What is a characteristic symptom of conversion disorder?

Sudden paralysis or blindness represents a characteristic symptom of conversion disorder, which is classified as a type of somatic symptom disorder. In conversion disorder, individuals experience neurological symptoms that are inconsistent with or cannot be explained by medical or neurological conditions. These symptoms can manifest physically, such as loss of motor function (paralysis) or sensory functions (blindness), and often arise in response to psychological stress or trauma.

The key aspect of conversion disorder is that the symptoms are real to the individual but do not have a medical basis—this differentiates it from purely psychological conditions and emphasizes the mind-body connection in the manifestation of symptoms. Hence, individuals may exhibit significant impairment in functioning due to these symptoms, which are not intentionally produced or feigned.

While chronic headaches, intense fatigue, and frequent panic attacks are associated with various other psychological or medical conditions, they do not specifically align with the hallmark features of conversion disorder, which primarily involves sudden, dramatic loss of physical function with no identifiable biological cause.