Emotions are reactions that human beings experience in response to events or situations.

Key Elements:

1. The subjective experience - your own experience of these emotions may be much more multi-dimensional, hence subjective.

2. The physiological response - emotions also cause strong physiological reactions.

3. The behavioral response - the actual expression of emotion.

The autonomic nervous system controls involuntary body responses such as digestion and blood flow.

The sympathetic nervous system controls the body’s fight or flight reactions.

The amygdala plays an important role in emotion and fear.

Emotional intelligence refers to the ability to identify and manage one's own emotions, as well as the emotions of others.

Theories of emotion

Darwin’s Evolutionary Theory of Emotion : suggests that emotions are adaptive to our environment and improves our chances of survival.

The James-Lange Theory : our physicals responses are responsible for emotion.

Perception of the angry bull → Physiological reactions → Feeling of fear

= I am scared because my heart is racing instead of my heart is racing because I am scared.

The Schachter-Singer Theory : suggests our thoughts are actually responsible for emotions. We perceive a situation as threatening so we experience fear.

Emotions, feelings and moods

Emotions are reactions to stimuli and have a definite and identifiable cause.

Feelings are what we experience as a result of emotions and are influenced by our perception of the situation making it highly subjective.

Moods are temporary emotional states and in most times may have an unidentifiable cause.

Stress

Stress is any type of change that causes physical, emotional or psychological strain. Stress can trigger the body’s response to a perceived threat or danger (fight or flight). During which hormones like adrenaline and cortisol are released, raising the heart rate, slowing digestion, increasing blood flow to major muscle groups, giving the body a burst of energy and strength.

Psychological signs - difficulty concentrating, worrying, anxiety and trouble remembering.

Emotional signs - being angry, irritated, moody, or frustrated

Physical signs - high blood pressure, changes in weight, frequent colds or infections.

Behavioral signs - poor self-care, overeating or undereating, social withdraw, drug misuse.

Mental health disorders

Mental health conditions are disturbances in a person’s thinking, feeling, or behavior that reflect a problem in mental function.

Mental Illness is defined as a health conditions that involves changes in emotion, thinking or behavior - or a combo.

Anxiety disorders

are characterized by the significant feelings of stress, fear and is accompanied by physical symptoms such as shortness of breath, rapid heartbeat and dizziness.

Three major anxiety disorders :

Generalized Anxiety disorder (GAD)

The general and persistent worry about everyday things - both in and not within our control.

• overthinking plans and solution for worst case outcomes

• perceiving situations and events as threatening, even when they aren’t

• difficulty handling uncertainty

• Indecisiveness and fear of making the wrong decision

• Inability to relax

Physical signs and symptoms:

• fatigue

• trouble sleeping

• nervousness

• easily startled

• muscle tension or aches

Panic Disorder

characterized by persistent panic attacks.

A panic attack is a sudden episode of intense fear that triggers sever physical reaction when there is no real danger or apparent cause.

Social anxiety disorder (SAD)

Person with SAD experience intense fear and anxiety when they feel they are the subject of attention.

Depressive disorders

The common feature of all depressive disorders is the presence of a sad, empty, or irritable mood, accompanied by physical symptoms and cognitive changes that significantly affect a person’s capacity to function.

Depression is marked by:

• a persistent sadness

• a depressed mood

• diminished interest in previously enjoyable activities

This condition arise from a complex combination of factors that can include:

• genetics

• family history

• trauma

• stress

• illness

Disruptive, impulse-control, and conduct disorders

involves problems with self control of emotions and behaviors.

Kleptomania - inability to resist urges to steal items that you generally don’t really need.

Conduct Disorder - children show :

• an ongoing pattern of aggression towards others

• serious violations of rules and social norms

Personality Disorders

characterized by odd or eccentric behavior. tend to become apparent until adolescence or young adulthood.

Cluster A personality disorders - behavior may be perceived as peculiar, suspicious or detached.

• Paranoid personality disorder - symptoms include chronic, pervasive distrust of other people, suspicion of being deceived or exploited by others.

• Schizoid personality disorder - characterized by social isolation and indifference towards other people. persons are described as cold or withdrawn, rarely have close relationships with other people, and may be preoccupied with introspection and fantasy.

• Schizotypal personality disorder - features odd speech, behavior, and appearance as well as strange beliefs and difficulty forming relationships.

Cluster B personality disorders - characterized by dramatic or erratic personality. tendency to experience very intense emotions or engage in extremely impulsive, theatrical, promiscuous or law-breaking behaviors.

• Antisocial personality disorder - tend to show up in childhood. disregard for rules and social norms and a lack of remorse for other people.

• Borderline personality disorder - characterized by instability in interpersonal relationships, emotions, self-image, and impulsive behaviors

• Histrionic personality disorder - excessive emotionality and attention seeking that often leads to socially inappropriate behavior in order to get attention

• Narcissistic personality disorder - self-centeredness, exaggerated self-image, and lack of empathy for others. often driven by underlying fragility in sense of self.

Feeding and eating disorders

characterized by a persistent disturbance of eating patterns to leads to poor physical and psychological health.

Three major eating disorders:

Anorexia nervosa

often stems from a distorted body image which may result from emotional trauma, depression or anxiety. Some people may view extreme dieting or weight loss as a way to regain control in their lives.

Symptoms:

• starvation

• insomnia

• severe weight loss

• amenorrhea

• dehydration

Bulimia

develop an unhealthy relationship to food over time. they may be caught in a cycle of: binge eating → panic about the calories consumed → extreme behaviors to prevent weight gain. Two types :

• Purging bulimia - regularly induce vomiting after binge eating. may misuse diuretics, laxatives, or enemas

• Non-purging bulimia - fasting or engaging in extreme exercise to prevent weight gain after a binge.

Binge-eating disorder

frequently consuming unusually large amounts of food and feel unable to stop eating.

Diagnosing mental disorders

most definitions of mental disorders include : dysfunction, distress and deviance.

meaning that disorders disturb an individual’s cognition, emotion regulation or behavior, that this causes distress for the individual, and that this behavior is a move away from what our culture determines is normal, typical, or average.