Download Mental Disorders

Mental Disorders
By: Austin Woodbury, Stephen
Andersen, Ellyn Dienethal,
Kati Boger
Bipolar Disorder
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People with this disorder have an average of thirty percent more
of an important class of signal-sending brain cells
By looking at the intensity of the DTBZ signal in all the subjects'
brains, the University of Michigan team found that bipolar
patients averaged 31 percent more binding sites in the region
known as the thalamus, and 28 percent more in the ventral brain
stem.
Symptoms are reckless behavior, loss of appetite, no sleep, low
self esteem, thoughts of worthlessness and scuicide, withdrawal,
sadness, fatigue, elevated mood, agitation.
Bipolar disorder involves periods of excitability (mania)
alternating with periods of depression. The "mood swings"
between mania and depression can be very abrupt. For the
manic phase of bipolar disorder, antipsychotic medications,
lithium, and mood stabilizers are typically used. For the
depressive phase, antidepressants are sometimes used, with or
without the manic phase treatment
Two Types of Bipolar Disorder
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There are two primary types of bipolar disorder. People
with bipolar disorder I have had at least one fully manic
episode with periods of major depression. In the past,
bipolar disorder I was called manic depression.
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People with bipolar disorder II seldom experience
full-fledged mania. Instead they experience periods
of hypomania (elevated levels of energy and
impulsiveness that are not as extreme as the
symptoms of mania). These hypomanic periods
alternate with episodes of major depression
Bipolar Disorder
Multiple Personality Disorder & Dissociative
Identity Disorder
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Dissociation Identidy Disorder(DID) is a disorder in which
conscious awareness becomes separated from previous
memories, thoughts and feelings. When a situation
becomes too overwhelming some people try to dissociate
them selves from it. The cause of DID and multiple
personality disorder (MPD) aren't clearly understood but
most agree it is to be associated with ruthless physical,
mental or sexual abuse. The abuse is what the sufferers
of MPD and DID try to disassociate themselves from.
When this abuse occurs it is believed that the victum
"builds" a psychological barrier to seal off painful
experiences. The disassociation between a person and
their memory could form another personality because of
that psychological barrier. Another personality is produced
to perform a task or to keep the memories that are too
painful for that person to remember. These personalities
often are direct opposites and dominate at different times.
Facts about DID
and MPD
Random Facts
•MPD was first recognized and
described by a French
physician named Pierre Janet
in the late 19th century.
•DID and MPD are actually
quite rare and only account for
about 3% of patients in
psychiatric hospitals.
•MPD and DID usually occur in
females nine times more often
than in males.
•MPD and DID aren't always
noticeable and patients can
appear to function normally to
the people around them.
•The three best known books
about MPD are Switching
Time, Sybil and the Three
Faces of Eve.
•Children that have imaginary
friends or daydream a lot have
a greater chance of developing
DID or MPD if cruelly abused.
Symptoms of MPD and DID are..
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Finding oneself in strange
In 1980 the Diagnostic and Statistical
places with no memory of
Manual of Mental Disorders
how you arrived at that
revised the definition for multiple
location
personality disorder and
dissociative identity disorder and
Notes or letters written in
the critia was as follows:
strange handwriting
The presence of two or more
Items in the home that you •
distinct identities or
don't remember purchasing
personality states (each with
Amnesia for significant
its own relatively enduring
portions of a person's day
patterns of perceiving,
Being called a different
relating, and thinking about
name by a friendly stranger
the environment and self).
Hearing voices inside one's •
At least two of these identities
head
or personality states
recurrently take control of the
person's behavior.
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Inability to recall important
personal information that is
too extensive to be explained
by ordinary forgetfulness.
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The disturbance is not due to
the direct physiological effects
of a substance such as
blackouts, chaotic behavior
because of alcohol or
medication side effects.
Switching Time
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Switching time is a book by Richard Baer(below to the right) and about his journey with his patient
Karen Overhill that leads to her psychological recovery. Karen Overhill has 17 separate personalities.
Each of them hold a purpose whether it be to pay the bills or protect her from the horrifying memories
of her past. Here are some examples of a few of her personalities.
Jenson is 11 years old. He is an African American, artistic (he drew the three pictures to the right and left)
and he "builds" the barriers inside Karen's mind to keep all the personalities mostly separated.
Katherine is 34 years old and ages as Karen does. She handles all business transactions, likes to read,
loves to listen to classical music, plays the clarinet, and takes care of the children personalities.
Miles is 8 years old and was created to hold all the anger and is in constant pain. Miles aged two years
before stopping because the ritual abuse began. Miles couldn't bear all the pain so he split himself
apart to create Elise, who is also 8, and keeps Miles' and Karl's regular life separate from the abuse.
Mile also created Karl from himself. Karl is 10 and feels the most severe pain that none of the other
personalities can handle.
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Karen acquired all of these personalities because of the severe sexual, physical, and mental abuse
she experienced in her childhood. Her father was a member of a sort of town cult that met often and
viewed girls and women as merely sexual objects. Most of Karen's memories are split among her
personalities.
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Each of the 17 personalities have different opinions, memories and handwriting. They take turns
coming out when a task needs to be accomplished or when other identities are feeling weak.
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One of the stranger aspects of the personalities is that they don't all become sick at one time. Also
influences such as alcohol doesn't affect them all the same. Alcohol might make Miles nauseated but
not affect Karen 2 ( another personality) whatsoever.
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Whenever Dr. Baer refers to "Karen" he is referring to the personality he sees most often which is
Karen 3. Karen 3 was created to go to therapy. Technically there isn't just Karen anymore, there are 17
identities that make up Karen. They hold every part of her personality, opinions, values and morals
separately.
Savant Syndrome
What is Savant Syndrome?
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Savant syndrome is the presence of
unusual intellectual and/or artistic
abilities in otherwise impaired
individuals
Savant syndrome can be caused
either by birth or by a head injury or
illness
Causes of Savant syndrome
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The most prominent theory that covers
most cases is an injury to the left part of
the brain in the womb, infancy, childhood or
adulthood which starts a dramatic
compensation by the right brain.
The famous Russian patient S, who literally
remembered every detail in his entire life.
He could recite conversations or random
number lists decades after they happen.
Bibliography
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Picturehttp://www.robertrivard.net/Postitorama/Savants/Sa
vants-1.jpg
Factshttp://geniusblog.davidshenk.com/2007/03/savants_
and_us.html
http://serendip.brynmawr.edu/exchange/node/1805
ADHD
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Another disorder is ADHD. Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder has been a disorder
that is widely recognized and can relate to many other disorders. It is often found
coexisting with another disorder and people with temper-prone behavior.
Symptoms for are distractibility, forgetfulness, and disorganization. Other symptoms
include fidgeting, restlessness, not staying seated in class, and being interruptive.
There have been a lot of issues with diagnosing ADHD because of the nature of the
symptoms.
Children have often been mistaken for having because of there natural hyperactivity.
People have said that it is not a mental disorder at all. They say it is a normal reaction
in a boring learning environment. Some of this is true, but ADHD is a real mental
disorder according to the World Federation for Mental Health, there is no debating that.
4% of children who show one or more of the stated symptoms have ADHD. American
children being treated for ADHD has quadrupled since 2003 to 2005. This may be
because of a false diagnosis for perfectly healthy children or ADHD has really
increased through out the years.
Medications for ADHD include Ritalin and adderall. These stimulants help calm people
and get them to focus on task.
Not much is know about how ADHD is caused. Most of theories point to a specific
neurotransmitter. This neurotransmitter is dopamine. Dopamine is important in thinking,
motivation, short-term memory and some emotions, as well as immune function and
motor control. Scientists say the amount of dopamine receptors and the level of
dopamine released effects how attentive a person is. An inefficiency of these variables
causes ADHD.
The way that dopamine and dopamine receptors are affected varies. Some
say that it is caused in birth development and if the mother uses harmful substances
like cigarettes and alcohol. Others say the inefficiency is caused according to genetics.
Attention disorders often run in families, so there are likely to be genetic influences.
Studies indicate that 25 percent of the close relatives in the families of ADHD children
also have ADHD, whereas the rate is about 5 percent in the general population. The
why it is caused is not known entirely.
ADHD corresponding to other
brain disorders
Bibliography
•Category. (n.d.). Abnormal Brain Chemistry Found in Bipolar Disorder - Page 2. Bipolar Disorder - Manic Depressive Illness
from Diagnosis to Medications. Retrieved December 6, 2009, from
http://bipolar.about.com/cs/menu_science/a/press_umich0210_2.htm
•bipolar disorder. (n.d.). www.google.com/health. Retrieved December 6, 2009, from
https://health.google.com/health/ref/Bipolar+disorder
•Bipolar Disorder Symptoms & Bipolar Depression | CureAnxiety.com. (n.d.). Cure Anxiety -What is Anxiety,Bipolar Disorder
Symptoms, Depression Medication,Bipolar Disease,Natural Sleep Aids. Retrieved December 6, 2009, from
http://cureanxiety.com/bipolar-disorder-symptoms
•Google Image Result for http://kirstyne.files.wordpress.com/2007/12/mban1006l.jpg. (n.d.). Google Images. Retrieved
December 6, 2009, from
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Baer, Richard. Switching Time: A Doctor's Harrowing Story of Treating a Woman with 17 Personalities. null. Reprint. new
york: Three Rivers Press, 2008. Print. (tags: none | edit tags)
"Kentucky Virtual Library." Kentucky Virtual Library. N.p., n.d. Web. 8 Dec. 2009. <http://www.Kyvl.org>. (tags: none | edit
tags)
http://www.ldonline.org/adhdbasics/causes
http://www.righthealth.com/topic/What_Causes_Adhd_In_Children/overview/healthology20?fdid=healthol
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