PSYCHOLOGICAL DISORDERS JAEYEON NAM “What Are Psychological Disorders?” Health Giants RSS. Web. 27 Oct

AFFECTIVE DISORDERS Major depressive disorder

SYMPTOMS feelings of guilt and sadness lack of enjoyment or pleasure in familiar activities or company AFFECTIVE passivity lack of initiative BEHAVIORAL frequent negative thoughts faulty attribution of blame low self-esteem suicidal thoughts irrational hopelessness difficulties in concentration inability to make decisions COGNITIVE loss of energy insomnia hypersomnia weight loss/gain diminished libido SOMATIC

PREVALENCE RATE Major depressive disorder is relatively common, affecting around 15 per cent of people at some time in their life. (Charney and Weismann 1988) According to the Department of Health (1990), during the 1980s, depression accounted for about one-quarter of all psychiatric hospital admissions in the UK. Depression is two to three times more common in women than in men. It occurs frequently among members of lower socio-economic groups. Most frequently among young adults

ETIOLOGY BLOA Changes in the level of certain neurotransmitters and hormones Genetic predisposition; genetic vulnerability – twin studies Catecholamine hypothesis (Joseph Schildkraut, 1965) – low level of noradrenaline The serotonin hypothesis – chemical imbalance Cortisol hypothesis; Cortisol is a major hormone of the stress system CLOA Depressed cognitions Cognitive distortions Irrational beliefs Cognitive style theory (Ellis, 1962) – from irrational and illogical thinking Negative cognitive schemas Attributional style – the way a person appraises situations SCLOA Vulnerability model of depression (Brown and Harris, 1978) Severe life events Gender difference – women > men (two to three times) Socio-economic status Social stress

ANXIETY DISORDERS Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)

SYMPTOMS Anhedonia Emotional numbing AFFECTIVE Hyper vigilance Passivity Nightmares Flashbacks Exaggerated startle response BEHAVIORAL Lower back pain Headaches Stomach ache Digestion problems Insomnia Regression in some children Losing already acquired developmental skills SOMATIC Intrusive memories Inability to concentrate Hyper arousal COGNITIVE

PREVALENCE RATE PTSD lasts for more than 30 days and develops in response to a specific stressor. In the US, PTSD has a prevalence rate of 1-3 per cent an estimated lifetime prevalence of 5 per cent in men and 10 per cent in women Davidson et al. (2007) and Breslau et al. (1998) estimate that PTSD affects per cent of individuals who are exposed to traumatic events. PTSD rates were positively correlated with proximity to the site of the attack. PTSD frequently occurs in conjunction with related disorders. Women have a risk up to 5 times greater than males to develop PTSD after a violent or traumatic event.

ETIOLOGY BLOA Genetic predisposition – twin research The role of noradrenaline – emotional arousal There is evidence for increased sensitivity of noradrenaline receptors in patients with PTSD (Bremner, 1998) CLOA Individual cognitions Difference in attributional styles Intrusive memories – that come to consciousness seemingly at random Cue-dependent memory (Brewin et al. 1996) Tendency to take responsibility for failures and to cope with stress by focusing on the emotion, rather than the problem. SCLOA Experiences with racism and oppression Social learning – children may develop PTSD by observing domestic violence (Silva, 2000) Cultural difference – body memory symptoms (non- western survivor) (Hanscom, 2001)