Mood Disorders and Suicide

Vocabulary practice flashcards covering mood disorders, bipolar disorders, causal factors, medical- and substance-induced mood conditions, suicide risk, and treatment modalities.

Mood disorders

Psychological disorders involving severe alterations in mood that are intense, persistent, clearly maladaptive, clinically significant, and significantly deviate from the individual's baseline emotional state.

Euphoric mood (mania)

A mood state characterized by intense and unrealistic feelings of excitement and euphoria.

Dysphoria (depression)

An emotional state involving feelings of extraordinary sadness and dejection, serving as the essential element of depressive disorders.

Mixed features (mixed episode)

A mood presentation characterized by symptoms of both mania or hypomania alongside depressive features.

Major depressive disorder

A disorder in which an individual experiences intense but time-limited episodes of depressive symptoms.

Recurrent major depressive disorder

A diagnosis characterized by two or more major depressive episodes occurring within an interval of at least 2 consecutive months.

Major depressive episode

A period characterized by dysphoria for most of the day, nearly every day for at least 2 consecutive weeks, accompanied by symptoms such as sleep disturbances, fatigue, and low self-esteem, typically lasting 6 to 9 months if untreated.

Persistent depressive disorder (dysthymia)

A chronic but less severe mood disturbance characterized by a blue mood lasting for a minimum of 2 years in adults (1 year for children and adolescents), averaging 4 to 5 years in duration.

Seasonal affective disorder (SAD)

A mood disorder with depressive episodes that typically occur during the fall and winter and subside during the spring, occurring more frequently among women and individuals living in northern latitudes.

Unspecified Mood Disorder

A diagnostic category applied when symptoms characteristic of a depressive disorder cause clinically significant distress or impairment, but fail to meet the full criteria for a depressive or bipolar disorder.

Disruptive mood dysregulation disorder (DMDD)

A depressive disorder diagnosed in children ages 6 to 18 (with onset before age 10) who show chronic, severe irritability and temper outbursts averaging 3 or more times per week across at least 2 settings for at least 1 year.

Premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD)

A disorder involving depressed mood, irritability, dysphoria, and anxiety during the premenstrual phase that subside after menses begins across most cycles of the preceding year.

Neuroticism

The primary personality variable serving as a vulnerability factor for depression and anxiety, characterized by temperamental sensitivity to negative stimuli and a tendency to experience negative moods.

Learned helplessness model of depression

A cognitive model proposing that perceived lack of control produces helplessness and depression, mediated by internal/external, global/specific, and stable/unstable causal attributions.

Bipolar I disorder

A subtype of bipolar disorder distinguished from major depressive disorder by at least one euphoric episode or mixed features lasting for at least 1 week.

Bipolar II disorder

A subtype of bipolar disorder characterized by one or more major depressive episodes alongside at least one clear-cut hypomanic episode.

Hypomanic episode

A milder version of euphoria lasting at least 4 days that causes less impairment than full mania and never requires hospitalization.

Cyclothymic disorder

A chronic, less severe form of bipolar disorder lasting at least 2 years (1 year in children and adolescents) characterized by numerous hypomanic and depressive periods, with symptoms never absent for more than 2 months.

Rapid cycling

A course pattern in bipolar disorder defined by experiencing at least 4 mood episodes within a single year.

Depressive Disorder Due to Another Medical Condition

A diagnosis characterized by a prominent and persistent depressed mood or diminished interest/pleasure directly resulting from the physiological effects of a general medical illness.

Substance-induced mood disorder

A disruption in thoughts, feelings, or actions lasting days or weeks caused by taking, abusing, or discontinuing a medicine, drug, alcohol, or toxin that disrupts brain neurochemistry.

Suicide

A fatal self-inflicted destructive act committed with explicit or inferred intent to die.

Suicidal continuum

A four-stage progression consisting of suicidal ideation (thinking about ending one's life), developing a plan, suicide attempt (nonfatal behavior), and suicide (actual death).

Self-harm without the Presence of Suicidality

A DSM-5-TR diagnosis where deliberate physical harm is inflicted without suicidal intent, allowing clinicians to assess risk and track behaviors separately from suicidality.

Resilience

A psychological construct defined as good coping skills and the belief that one can overcome adversity, which significantly lowers the risk of suicide.

Monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs)

An early class of antidepressants developed in the 1950s marked by intense and potentially lethal side effects, dietary interactions, and severe withdrawal symptoms.

Lithium

The most common mood-stabilizing medication utilized to treat both the depressive and euphoric episodes of bipolar disorder.

Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT)

A biological treatment that intentionally induces seizures, typically utilized for severely depressed patients who present acute suicidal risk.

Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS)

A noninvasive brain stimulation technique that utilizes focal magnetic pulses to stimulate nerve cells to alleviate symptoms of major depression, OCD, anxiety, and PTSD.

Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS)

A neuromodulation procedure in which electrodes are surgically implanted into the brain and stimulated with electric currents controlled by a pacemaker-type device placed in the upper chest.

Behavioral Activation Treatment

A therapeutic modality that focuses on encouraging patients to become more active and socially engaged with their environment and relationships.

Interpersonal Therapy (IPT)

A form of psychotherapy centered on resolving current relationship problems and recognizing and modifying maladaptive interaction patterns.