Mental Illness Flashcards
Who is NOT a clinical psychologist? (name 6)
Psychiatrist: qualified to treat mental illness
Social worker
School psychologist
Neurologist
Counselor
Psychiatric nurse
What is clinical psychology?
the treatment of and research about mental illness
Who is a clinical psychologist? (the 3 requirements)
Doctoral degree (Ph. D or Psy. D)
Licensed to practice (most states don’t allow them to prescribe drugs)
Qualified to: asses, treat, and study mental illness
How is mental illness characterized? (the nature of mental illness) aka the 3Ds (general indicators of mental illness)
Distress: for the person or for other people around them
Dysfunction: impedes function in everyday life
Deviance: what the person is experiencing (behaviors or feelings) are UNUSUAL
How do we determine that someone is mentally ill?
Sleeping: not too much, not too little
Eating: not too much, not too little
Moods: a range; in response to your environment (disordered moods or regular fluctuation of moods)
DSM-5 full name and definition
full name: Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders
a classification system that describes the features used to diagnose each recognized mental disorder and indicates how the disorder can be distinguished from other, similar problems
What are some criticisms of the DSM-5?
First edition 1952: classified homosexuality as a mental illness (a sociopathic personality disturbance)
A lot of focus on the individual themselves and not enough focus on the environment they’re in
Controversial: some psychiatrists support having a document to define mental illness; others disagree about what should be in it
also…
- too categorical: either you have a disorder or not (maybe it is a spectrum and cannot just draw a hard line between ie. “depressed” people or “not depressed” people
- Diagnosis by checklist: different people have different symptoms → should you give them the same treatment/medication
What are the most common mental illnesses among students and mood disorders?
Anxiety & depression
Depression
DSM-5 Definition: “a severely depressed mood and/or inability to experience pleasure that lasts 2 or more weeks and is accompanied by feelings of worthlessness, lethargy, and sleep and appetite disturbance”
(more than just being really sad)
How many of depressive cases are actually treated?
–> Only ⅓ of all cases are treated (most people with depression are not treated)
What are the 9 symptoms of depression, how many need to be present in order to be considered depressed, and in what time-frame?
Ask if the individual experiences 5 or more of the following symptoms during the same 2-week period (especially if these symptoms represent a change from previous functioning)
- Depressed mood most of the day indicated by subjective report or by others
- No interest in anything around
- Significant weight loss when not dieting or weight gain
- Insomnia regularly
- Psychomotor agitation (pacing, toe tapping, etc.)
- Fatigue or loss of energy nearly every day
- Feelings of worthlessness
- Diminished ability to think
- Suicidal thoughts
Grief vs. depression?
Grief:
Tends to decrease over time
Triggered by reminders of its cause and reduced by support of friends and family → grief “makes sense” in a way that depression often does not”
Usually no negative self-view (like in depression)
Dysfunctional grief (aka complicated grief)
grief lasting longer than a year
Generalized Anxiety Disorder: what are the 6 criteria, how many need to be met, and what does “generalized” mean?
c. DSM-5 Definition: “chronic excessive worry accompanied by 3 or more of the following symptoms…
- Restlessness
- Being easily fatigued
- Difficulty concentrating
- Irritability
- Muscle tension
- Sleep disturbance (difficulty falling/ staying asleep)
a. Excessive anxiety and worry, occurring more days than not for at least 6 months, about a number of events and activities
b. The individual finds it difficult to control the worry
d. The anxiety or worry or physical symptoms cause significant distress or impairment in social, occupational, or other important areas of functioning
e. The disturbance is not attributable to the physiological effects of a substance (e.g., drug)
f. The disturbance is not better explained by another disorder
“Generalized” = not (always) in response to a particular threat (event)
DIFFERENT from just anxiety (everyone experiences anxiety in their lives)
What are the 2 categories of the treatment of mental illness?
Psychotherapy (therapy)
pharmacological intervention (drugs)
