According to the National Institute of Mental Health Disorders (NIMH), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH): An estimated 26% of Americans ages 18 and older – about 1 in 4 adults – suffers from a diagnosable mental disorder in any given year. Mental disorders are the leading causeContinue Reading
“One of the unpardonable sins, in the view of most people, is for a man to go about unlabeled. The world regards such a person as the police do an unrestrained dog: not under proper control.” (T.H. Huxley, Evolution and Ethics, 1893). The American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic and Statistical ManualContinue Reading
People who suffer from Psychotic Disorder are said to have “retreated from reality.” They are socially withdrawn and may experience hallucinations or delusions. Psychotic Disorder can be so debilitating it can lead to hospitalization. Psychotic patients are unable to control their thoughts, which also occur in Schizophrenia and Delusional Disorders,Continue Reading
Neurosis was once recognized as a mental and emotional disorder. However, because the term Neurosis is too imprecise and less serious than the word psychosis it is no longer used. What psychologists once referred to as neurotic is now part of other classifications of anxiety, somatoform, dissociative disorders and someContinue Reading
Personality Disorders are inflexible patterns of behavior that impair social functioning. There are usually three components or clusters, beginning with anxiety then moving to a group of eccentric behaviors, continuing to the third cluster of dramatic or impulsive behaviors. Antisocial Personality Disorder is characterized by a lack of consciousness coupledContinue Reading
Thirteen warning signs of psychotic disorders and major mood disorders: Do you express bizarre thoughts or beliefs that defy reality? Have you withdrawn from family members or other relationships? Have you heard unreal voices? Do you see things that others don’t? Are you extremely sad or persistently despondent? Do youContinue Reading