psychological diagnoses - everyone fears being accused of having an imaginary illness
age - fit, healthy 60-year-olds resent implications that ailments such as osteoarthritis are due to old age
insecurity - an insecure patient may misinterpret the doctor's remarks as criticism and feel further undermined
taboos - for example, sex or contraception may be unacceptable areas to discuss
aggression - reacting aggressively to aggression is inappropriate - it is often caused by fear, previous bad experience with doctors or anxiety that the condition will not be taken seriously. It can also be caused by guilt or by ignorance of other ways to respond.
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