Psychological Disorders Anxiety disorders Dissociative disorders Somatoform disorders Mood disorders schizophrenia Personality disorders

PD’s Behavior patterns or mental processes that cause serious personal suffering or interfere w/a person’s ability to cope. 4 characteristicS for classification & diagnosis – Maladaptivity – Typicality – Emotional discomfort – Socially unacceptable behavior Normal: what is average for the majority of people

Classifying Psychological Disorders DSM-IV (2000) – Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders – PDs are classified by observable signs & symptoms – The DSM is in an ongoing process of revision Ex: Post traumatic stress disorder was added after Vietnam War

Anxiety Disorders Anxiety: the general state of dread or uneasiness in response to a vague or imagined danger Physical signs – Sweating, shortness of breath, faintness, trembling Psychological signs – Inability to relax or sleep, nervousness, concern about losing control

Phobic Disorder Simple phobia –persistent excessive fear of a an object or situation Leads to avoidance behavior that interferes with the person’s life – Claustrophobia (being in small spaces) – Acrophobia (heights) – Aviaphobia (flying) – Social phbia (being scrutinized by others)

Panic Disorder Panic attack – Short period of intense fear or discomfort – Physical symptoms like nausea, rapid heartrate, shaking or choking – Seem to have no apparent cause

Agoraphobia Fear of being in places or situations in which escape may be difficult or impossible – Often afraid of crowded places – Panic attack often occurs when facing these decisions – 50 to 80 % of patients suffer from either panic attack and/or agoraphobia

Generalized anxiety disorder Excessive or unrealistic worry about life circumstances that last for at least six months Most common disorder, but most untreated Often hard to separate from the daily stresses of life – Finances, Work, Interpersonal problems, Accidents, Illness

Obsessive-compulsive disorder OCD Obsessions: unwanted thoughts or mental images that occur over and over again Most people try to ignore or suppress them People with obsessions usually practice compulsions to reduce the anxiety their obsessions cause – Repetitive ritual behaviors, often involving checking or cleaning

Stress Disorders PTSD -post traumatic stress disorder – Flashbacks, nightmares, numbness of feelings, avoidance of sounds or sights associated with the trauma, increased tension, sleeplessness – Assault victims, veterans, accident victims often are sufferers – can last for years or decades Acute stress disorder –short term problem

Reasons for anxiety disorders Psychological – Repressed urges – conditioned in childhood (experiencing a bad event or witnessing a parent’s fear) – believing one is helpless to control what happens to them Biological – Genetic connection

Dissociative Disorders The separation of certain personality components or mental processes from conscious thought – Normal example: daydreaming – When used to avoid stress or feelings it can be considered a psychological problem Memory loss

4 Types of Dissociative Disorders Dissociative amnesia – Sudden memory loss cause by an event Depersonalization disorder – Person feels detachment from one’s mind or body Dissociative fugue – Forgetting personal information AND taking on a new identity and including moving, but forget fugue state when it ends Dissociative Identity – Existence of two or more distinct personalities within a distinct individual (changes in voice, facial expressions and abilities is common

Somatoform Disorders Expression of psychological stress through physical symptoms Illness is not intentionally faked 6 types of somatoform disorders Hypochondriassis is the most common

Hypochondriassis – A person’s unrealistic preoccupation that he has a serious disease Sneezing is seen as a sign of a life threatening allergy

Mood Disorders Mood changes that are inconsistent with the situations to which they are responding – Feeling sad even when life is going well Classified into two types – Depression – Bipolar Disorder

Depression Most common PD affecting about 10% of population in their lifetime Depressed mood for most of the day Loss of interest in almost all activities Changes in appetite Loss of energy Feeling of worthlessness Thought of death or suicide

Bipolar Disorder Dramatic ups and downs in mood Mania: periods of extreme excitement characterized by hyperactivity and chaotic behavior that transitions into depression often for no apparent reason Inflated self-esteem, inability to sit still or sleep, difficulty concentrating, racing thoughts Some sufferers can have paranoid delusions or engage in impulsive behavior

Explaining Mood Disorders Psychological – Suffered real loss of a person during childhood – Does not express anger over loss, but internalizes it as guilt or low self-esteem – Or a learned helplessness: life events are beyond a person’s control

Explaining MD Biological – Often occur in families about 25% of people who suffer from a mood disorder have a parent who does – 2 neurotransmitters are responsible – Low amounts of SEROTONIN & NORADRENALINE are found in people with depression – Why drug therapy is popular for patients with mood disorders

Schizophrenia Most serious psychological disorder – “thought disorder” – Loss of contact with reality – Untreated can worsen over time – Disorganized thought or speech – At worst, results in catatonic stupor

3 Types of Schizophrenia Paranoid schizophrenia - delusions or auditory hallucinations Disorganized schizophrenia - incoherent in thought and speech -unconnected delusions Catatonic schizophrenia - activity slows, then suddenly becomes frenetic -holding unusual body positions for long periods of time

Causes Family environment that is overly critical in childhood Biologically – brain disorder (smaller frontal lobe) – Birth defect (prenatal development) – Viral infection Heredity – Child with two schizophrenic parents has a 35% chance of having the disorder

Personality Disorder Patterns of inflexible traits that disrupt social life & work causing distress Shows up in late adolescence Affects all aspects of personality –thought processes, emotions & behavior Unlike other disorders these are not episodic illnesses These are major components of personality Affects less than 1% of people

4 Personality Disorders 1)Paranoid –distrustful of others, interpret other people’s behavior as insulting or threatening – Often lead isolated lives – Are not delusional, but have distorted reality 2)Schizoid –no interest in relationships with other people, lacking normal emotional responsiveness, but are not delusional

4 Personality Disorders 3) Antisocial –show disregard for and violation of the rights of others & will not stop even with punishment – Often run away or hurt people in teen years – As adults break the law & have trouble keeping a job 4) Avoidant –do not form relationships by tremendous fear of disapproval from others – Often shy or withdrawn in social situations

Explaining personality disorder Biological Genetic connection from parents Patients with antisocial pd have fewer neurons in their frontal lobe (affects emotions) Psychological – Underdeveloped super ego: conscience – Antisocial people lack guilt due to childhood treatment