Mental Health

Normal Emotional Responses  Behavior  Mental health  Mental illness

Historical Overview  Possession by evil spirits  Shaman or medicine men  Greco-Roman era  Hippocrates & Humoral Theory

 Dark Ages  Bedlam  century

 1731 America

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 1773: 1 st psychiatric hospital  Linda Richards  Committee for Mental Hygiene  ECT/Insulin shock  Frontal lobotomy

 1940’s  1950’s  Deinstitutionalization  OBRA  21 st Century

Factors Affecting Mental Health  Heredity  Childhood nurturing  Life’s circumstances  Positive influences  Negative influences

Mental Health Continuum  Illness side  Midpoint side  Wellness side

Personality and Self-concept  Personality  Erik Erikson  Sigmund Freud

Freud’s Structural Theory Of Personality  Id - pleasure principle  Ego - reality principle  Superego - conscience

Self-Concept  Personal identity  Body image  Role  Self-esteem

Stress / Stressor  Subjective feeling of tension (stress)  Environmental events (stressor)

Anxiety  What is it??  Levels  What influences anxiety?  Events that may cause anxiety are?

Coping  Way the mind responds to awareness's that are challenging or threatening

Effective vs. Ineffective Coping  Ineffective coping mechanisms are major cause of mental disorders

Resources For Effective Coping  Good problem solving ability  Prior experience  Adequate knowledge about cause of stressor

 Available support  Adequate sleep, nutrition and physical hygiene

Adaptation  Process of coping effectively with one’s social environment

Defense Mechanisms  Unconscious process  Activated when conscious coping mechanisms unable to manage anxiety

 Increase sense of security  Protect the self esteem  Assist in solving emotional dilemmas

Types of Defense Mechanisms

Defense Mechanisms Collaborative Assignment  Work in groups and discuss situations where each Defense Mechanism may be used by patients.

Defense Mechanism Class Assignment  Provide an example for the Defense Mechanisms assigned to your group.   Discuss possible nursing interventions which may be applicable.

ILLNESS  What is “illness” ??  How does it affect mental health??  What are common behaviors with illness?

Crisis  What is it??  What are “secondary gains” of illness?  What is “an identity crisis?  How can we help?

PUT YOUR THINKING CAP ON….  What elements would you observe when assessing your patient’s emotional status???