Hyperprosexia: symptoms and treatment of this attentional disorder.

A type of psychological disorder that manifests itself through an exacerbated attentional capacity.

The ability to attend to the stimuli around us is one of our most basic and at the same time most essential capacities for survival: after all, even to feed ourselves or flee from predators we need to be able to attend to and focus our resources on what is around us.

Thus, having a low attentional capacity is a relevant difficulty in nature, as well as in the social environment: it is more difficult for us to learn about things, to understand them and to be able to relate to the environment. Therefore, it may seem that having a high attentional capacity is always something positive. And the truth is that, as a general rule, having a high attentional capacity can favor our adaptability.

However, there are conditions in which there may be an excess of attentional capacity which implies the emergence of difficulties similar to those that would generate its deficit. This is what happens with hyperprosexia, which we will discuss in this article.of which we are going to speak throughout this article.

What is hyperprosexia?

We give the name of hyperprosexia to a condition characterized by the presence of an excessive focalization of the attention towards the stimuli of the environment.. It is a quantitative alteration of attention, specifically an exacerbation of attention. It involves a highly pronounced interest in stimulation and the presence of hypervigilance and hyperlucency, as well as the highest possible degree of alertness and concentration. It is considered to be an attention disorder, although it is generally considered more of a symptom than a disorder per se.

Although it may seem that having an exacerbated attention is something positive, in reality hyperprosexia usually entails a high level of distractibility due to the difficulty to maintain attention or to move it away from a specific stimulus.

Hyperprosexia can negatively affect the adaptation to the environment of those who suffer from hyperprosexiaIt is difficult to learn in school, or to be productive in a company. It can also be problematic at the level of personal interaction, and can even be a danger when carrying out activities such as driving.

Thus, the most important effects of hyperprosexia have to do with the time dedicated to focus on the really important stimuli, or the inability to direct the attentional focus to what is important because there are other stimuli that distract too much and do not allow the person to focus.

Types

There are two main aspects in which there can be an exacerbation of the attentional capacity, although it is the first one that has the greatest tendency to be considered hyperprosexia.

The first of these implies that the subject is unable to concentrate, since he/she is incapable of maintaining attention on one point, since in reality the person is only concentrating on one point.In fact, the person only directs his attention superficially to the different stimuli before the rest of them demand his attention. This alteration implies that the exacerbation of attentional mobility. In other words, he/she is fixated on everything but not focused on anything, so that the subject actually presents high distractibility or attentional instability.

The second of the major options implies that the exacerbation is found in the fixation capacityIn this case, the person concentrates extremely and persistently on one stimulus, being unable to attend to other stimuli. Thus, the person only concentrates on a single stimulation and cannot react adequately to what is happening around him.

Thus, in practice, excess attention has the paradoxical effect that we are unable to concentrate on what is relevant, a fact that serves to question whether there really is a surplus or a lack of attentional capacity. We must not forget that the criterion of whether or not we pay enough attention depends on our ideas and beliefs about what is important and opportune in each case; in other words, it is somewhat debatable. Hyperprosexia is another example of how psychological disorders are always analyzed through social conventions and consensual ideas about what is good and what is bad.

Disorders associated with this attention disorder

Hyperprosexia is a disorder of attention that, as we have seen, usually appears as a symptom of some physical or mental pathologies rather than as a disorder in its own right..

Among the different conditions in which it can arise we can find intoxication by substances or consumption of exciting drugs such as cocaine. It can also be found in manic episodes, delirium or very high states of anxiety (not necessarily an anxiety disorder). (not necessarily an anxiety disorder). On the other hand, it is observed in psychotic disorders, such as schizophrenia.

Treatment

The treatment of hyperprosexia is usually linked to that of the disorder that has generated itDifferent therapeutic strategies can be used depending on the causes of onset.

Thus, in the case of drug intoxication, it may be useful to use blocking agents such as naloxone, euthymics in the case of manic episodes or antipsychotics in the case of schizophrenia or other psychotic disorders. The use of benzodiazepines or other anxiolytics may be useful. In any case, the use of these drugs should only be prescribed by a physician.