Somatic symptom disorder criteria include which of the following?

• A. Excessive thoughts about symptoms
• B. No symptoms
• C. Intentional production of symptoms
• D. Fear of losing mental health

Answer: (A)

Somatic symptom disorder centers on how a person experiences and responds to real bodily symptoms. The essential feature is having one or more somatic symptoms that are distressing or disrupt daily life, plus excessive thoughts, feelings, or behaviors related to those symptoms. The most important component among the options is excessive thoughts about the symptoms—disproportionate and persistent worry about their seriousness, high health-related anxiety, and a lot of time and energy devoted to the symptoms. This pattern helps explain why the symptoms are considered part of a disorder rather than just a normal reaction or a different diagnosis.

The other options don’t fit. There are symptoms present, so “no symptoms” is not correct. Intentionally producing symptoms points toward factitious disorder or malingering, not somatic symptom disorder. A general fear of losing mental health aligns more with illness anxiety disorder, which centers on fear of illness rather than the symptoms themselves.