Chapter 7: Mood Disorders and Suicide

Key vocabulary terms from the chapter covering definitions, clinical features, specifiers, theories, treatments, and suicide-related concepts.

Mood Disorders

Psychiatric conditions marked by gross deviations in mood, including depressive and bipolar disorders.

Major Depressive Episode

At least 2 weeks of extreme sadness or loss of interest plus cognitive and physical symptoms that impair functioning.

Anhedonia

Inability to experience pleasure; loss of interest or energy typical of severe depression.

Mania

A 1-week (or shorter if hospitalized) period of abnormally elevated or irritable mood with increased energy and risky behavior.

Hypomanic Episode

A milder form of mania lasting ≥4 days with noticeable change in functioning but no marked impairment or psychosis.

Mixed Features

Simultaneous presence of manic and depressive symptoms within the same mood episode.

Unipolar Mood Disorder

Condition in which the person experiences only depression or only mania, but not both (mania-only is rare).

Bipolar Mood Disorder

Disorder characterized by alternating periods of depression and mania/hypomania.

Major Depressive Disorder (MDD)

One or more major depressive episodes without any history of mania or hypomania.

Persistent Depressive Disorder (Dysthymia)

Chronic, milder depression lasting at least two years (one year in youth) with few symptom-free periods.

Double Depression

Pattern in which dysthymia is punctuated by superimposed major depressive episodes.

Cyclothymic Disorder

At least 2 years of numerous periods of hypomanic symptoms and mild depressive symptoms that never meet full episode criteria.

Rapid-Cycling Specifier

For bipolar I or II: four or more mood episodes within 12 months; linked to greater severity and poorer response to meds.

Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)

Recurrent depression (or bipolar episodes) following a seasonal pattern, most often winter-onset depression.

Peripartum Onset

Depressive or manic episode beginning during pregnancy or within 4 weeks after delivery.

Melancholic Features

Specifier for MDD marked by profound anhedonia, early-morning awakening, weight loss, and excessive guilt.

Atypical Features

Depressive episodes with mood reactivity, hypersomnia, increased appetite/weight, and sensitivity to rejection.

Psychotic Features

Presence of delusions or hallucinations during mood episode; may be mood-congruent or incongruent.

Catatonic Features

Marked motor immobility or excessive, purposeless activity occurring during mood episodes (more common in depression).

Anxious Distress Specifier

Clinically significant anxiety symptoms accompanying a depressive or bipolar episode; predicts poorer outcome.

Learned Helplessness Theory

View that depression results when people feel they have no control over life stressors and develop a sense of hopelessness.

Depressive Cognitive Triad

Beck’s concept that depressed persons hold negative views about themselves, the world, and the future.

Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs)

First-line antidepressants (e.g., fluoxetine) that block serotonin reuptake; fewer side effects than older drugs.

Tricyclic Antidepressants

Older class of antidepressants (e.g., imipramine) that block norepinephrine and serotonin reuptake but have many side effects.

Monoamine Oxidase (MAO) Inhibitors

Antidepressants that inhibit the enzyme MAO; dietary restrictions required to avoid hypertensive crises.

Lithium Carbonate

Mood-stabilizing drug effective in treating and preventing manic episodes; blood levels must be monitored.

Electroconvulsive Therapy (ECT)

Controlled brain seizure induced under anesthesia for severe, treatment-resistant depression.

Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS)

Noninvasive treatment using magnetic pulses to stimulate brain regions; alternative for depression unresponsive to medication.

Cognitive Therapy (CT)

Psychological treatment that teaches clients to identify and correct negative thinking patterns associated with depression.

Interpersonal Psychotherapy (IPT)

Short-term therapy focusing on resolving interpersonal stressors (grief, role disputes, transitions, social deficits) to relieve depression.

Behavioral Activation

Depression treatment that increases engagement in rewarding activities to counteract avoidance and withdrawal.

Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT)

Relapse-prevention approach combining mindfulness practices with cognitive techniques for remitted depression.

Suicidal Ideation

Serious thoughts about wanting to die or kill oneself.

Suicide Attempt

Self-injurious behavior with at least some intent to die but not resulting in death.

Psychological Autopsy

Postmortem investigative technique that reconstructs the motives and state of mind of individuals who completed suicide.

Interpersonal Theory of Suicide

Model positing that perceived burdensomeness, thwarted belongingness, and capability for self-harm jointly produce lethal suicide risk.