Download Mental Disorders and Suicide

Mental Disorders and Suicide
What is a mental disorder?
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A mental disorder is an illness that affects
the mind and prevents a person from being
productive, adjusting to life situations, or
getting along with others.
Most mental disorders are characterized by
abnormal thoughts, feelings, or behaviors
that make people uncomfortable with
themselves or at odds with others.
The term abnormal is used to describe
behaviors, feelings, or thoughts that are
highly unusual and inappropriate in a given
situation.
Causes of mental disorders
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When the cause of a mental disorder is
physical, the mental disorder is classified as
an organic disorder.
◦ A common type is dementia, an irreversible loss
of brain function.
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Mental disorders that cannot be traced to
physical causes are called functional
disorders
◦ The exact cause is not understood many factors
can be inborn causes, early experiences, current
causes, or a combination of all three
Functional Disorders
Inborn causes-may be inherited, or passed
on to an individual before birth, which
may be set off by a life event.
 Early Experiences-result of unpleasant
experiences that occurred early in life
 Current Causes-recent experiences in a
person’s life are more important than
early childhood experiences in bringing
on a mental disorder.
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Kinds of Mental Disorders
Symptoms of mental disorders can vary
greatly from one individual to the next.
 This makes it difficult to provide accurate
descriptions of mental disorders.
 Case histories are files kept on patients
suffering from mental disorders.
 Remember only trained, mental-health
professionals have the expertise to
diagnose mental disorders.
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Anxiety Disorders
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Anxiety is fear that does not have an
identifiable source or fear caused by a
danger that no longer exists. Severe anxiety
can cause people to flee from situations or
objects that cannot really harm them.
Everyone experiences some anxiety, but
once it persists and interferes with normal,
everyday functioning it is a sign of a mental
illness known as an anxiety disorder.
Anxiety Disorders
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Phobic disorders-when anxiety is related to a
specific situation or object.
Common phobias page 77
General Anxiety-A person who feels anxious but
cannot specify a cause for the anxiety.
Panic Disorder-a person experiences attacks of
extreme anxiety that come and go for no
apparent reason.
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder-An idea or
thought that takes over the mind and cannot be
forgotten is an obsession. An obsession
sometimes leads to a compulsion, an
unreasonable need to behave a certain way.
Somatoform Disorders
A mental disorder in which a person
complains of physical symptoms, such as
pain, when no underlying physical cause
can be found.
 Hypochondria is a somatoform disorder
characterized by a constant fear of
disease and preoccupation with one’s
health.
 Underlying causes could be anxiety or
depression, or stress.
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Eating Disorders
Sometimes emotional problems reveal
themselves through abnormal eating
behaviors. Two serious eating disorders,
Anorexia Nervosa and Bulimia, affect a
growing number of teenagers.
 Research suggests possible genetic link
for Anorexia Nervosa, but most people
feel that the disorder stems from today’s
emphasis on being thin.
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Anorexia nervosa
A serious eating disorder in which a person
refuses to eat enough food to maintain a
minimum normal body weight.
 Symptoms include severe weight loss, slowed
heart and breathing rates, lowered body
temperature, dry skin, growth of fine body
hear, and loss of menstrual periods in
females.
 In some cases, a lack of essential minerals
causes the heart to stop suddenly, leading to
death.
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Anorexia nervosa
Usually have low self esteem and are
overly concerned with pleasing others.
 Tend to be perfectionists, especially about
their physical appearance.
 Although already underweight, anorexics
often view themselves as fat and work
even harder at losing weight.
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Bulimia
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Bulimics go on eating binges followed by purging or
getting rid of the food they have eaten.
Bulimics may use self-induced vomiting or laxatives
Most bulimics do not become dangerously under
weight, but there are serious health effects.
Bulimics suffer from dehydration and kidney damage.
The enamel on their teeth may become eroded from
the stomach acid introduced into the mouth when
vomiting occurs.
Vitamin and mineral deficiencies as well as tearing and
bleeding of the tongue and gums.
Bulimics become depressed and may consider suicide
or abuse alcohol and drugs.
Mood Disorders
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A person whose moods or emotions
become extreme and interfere with his or
her daily life.
◦ Clinical depression-a person who is
overwhelmed by sad feelings for months and
stops being able to carry out everyday
activities.
Signs of clinical depression
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A person is probably suffering from clinical
depression if the person feels sad and hopeless and
has at least four of the following symptoms nearly
every day for at least two weeks:
◦ Change in appetite: either poor appetite with significant
weight loss or increased appetite with significant weight
gain
◦ Change in sleep patterns: either increased physical activity
or slowed-down levels of activity
◦ Loss of interest or pleasure in usual activities
◦ Loss of energy, feeling tired all the time
◦ Feelings of worthlessness; excessive or inappropriate guilty
feelings
◦ Difficulty thinking or concentrating
◦ Recurrent thoughts of death and suicide
If a person shows signs of clinical
depression they should
Seek help from a parent, teacher, guidance
counselor, physician, or mental-health
professional.
 With help, clinical depression can be eased
and will usually go away.
 Individuals suffering from clinical depression
can learn new strategies for coping with
problems.
 If a depressed person becomes extremely
withdrawn, dangerous, or suicidal, it may be
necessary for the person to enter a hospital.
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Bipolar disorder
People who suffer from bipolar, or manicdepressive disorder, shift from one
emotional extreme to another for no
apparent reason.
 May talk so rapidly that it is impossible to
follow what they are trying to say.
 Have difficulty concentrating on any one
thing.
 Frequently show poor judgment.
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Personality Disorders
Is characterized by behavior that is
inflexible and interferes with a person’s
pursuit of a happy, healthy life.
 Because personality traits are usually set
by young adulthood, these disorders often
require long-term treatment.
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Passive-Aggressive Personality
Disorder
People with passive-aggressive personality
disorders depend on others to direct
them
 At the same time, they resent being told
what to do.
 Unable to be assertive and express their
anger openly, they vent it indirectly.
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Antisocial Personality Disorder
Perform cruel and violent acts without
feeling or guilt.
 Often have criminal records, their crimes
are random, impulsive, and often
purposeless.
 Unfortunately, these dangerous people
rarely seek professional help.
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Dissociative Disorders
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Dissociative disorder- a mental disorder in
which a person becomes disconnected from
his or her former identity.
Amnesia-sudden memory loss
Can be caused by severe trauma, a painful or
physical or emotional experience.
Multiple personality disorder-switch
between two or more separate personalities
◦ Usually the affected are not aware of the different
personalities
◦ Unable to control or predict their personality
changes
Schizophrenia
A disorder characterized by unpredictable
disturbances in thinking, mood, awareness,
and behavior.
 Schizophrenia means “split mind,” people
with this disorder have minds that are “split
off” from reality.
 Schizos may talk to themselves, exhibit
inappropriate emotional responses, dress
and act strangely, and withdraw from others.
 Some Schizos develop irrational fears that
someone or something controls their
thoughts or wants to harm them.
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Suicide
Suicide affects all kinds of people: young,
old, bright, average, rich, poor, female,
male.
Suicides often can be prevented if people
know how to recognize and help
potential victims.
 People who may be considering suicide
often behave in telltale ways.
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The warning signs (2 slides)
Withdrawal form usual activities, loss of
energy, change in sleep patterns, and
deviations from normal behavior.
 Radical changes in personality-an outgoing
person who suddenly withdraws or a shy
person who become aggressive
 Severe depression may cause a person to
just give up
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Warning signs
If a person has attempted suicide before,
the risk is high that he or she will try
again.
 A person who stops doing things they
enjoy or gives away favorite belongings
 A decline in school performance or an
increase in drug use
 Sudden increase in injuries or risk-taking
behaviors
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Suicide Info
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Many suicidal people will talk about taking
their life, they may say, “I don’t want to live
anymore,” or “They’ll be sorry when I am
gone.”
Some of the warning signs of suicide can be
deceptive. If a person you know has been
severely depressed and suddenly becomes
happy and carefree, you may conclude that
the problem has passed. This is not always
right. A sudden change from depressed to
happy may mean that the person has resolve
to take their life. The person feels happy
because the decision is made.
Prevention
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Helping Yourself
◦ If you have suicidal thoughts, it is vital that you
talk about your feelings to a trusted adult or
professional.
◦ Together you can find solutions that you may not
have thought of on your own.
◦ No matter how isolated you may feel, you do not
have to deal with your problems alone.
◦ No matter how hopeless the situations is, there
are always positive steps you can take.
◦ Most communities have suicide hotlines for you
to call if you need someone anonymous to talk to
about your problems.
Prevention (2 slides)
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Helping Others
◦ What should you do if someone you know
seems suicidal?
◦ An important thing to remember is that
suicidal behavior is a cry for help in dealing
with problems that seem impossible.
◦ Suicidal people often feel that they have
looked to others for support and have
received no response.
◦ It is vital that you show caring and concern
for the person.
Prevention
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Helping Others
◦ The best way to show you care about a
suicidal person is to make sure the person
gets professional help immediately.
◦ Sometimes a friend will confide their plans to
you and promise you not to tell. Whether
they realize it or not, by confiding in you, your
friend is asking for help.
◦ To help your friend, you must break the
promise and tell an adult that they are in
danger.
Treating Mental Disorders
About on in five adults in the US suffer
from a mental disorder.
 The first step towards recovery is
recognizing the need for help.
 Do not ignore warning signs of mental
disorders.
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Mental disorder warning signs
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A sudden, radical change in personality
Self-destructive actions: overeating, undereating, drug
abuse, and taking unnecessary risks.
Violent, uncontrollable shifts in mood
Persistent feelings that interferes with functioning
Sleep disturbances
Inability to concentrate on anything
Trouble getting along with others
Paralyzing attacks of fear or anger
Frequent illness without physical cause
Obsessive thoughts or compulsive actions
Delusions or hallucinations
Where to find help
Often, a parent, relative, teacher, school
counselor, physician, or religious leader
can tell you about mental health
professionals and services in your
community.
 Local hospitals have mental-health clinics
or counseling centers.
 Some communities have drop-in centers
for teens, where counselors provide
guidance.
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Types of Help
There are many types of mental-health
professionals.
 These are people who are specially
trained to recognize and treat mental
disorders.
 The type of treatment they offer depends
upon their training.
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Psychiatrists
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Specializes in diagnosing and treating mental
disorders
Psychiatrists are M.D’s (doctors of medicine) with
advanced training in the treatment of mental
illness.
They look for physical, as well as nonphysical,
reasons for mental illness.
They may talk with patients and sometimes family
members to identify symptoms.
They also examine patients for physical causes.
After diagnosing a disorder, they may prescribe
medications to treat the disorder.
Clinical Psychologists
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A mental health professional who specializes
in recognizing and treating abnormal
behavior.
In addition to a doctoral degree in
psychology, clinical psychologists have at
least two years of practical training in clinics
or hospitals.
Because they are not medical doctors
clinical psychologists cannot prescribe
medications
Often work with psychiatrists and may help
psychiatrists to diagnose a disorder.
Social Worker
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A mental health professional who counsels
patients and provides a link between the patient
and the treatment center.
Many schools have social workers available to
counsel students.
Social workers usually complete four years of
college and two years of advanced study in social
work.
Psychiatric social workers specialize in helping the
mentally ill and their families accept and adjust to
mental illness.
Most psychiatric social workers work in hospitals,
mental health clinics, or family agencies.
Other Mental Health Specialists
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Psychiatric nurses specialize in the care and
treatment of the mentally ill
Occupational therapists help the mentally ill become
productive members of society by teaching them
practical skills.
Pastoral counselors are members of the religious
community who have had practical training in
counseling people with mental and social problems.
Mental-health counselors work with specific
problems or specific groups for example substance
abuse counselors, school counselors, and youth
counselors.
Although it may be difficult, try to share your
problems with a parent, guardian, or other
responsible adult. Facing up to a problem is the first
step to overcoming it.
Kinds of Treatment
The particular therapy, or treatment
technique, chosen depends upon the
individual and the training of the mentalhealth professional.
 Treatments can include psychotherapy,
drug therapy, and hospitalization.
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Psychotherapy
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A treatment method that involves conversations with
a trained professional who helps an individual
understand and overcome a mental disorder.
◦ Behavioral therapy helps a person change an abnormal
behavior by substituting a new, more appropriate behavior
in its place. Phobias and OCD are often treated with
behavioral therapy.
◦ Group therapy involves meeting with other people who
suffer from similar disorders. A mental-health professional
leads the group. Group members support each other and
work together to develop coping skills.
◦ Family therapy focuses on family problems, such as a
divorce, and how they affect the family as a whole.
◦ Play therapy helps young patients act out problem
situations and solutions using dolls and other toys.
Drug therapy
Many mental disorders, such as anxiety
disorders, affective disorders, manicdepressive disorder, and schizophrenia, can
be treated effectively through medication.
 Although medications may not cure the
mental disorder they do relieve the
symptoms and allow patients to function
normally.
 Unfortunately, some people experience
negative side effects or develop a
dependency on the medication.
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Hospitalization
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People with mental disorders who need
constant attention or who are in danger of
harming themselves or others may be
hospitalized.
In the hospital patients receive
psychotherapy, drug therapy, or both.
The staff and works with the patients to
prepare them for leaving the hospital.
Occupational therapists teach patients
practical skills to help them manage on their
own.
After patients leave the hospital, social
workers help them readjust to everyday life.