What are the physical symptoms of codependency?

Some physical symptoms of co-dependency are chronic sinusitis, headaches and migraines, constant colds or flu, muscle spasms, spastic colon, constipation, unexplained joint pain, night sweats and nervous tension. Fibromyalgia, heart disease, chronic fatigue, immune deficiency, and excessive weight loss or weight gain may also result from a co-dependent mindset.

A term originally applied to the spouses of alcoholics, co-dependency may also be applied to members of a dysfunctional family and caregivers of an ill parent. These individuals are in danger of symptoms such as low self-esteem, problems with creating personal boundaries, reactivity and the need to please other people.

Co-dependents often put the perceived needs of others ahead of their own. However, people-pleasing and care-taking may also evolve into methods of manipulation because being in control helps co-dependents feel secure. Fear of being rejected or abandoned and denial concerning the source problem are common symptoms of co-dependency. While some affected individuals exhibit needy behavior, others insist that they're self-sufficient and don't need love or intimacy. Unhealthy dependence on another person may lead to anxiety, stress and a variety of fears, such as claustrophobia, dreading to make mistakes and feeling like a failure, all of which may lead to depression, anger and resentment, despair and hopelessness.