Table 2.
Explanations given by the patients for symptoms categorised according to the SEMI coding manual.
| Perceived cause | Frequency | Percentage |
| Internal world (originating in the body or mind) | 18 | 26.4 |
| Mechanical-damage/blockage/abnormal function | 6 | 8.8 |
| Examples; 'Happened after the child birth; caesarean section',' Because of an injury to my leg 5 years back', 'Gastritis',' Illness of nerves', 'A fish bone or a metal pin stuck in the throat', 'I have swallowed a metal pin in 1950','a poison has got into my body', | ||
| Psychological/Emotional-worry/fear/upset/sad/lazy | 5 | 7.4 |
| Examples;'Because I breast fed my child while another child was watching', 'Brother got paralysed at the age of 37 years and I think about it' | ||
| Substance abuse-smoke/alcohol/ | 1 | 1.5 |
| Examples; 'Because of chewing betel', 'Did not eat my meals on time and neglected myself', | ||
| Fatigue- run down/weak spot/non specific stress | 2 | 2.9 |
| Ageing | 2 | 2.9 |
| Imbalance-diet/vitamin/lack of blood/hot cold | 2 | 2.9 |
| Examples;'Because of the Vatha' (ayurvedic concept referring to wind or gas) 'Due to too much heat in the body', | ||
| Natural world | 1 | 1.5 |
| Weather-rain/damp/sun/cold | 1 | 1.5 |
| Social world | 10 | 14.8 |
| Wrong action by health professionals | 3 | 4.4 |
| Delay in seeking help | 1 | 1.5 |
| Discrimination | 1 | 1.5 |
| Money | 1 | 1.5 |
| Examples;'Because I was not successful in life' | ||
| Work related | 4 | 5.9 |
| Examples;' Because I was in the catering field I developed anorexia for food', | ||
| Supernatural world | 1 | 1.5 |
| Supernatural or Magic by a human agency | 1 | 1.5 |
| Examples;'An evil spell cast by somebody else,' 'Due to de-merits of an earlier birth' | ||
| Any other – (vague answers that did not fit into any of above) | 13 | 19.1 |
| Unable to say | 25 | 36.8 |
| 'No idea', 'Don't know' | ||
| Total | 68 | 100.0 |