&gt;On what basis do you dismiss the physical sensations felt by these people as nothing but anxiety resulting from surgery?<p>The parent comment wasn&#x27;t dismissing it. Quite the contrary. You, however, do seem to be dismissing it, by saying &quot;nothing but anxiety&quot;. Anxiety is very real.<p>&gt;Would you similarly dismiss phantom pain and prescribe anti-depressants and CBT?<p>Pain can quite often be caused&#x2F;exacerbated by psychological factors. Perhaps you should google &quot;central sensitization&quot;. The parts of the brain that registers pain (the insular cortex and ACC) are also responsible for attaching emotional feelings to pain. In some cases (e.g. fibromyalgia) the pain persists in the absence of any physical pain signal.