother’s moderate caffeine intake did not make it any more likely she would deliver a baby prematurely.

Research has shown that caffeine is able to cross the placenta, which led to worries that it could cause miscarriage or premature birth. In the United States, about 16 percent of all pregnancies end in miscarriage and about 12 percent of babies are born prematurely.

Barth said previous studies were mixed and unclear about the link between caffeine and pregnancy risks. It was the new findings from large groups of women that allowed the committee to feel confident that moderate caffeine intake was safe.

Let’s get the helpful piece of news out of the way. No one knows why it happens. For some it’s a regular disruption to sleep, particularly affecting some women during the later stages of pregnancy. People who play sport or exercise more vigorously also report more incidents than the couch potatoes among us. The only useful information is that muscles come in pairs, one to push, the other to pull. So, when you want to move, the relevant muscles have to cooperate by simultaneously contracting and relaxing. If the paired muscle will not relax when it’s supposed to, you get a cramp. When this happens, the worst thing you can do if try to force the muscles to relax by pulling violently at your leg. This can overstretch the muscles and tear them. Not surprisingly, this tear can be painful and, unlike the cramp, the pain will not simply fade away. Start with a massage and do not stretch until you feel some relaxation begin.

Truth be told, it would be better if we could prevent the cramps from coming in the first place. The traditional remedy has been quinine – with or without the gin as you prefer. This extract from the bark of a tree not only fights malaria, it also reduces the “excitability” of muscles, i.e. you lie more still when you go to sleep. Unfortunately, quinine interacts with several important modern drugs and so it has been withdrawn from the market by the FDA. This leaves you with the choice of drinking a bottle of tonic water every night, or looking for an alternative remedy. More people are looking at muscle relaxants like Carisoprodol. The first problem is the risk to the fetus if the drug is taken during pregnancy. This is unfortunate because night cramps are more common among pregnant women. But the risks outweigh the benefits. Carisoprodol may therefore be tried by men and women not planning a family. This is subject to one general warning. Over the short term, you may get relief. This drug will relax the muscles and prevent night cramps. But it cannot be taken over a long period of time. Equally important, Carisoprodol does not treat the underlying cause. If night cramps affect you on a regular basis, get medical advice on safer alternatives for the long term.

What is it?
A disease in which bones become fragile and more likely to break.
Breaks usually occur in the hip, spine and wrist

What causes osteoporosis?
Scientist have not yet learned all the reasons this occurs.
When you are young your body makes new bone faster than it breaks down old bones.
As you get older, this process slows down and you start losing bone density.
The risk for osteoporosis depends on how much bone mass you attained between ages 25 and 35 and how fast you lose it.

Risk Factors
Anorexia nervosa or bulimia
Diet low in calcium
Use of certain medications
Low testosterone levels in men
An inactive lifestyle
Cigarette smoking
Excessive use of alcohol
Being Asian or Caucasian

Bone Health
Bones are living tissue, they provide structural support, protect vital organs and store calcium.
Until age 30, we store and build bone effectively.
As part of the aging process, bones begin to break down faster than they are formed.
Accelerates after menopause. Estrogen is the hormone that protects against bone loss.

Bone Mass Density
The National Osteoporosis Foundation
Recommends you have a BDT if:
You use medications that cause osteoporosis
You have type I diabetes, liver disease, kidney disease or a family history
You experience early menopause
You’re postmenopausal over 50 and have at least one risk factor.
You’re postmenopausal over 65 and never had a test.

Calcium
Is needed for heart muscles, and nerves to function properly.
Inadequate amounts contribute to osteoporosis.
Appropriate calcium intake falls between 1000 and 1300 mg a day

How to get enough Calcium every day!
Follow the Food Guide Pyramid
for Dietary Calcium Sources
Dairy- low fat yogurt, skim milk, cheese, chocolate pudding, ice milk, ice cream or frozen yogurt.
Protein- tofu, sardines, salmon
Vegetables- turnip greens, Bok Choy, Broccoli, collard greens
Other foods: vegetable lasagna, cheese enchilada, cheese pizza, calcium fortified orange juice.

Exercise
Exercising regularly in childhood and adolescence can ensure that you will reach peak bone density.
Need to participate in weight bearing exercise. For example, walking, dancing, jogging, stair climbing, racquet sports and hiking.

Medications
There is no cure, but several medications have been approved.
Each stops or slows bone loss, increases bone density, and reduces fracture risk.
Estrogen Replacement,
Alendronate,raloxitene and risedronate are prescribed to prevent and treat the disease.

Bone-Building Checklist
Maintain a calcium rich diet.
Get plenty of vitamin D
Engage in weight-bearing exercise
Don’t smoke and limit alcohol intake
Consider Hormone Replacement or other medications if you are at risk.

WHAT IS A BAD NEWS..??
Why is it difficult to give bad news??

may feel responsible and fears being blamed
not knowing how best to do it
possible inhibition
reluctance to change the exiting doctor-patient relationship
Fear of upsetting the patient’s exiting family roles

Not knowing the patient their resources and limitations
Fear of the implications for the patient
Fear of the patient’s emotional reaction
Uncertainty as to what may happen next
Lack of clarity about own role as a health-care provider

Options for managing difficult situations

To whom should bad news be given?
Who should give bad news?
When should bad news be given?
Should you give hope and reassurance along with bad news?

How to give bad news
There are five main consideration:
Personal preparation
The physical setting
Talking to the patient and responding to their concerns
Arranging follow-up or referral
Feedback and handover to professional colleagues

Sometimes people mistake symptoms of stomach flu or gastroenteritis for the viral infection we commonly call “flu,” which has symptoms of fever, congestion, muscle aches, and fatigue. Learn more about stomach flu and influenza so you can recognize flu symptoms and seek proper treatment.

How Does Stomach Flu Differ From Influenza?

Stomach flu actually refers to gastroenteritis or irritation and inflammation of the stomach and intestines (the gastrointestinal tract). Gastroenteritis may be caused by a virus, bacteria, parasites in spoiled food or unclean water, or another trigger such as lactose intolerance, which causes a reaction to dairy products.

Influenza (flu), on the other hand, is a viral infection that mimics a cold except that it starts forcefully with symptoms of fatigue, fever, and respiratory congestion. While more than 100 different virus types can cause a common cold, only influenza virus types A, B, and C cause flu. More severe cases of influenza can lead to life-threatening illnesses such as pneumonia.

In addition, while antibiotics can treat a bacterial infection, antibiotics cannot treat influenza because flu is caused by a virus.
What Are the Symptoms of Stomach Flu?

Symptoms of gastroenteritis or stomach flu include abdominal cramps, stomach pain, nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. You may also have fever, headache, and swollen lymph glands, depending on the type of bug that causes it.

In severe cases of gastroenteritis, loss of bodily fluid can result in dehydration, a life-threatening condition that needs medical attention. Signs of dehydration include sunken eyes, light-headedness, increased thirst, dry or sticky mucous membranes in the mouth, lack of normal elasticity of the skin, decreased urine output, and decreased tears.

You can avoid dehydration by continuing to drink fluids and gradually eating a bland diet such as the BRAT diet (bananas, rice, applesauce, and dry toast). A bland diet is easily digested and is unlikely to irritate your sensitive gastrointestinal system.

What Causes a Stomach Flu?

There are many causes of stomach flu, including bacteria such as E. coli, Campylobacter, Shigella, and Salmonella. Viruses can also cause stomach flu and are responsible for 30% to 40% of gastroenteritis cases in children. Common stomach flu viruses include norovirus or Norwalk-like virus, adenovirus, rotavirus, calicivirus, and astrovirus. Stomach viruses are notorious for spreading rapidly because of poor hand washing.

While not as common, parasites such as giardia and cryptosporidium can cause severe diarrhea and dehydration. Water-borne parasites are common in underdeveloped parts of the world that have unsanitary water supplies. It is recommended that travelers stick to bottled water to avoid water-borne parasites — a potential cause of stomach flu.

Some foods may irritate your stomach and also cause gastroenteritis. Reaction to dairy products in someone with lactose intolerance is the most common example. Severe reactions to seafood is another example.

A lack of good hygiene can result in a stomach flu. For instance, improper hand washing after using the bathroom or after changing a baby’s diaper can spread the infectious bug from person to person. Many doctors call stomach flu “a family affair” because it is so highly contagious and usually goes through all members of a family.
Who’s at Risk for Stomach Flu?

Those at high risk for stomach flu include pregnant women, infants, undernourished and immune-compromised people, and older adults.

In addition, the severity of infectious gastroenteritis depends on your immune system’s ability to resist the infection. Electrolytes (these include essential elements of sodium and potassium) may be lost as you vomit and experience diarrhea.
When Should You Call the Doctor About Stomach Flu?

If you experience symptoms of stomach flu and are weak and dizzy, you may be dehydrated. If you cannot drink fluids but continue to lose fluids through fever, vomiting, and diarrhea, you should call your doctor. If you are sleepy or unaware, you should definitely be taken to a doctor or hospital’s emergency department. Other signs that warrant medical treatment include:

* blood in the vomit or stool
* dehydration (check for little to no urination, extreme thirst, lack of tears, and dry mouth)
* fever higher than 101 degrees
* swollen abdomen or abdominal pain in the right lower part of the abdomen
* vomiting that lasts more than 48 hours

The latest “official” statistics on male pattern baldness claim it affects two-thirds of all men. In reality, all men slowly lose their hair as they age. Come the time to enter the ranks of the retired, the hairline will have receded and scalp will be showing through the thin wisps on top. As that ancient Brit, King Canute, discovered, you can sit on the beach at low tide but, no matter how much you command the sea not to come back in, it will. Biology is fixed by the clock. Hair thins and drops out. So why do some younger men lose their hair before the usual time?

Well, here come those pesky genes, specifically one or two on the X chromosome regulating how men react to the different versions of testosterone floating around in the bloodstream. Really, it’s all the fault of dihydrotestosterone. All men produce it but, if you have the wrong genes, this will trigger early hair loss. Did you know you get your X chromosome from your mother? She has two: one from her paternal grandmother and one from her mother. So if your your maternal grandfather had male pattern baldness, you are doomed. An exaggeration, of course, because many different genes contribute, deciding whether you will go completely bald or only lose enough hair to form that magic M. There are also environmental factors. Your hair loss can be accelerated by high stress, and by the presence of diabetes or heart disease. Diabetes in particular is significant because it affects the amount of testosterone in the blood.

Given all this science, it’s a relief to know we now have Propecia to help us out. So let’s be clear about its limitations. Propecia is a wonderful drug that really does stop hair loss and encourage some regrowth. But it has absolutely no effect on your genes, cannot do anything to help prevent or treat diabetes, and is powerless in the face of a stroke or heart attack. All that’s for you to deal with as best you can. Lifestyle changes can help. If you prefer positive action, Propecia prevents the natural process of testosterone turning into dihydrotestosterone so, no matter what you genes were programmed to do, your hair will not be affected. For those who decide to go with the flow (as nature intended), you can draw comfort from the latest studies showing more people think bald men are older, more distinguished and wiser than younger men with hair. They are not pretending to be something they are not. Of course, not all studies give truthful results.

But new research is revealing the trait can bring both profits and perils.

Though perfection is an impossible goal, striving for it can be a boon for one’s health, causing one to stick to exercise programs to a tee, say, or follow a strict regimen for treating chronic illnesses like type 2 diabetes. But the same lofty goals can mean added mental pressure when mistakes are made and the resistance to asking for help from others in fear of revealing one’s true, imperfect self.

In fact studies show the personality trait of perfectionism is linked to poor physical health and an increased risk of death.

Researchers are just beginning to tease apart this complex trait and its relation to health.

“Perfectionism is a virtue to be extolled definitely,” said Prem Fry, a psychology professor at Trinity Western University in Canada. “But beyond a certain threshold, it backfires and becomes an impediment,” she said. [Related: Perfectionists at Risk for Postpartum Depression]

Fry and several of her colleagues recently spoke at a symposium on perfectionism and health at the Association for Psychological Science convention in Boston.

What is perfectionism?

While some might aim to be perfect in certain areas of their life — such as an athlete who must stick to a grueling workout schedule — true perfectionism comes in a generalized form.

“You should want to be perfect across a variety of aspects of your life,” said Gordon Flett, a psychology professor at York University in Canada.

“It’s natural to be perfectionistic in the thing that matters the most, like your job — if you’re a surgeon, there’s no room for error,” Flett said. “[But] you don’t want that same person to be going home and using those same standards to evaluate family members, which causes stress,” he said. “It has to generalize.”

Perfectionism tends to have two components: a positive side, including things like setting high standards for themselves; and a negative side, which involves more deleterious factors, such as having doubts and concerns over mistakes and feeling pressure from others to be perfect.

Some scientists have argued a subset of these high-achievers can be classified as “positive perfectionists,” those who reap the benefits of perfectionism without falling victim to its ills. However, others say that while perfectionism might seem to be advantageous in certain situations, it always has a dark side that inevitably rears its head. For instance, a perfectionist might seem fine under normal circumstances, but lose control under stress.

While the existence of “positive perfectionists” is still debated, there’s no doubt the trait can be quite counterproductive in some cases.

“That, in essence is the paradox of perfectionism, that certain people have extraordinarily high standards, but objectively can often look very dysfunctional in terms of their daily functioning, their physical health, their achievement,” said Patricia DiBartolo, a psychology professor at Smith College, in Northampton, Mass. “They flunk out of college, and the reason why is they’re so perfectionistic they can’t actually achieve any goal; as you begin the process, it’s just impossible.”

Perfectionism and lifespan

Compared with the number of studies looking at perfectionism’s impact on mental health, relatively few have examined the condition’s toll on physical health. Some earlier work has linked the trait with various ailments, including migraines, chronic pain and asthma.

Fry and her colleagues recently looked at the relationship between perfectionism and overall risk of death. The study followed 450 adults aged 65 and older for 6.5 years. The participants completed an initial questionnaire to assess their level of perfectionism and other personality traits.

Those with high perfectionism scores, meaning they placed high expectations on themselves to be perfect, had a 51-percent increased risk of death compared to those with low scores.

The researchers suspect high levels of stress and anxiety, which are known to be linked with perfectionism, might contribute to the decrease in lifespan.

Next, they reasoned that if perfectionism showed this association in a normal population, it might have an even greater impact on those with a chronic disease, which would put their bodies under even more stress.

But after following 385 patients with type 2 diabetes for 6.5 years, the researchers actually saw the opposite effect. Those with high perfectionism scores had a 26-percent lower risk of death than those with low scores.

The results suggest that in certain situations, perfectionism can have advantages. With type 2 diabetes, scrupulous attention to blood sugar levels and strict adherence to dietary rules can have payoffs in terms of reducing disease severity, the researchers suspect.

“[Perfectionists] are very self-critical, they are not satisfied ever with their performance,” Fry said.

“In this particular study on diabetes, those kinds of perfectionistic attitudes, normally we would regard them to be dysfunctional attitudes, but in the case of the diabetic sample, they turned out to be very positive traits,” she said. “These individuals were highly self-critical, they worked harder than the average person to adhere to the instructions of the physician or the attending doctor in staying with all the do’s and dont’s of diabetic diet constraints.”

“So they ended up taking better care of themselves through self-management than people who were sort of more easygoing and lax,” she said.

Who expects perfection?

Some studies suggest the role of perfectionism on health might depend on who’s imposing the high standards.

In 2006, Danielle Molnar, of Brock University in Canada, examined the perfectionism-health link in nearly 500 Canadian adults between the ages of 24 and 35.

The study assessed participants for three different dimensions of perfectionism: self-oriented perfectionism, in which individuals impose high standards on themselves; socially prescribed perfectionism, where individuals feel others expect them to be perfect; and other-oriented, in which individuals place high standards on others.

People experience these perfectionist traits to varying degrees. One person might score high on all three, or they might fall into one extreme or another such as self-oriented perfectionism.

The researchers found socially prescribed perfectionism was associated with poorer physical health, which in this case meant individuals experienced more symptoms of health problems, had more doctors visits, took more days off work, and gave themselves low scores when asked to rate their health.

On the other hand, self-oriented perfectionism was associated with better physical health.

So what’s behind this relationship?

One factor could be the degree to which people feel happy or sad, known in psychology as positive or negative affect. The 2006 paper showed general negative feelings, including feeling anxious and upset, could partially explain the relationship they saw between socially prescribed perfectionism and poorer health. And feelings of happiness explained self-oriented perfection’s link with better health.

However, the pathway that connects perfectionism to health is likely more complex.

For instance, in more recent research, Molnar found self-imposed perfectionism conferred pros and cons with regard to health that canceled each other out.

“On one hand it was related to higher levels of stress in students, which was related to lower levels of health,” Molnar said. “On the other hand it had a protective factor, because it was also related to lower levels of high risk behavior,” which includes things such as smoking and drinking.

“You really have to look at the mechanism, not just looking at how perfectionism is directly related to health, but what pathways link it to health?” Molnar said. “Unless you look at the mechanism, a lot of the time [the effect] washes itself out because it will have opposing relationships.”

Other factors

Those who feel others expect them to be perfect might also experience declines in health as a result of distancing themselves from other people, and any support from friends and family.

“We know social support is a huge indicator of physical health. If you tend to have strong bonds with people, good family life, good friendships, you tend to be healthier,” Molnar said. “And we know socially prescribed perfectionists, they tend to have this sense of disconnection with other people, so it would make sense that one of the ways they would experience poorer health is because of this sense of social disconnection from others.”

Even if others reach out to help, socially prescribed perfectionists may view the kind actions as critical.

“Even when the levels of received support, so the support they’re actually getting, is the same, there’s been some work showing that perfectionists will actually appraise it differently,” Molnar said. “They don’t see it as nurturing and supportive, but that people are being critical of them, and they’re interfering, they’re perceiving that people aren’t there for them,” she said.

Other perfectionists might hold off on asking for help altogether, because they don’t want to let on that there’s anything wrong, or that they’re imperfect in some way.

“If you have to ask someone for help, well that means you’re flawed, that means you’re weak, right? And so I think there’s also that presentation of not wanting to seem like you need help from others,” said Fuschia Sirois, of the University of Windsor in Canada.

Poor health could also be the result of perfectionists leaving little time to care for themselves, while spending every minute striving for perfection, Sirois said.

Future work

More work is needed to untangle the intricate relationship between perfectionism and health.

For instance, few studies have examined perfectionism in older adults, which might be due to the incorrect notion that perfectionism eases with age, Fry said.

“We’ve gone along with the misconception that if people are perfectionistic in their earlier stages of life, that in late life their perfectionism sort of automatically tapers off, but it doesn’t tapper off,” she said.

Perfectionism in the elderly is of particular concern because, although they still have the same high expectations, they are unable to perform as well, which could ultimately lead to greater depression and anxiety, Fry said.

Researchers should also focus on understanding exactly why perfectionism is associated with poorer health or better health, depending on the situation.

“Without knowing the whys we can’t intervene, we can’t help these people,” Molnar said. “These people are walking around with incredibly unrealistic expectations … they’re not just striving for excellence, they’re striving for absolute perfection, which of course is impossible. So they’re setting themselves up for more failure experiences,” she said.

“We have to start understanding what’s going on in the middle so how can we help these people.”