Psychological Disorders
Clay Crawford and Sarah Clarke
Definition:
Dissociative Disorders:
Conscious awareness becomes separated (dissociated) from previous memories, thoughts, and feelings
- Dissociative Amnesia:
selective memory loss, often brought on by extreme stress
- Dissociative Identity Disorder (Multiple Personality Disorder):
rare dissociative disorder in which a person exhibits two or more distinct and alternating personalities
Mood Disorders
Characterized by emotional extremes
- Major Depressive Disorder:
a mood disorder in which a person, for no apparent reason, experiences two or more weeks of depressed moods, feelings of worthlessness, and diminished interest or pleasure in most activities
- Mania
a mood disorder marked by a hyperactive, wildly optimistic state
- Bipolar Disorders:
a mood disorder in which the person alternates between the hopelessness and lethargy of depression and the overexcited state of mania
* Mood disorders can lead to depression and even suicide
Schizophrenia
- Literal translation "split mind"
- a group of severe psychotic disorders characterized by:
disorganized and delusional thinking
disturbed perceptions
inappropriate emotions and actions
- May have delusions or hallucinations
- Delusions: false beliefs, often of persecution or grandeur, that may accompany psychotic disorders
- Hallucinations: false sensory experiences such as seeing something without any external visual stimulus
- Subtypes of Schizophrenia:
Personality Disorder
a disorder characterized by inflexible and enduring behavior patterns that impair social functioning
- Antisocial Personality Disorder:
disorder in which the person (usually male) exhibits a lack of conscience for wrongdoing, even toward friends and family member