SPECIFIC MENTAL ILLNESSES PDCP 10 – Leo Hayes High School

REASONS FOR MENTAL ILLNESSES  The brain may not be working properly  Environmental causes or stressors  These stressors may cause short term “distress” or mental health problems but this is not the same as mental illness!  If the brain cannot adapt it may cause it to malfunction (mental disorders)

LIFESTYLE CHOICES Some activities may damage the brain and restrict future growth and development  Examples:  Alcohol  Drugs  Severe, prolonged stress due to careers and other activities  Ex. military

GENETICS  Your genetic make up also plays a role in mental health disorders

SYMPTOMS FOR OVERALL MENTAL DISORDERS o Some symptoms for mental disorders include:  Severe sadness  Thinking difficulties  Sleeping problems o May also cause behaviors such as:  Over-activity  Withdrawal

CLASS ACTIVITY  Students will be working with their seat partners  Each group will be given a mental disorder  Each group will have one netbook between them  You are to research your disorders and present the information to the class using powerpoint.  They will be given one day to work on the project and another day for presentations.  The class will need to get three facts from each groups presentations  Presentations should be approximately 5 minutes in length

ASSESSMENT  Title  General overview of your disorder  Information to teach your classmates about your disorder:  Symptoms  Who gets it  Treatments & Support  Free of spelling and grammar mistakes  Everyone in the group has a speaking role and a role in the presentation

ANXIETY DISORDERS  What are anxiety disorders?  Describes a normal feeling people experience when faced with threat or danger, or when stressed.  Levels of anxiety and panic are extreme  Interfere with daily life

TYPES OF ANXIETY DISORDERS  Generalized Anxiety Disorder  Constantly worry about themselves and their loved ones, financial disaster, health  Obsessive Compulsive Disorder  Intrusive thoughts (obsessions) Perform elaborate rituals (compulsions)  Social Phobia  Fear that others will judge everything they do in a negative way  Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)  Major traumas such as war, hurricanes, earthquakes.  Experience vivid nightmares or flashbacks often brought on by triggers

TREATMENT  If not treated, may lead to depression or substance use  Psychotherapy to help develop new ways of thinking about the anxiety  Medication to help deal with high anxiety levels or depression  Antidepressants

ATTENTION DEFICIT HYPERACTIVITY DISORDER - ADHD  Most commonly diagnosed behavioral disorder of childhood  In any 6 month period it affects 4-6% of children age 9-17  More common in boys than girls  Can persist into adulthood

MythsTreatment  ADHD is not caused by:  Too much TV  Sugar  Caffeine  Food coloring  Poor home life  Poor schooling  ADHD could be caused by:  50% of cases based on genetics  Injuries to the brain  Exposure to toxins (lead)  Medications  Ritalin  Psychotherapy

BI-POLAR DISORDER SYMPTOMS Mania Depression  Elevated mood – Feels on top of the world or invincible  Increased activity and over activity  Reduced need for sleep  Lack of inhibitions  Psychosis - hallucinations  Grandiose plans or beliefs  Loss of interest and pleasure  Withdrawal  Loss of weight and appetite  Attempt suicide  False beliefs – think they are evil  Feelings of guilt * People with Bi-Polar Mood Disorder can experience normal moods in between episodes

DEPRESSION  Clinical depression is not sadness  Excessive long term feeling of depression that effects a persons life 3 Types:  Adjustment Disorders  Major Depressive Disorders  Postpartum Depression

EATING DISORDERS Anorexia Nervosa (AN)Bulimia Nervosa (BN)  Loss of at least 15% body weight  Intense fear of becoming “fat”  Determine to control the amounts of food they eat  Most common in females  Eating binges – consumption of large amounts of calorie rich foods, feel out of control  Self-induced vomiting to compensate  Strong concern about body image

EFFECTS OF EATING DISORDERS  When not treated, eating disorders can have sever effects:  Harm to kidneys  Loss of menstruation  Seizures  Growth of down like hair all over the body  Inability to concentrate  Erosion of dental enamel  Fear  Mood swings  Personality changes

SCHIZOPHRENIA  Delusions  Hallucinations  Thought disorder  Social withdrawal Do people with schizophrenia have split personalities? No Are people with schizophrenia intellectually disabled? No Are people with schizophrenia dangerous? No, not when they are being treated properly