Psychological Disorders

Statistics

Mental health disorders account for several of the top causes for disability in the U.S. worldwide, and include major depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, and obsessive-compulsive disorder; an estimated 26% of Americans ages 18 and older about 1 in 4 adults suffers from a diagnosable mental disorder in a given year

Many people suffer from more than one mental disorder at a given time. In particular, depressive illnesses tend to co-occur with substance use and anxiety disorders; Approximately 9.5 % of American Adults ages 18 and over, will suffer from a depressive illness (major depression, bipolar disorder, or dysthymia) each year

Syndrome marked by a clinically significant disturbance in a person’s cognition, emotion regulation, or behavior; thoughts, emotions, or behaviors are maladaptive or dysfunctional and are often accompanied by distress; diagnosis of specific disorders can vary from culture to culture “culture bound syndrome”: anorexia nervosa occurring in U.S

Susto occurring among Latinos in Mexico, Central America, and South America. After experiencing a frightening event. Individuals fear that their soul has left their body. Symptoms include weight loss, fatigue, muscle pains, headachee, diarrhea, unhappiness, troubled sleep, lack of motivation, and low self esteem

How do you diagnose a Psychological Disorder

Ongoing pattern of thoughts, feelings, or actions that are: 3 Ds

Deviant

Different from most other people who share one’s culture (killing in war vs in schools)

Distressful

Causing distress to the person or to others

Dysfunctional

Behaviors interfere with normal day-to-day life

Medical Model

Psychological disorders have physical causes that can be diagnosed, treated, and, possibly, cured

Mental illness is:

Diagnosed on the basis of its symptoms

Cured through therapy, which may include treatment in psychiatric hospitals

Biopsychosocial approach

interaction of one’s biological, psychological, and social-cultural environment helps form behaviors, thoughts, and feelings.

Epigenetics:

The study of environmental influences on gene expressions that occur without a DNA change

In one environment, a gene will lie dormant.

In another environment, the gene will be expressed

How do we classify disorders?

Classification in psychiatry and psychology:

Attempts to predict the future course of a disorder

Suggests treatment for the disorder

Prompts research into causes

American Psychiatric Association’s 2013 Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5)

Common tool for describing disorders and estimating the frequency of their occurrence

DSM-5

Autism and Asperger’s syndrome were combined under the label autism spectrum disorder

Mental retardation became intellectual disability

New categories were added: hoarding disorder and binge eating disorder

Anxiety Disorders

Characterized by distressing, persistent anxiety of maladaptive behaviors that reduce anxiety

Types of Anxiety disorder

Generalized anxiety disorder

Panic disorder

Phobias

Generalized Anxiety Disorder

Tense, fearful, and in a state of autonomic nervous system arousal

Symptoms for GAD

Persistence state of worry

Being jittery, on edge, and sleep deprived

Fixation of an individual’s gaze on potential threats

Difficulty in concentration

Inability to identify the cause of the tension

Generalized Anxiety Disorder

Depression go hand in hand comorbidity

Disorder may lead to physical problems, such as high blood pressure, ulcers and heart problems

Panic Disorder

Unpredictable minutes-long episodes of intense dread

Sudden terror accompanied by chest pain, choking, or other frightening sensations

Followed by worry over a possible next attack

Recurrent

Constant fear of another episode leads individuals to avoid situations where panic might strike

Smokers and caffeine users have a great risk of

a panic attack and more intense symptoms

when they do have an attack, since nicotine and

caffeine are stimulants

Avoidance of situations where panic might strike

may lead to a separate and additional diagnosis

of agoraphobia.

Agoraphobia - The fear of again experiencing

the dreaded tornado of anxiety

Phobias

Characterized by irrational fear and avoidance of a specific

Object

Activity

Situation

Some might focus of specific fears

Individuals tend to avoid triggers that arouse their fear

OCD

Characterized by obsessions: unwanted repetitive thoughts; compulsions: actions or behaviors

Compulsive behaviors

Are responses to obsessive thoughts

Becomes a disorder when obsessive thoughts

Persistently interfere with everyday life

Cause distress