Masako, wife of Japan’s new emperor Naruhito, was diagnosed in 2004.
Naruhito, Crown Prince of Japan, was enthroned, Wednesday, May 1, Emperor of Japan. He did not ascend to the throne alone: his wife, Masako Owada, also became empress. But she has a hard time with this new status imposed on her, and has been for several years. The former diplomat has an adjustment disorder.
A stress response syndrome
According to a document of Rouen University Hospital, the concept of adjustment disorder appeared in the 1980s in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, an American reference work. It is defined there as a stress response syndrome, whether of traumatic origin or linked to a change in life. According to MG Psy, a site to help general practitioners with the recognition of psychological disorders, adjustment disorder is often linked to changes in the patient’s life that are existential. In some cases, this can reveal a fragility in the construction of the personality.
A life under pressure
Empress Masako Owada probably experienced her integration into the imperial family as an existential change. This daughter of a diplomat studied brilliantly abroad before becoming a diplomat in 1986, in charge of negotiations at the OECD. Invited in October 1986 to a reception organized by the royal family, the crown prince fell under her spell. He proposes to her two years later.
Masako abandons his career, and very quickly, must respond to pressure from the imperial family: to conceive an heir. She becomes pregnant six years after the wedding, but miscarries. A medically assisted procreation procedure helps her to get pregnant: she gives birth to Aiko, a girl, in 2001. However, in Japan, the heir must be a man, which accentuates family tensions. Three years later, the doctors diagnosed an adjustment disorder in the new empress, linked to the stress caused by her condition.
physical and psychological symptoms
The symptoms of this disorder are very varied. They can be physical: insomnia, headaches, pain, palpitations… But also psychological, with states of distress, persistent worry, even behavioral problems. Normally, adjustment disorder does not last longer than six months, but Masako Owada is said to suffer from it chronically.
Congratulations to the new Emperor of Japan, Emperor Naruhito and his wife Empress Masako. It is a new era called Reiwa. #japan #newemperor #Naruhito #newerajapan #Reiwa #?? pic.twitter.com/QSrZ2UwQXS
— John Albrecht (@johnalbrecht6) May 1, 2019
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