Psychological Health

1
Psychological Health

• Chapter 3

2
Psychological Health

• Psychological health versus psychological
  normality
• What is Mentally normal?

3
Psychological Health

• Normality The psychological characteristics
  attributed to the majority of people in a
  population at a given time.

4
Psychological Health

• Psychological Health
• Negative Absence of sickness/disease
• Positive Presence of wellness
• The capacity to think rationally and logically
  and to cope with lifes transitions, stresses,
  traumas, and losses in a way that allows for
  emotional stability and growth.

5
Psychological Health

• Psychological Disorder A diagnosable mental,
  behavioral, or emotional disorder that interferes
  with one or more major activities in lifelike
  dressing, eating, or working

6
(No Transcript)
7
Mental HealthAbraham Maslow

• Hierarchy of Needs
• Self-Actualized
• Realism
• Acceptance
• Autonomy
• Intimacy
• Creativity

8
Achieving Healthy Self-esteem

• Positive Self Concept
• Meeting the ChallengesRecognize things about
  yourself (Realistic self-talk, page 71)
• Less Defensive (Defense Mechanisms, Table 3-2)
• Optimism

9
Honest Communications

• When you are the speaker
• State your concern as clearly as possible.
• Take responsibility for your feelings use I
  statements.
• Avoid generalizations.
• Avoid blaming, accusing, and belittling.
• Ask for action ahead of time, not after the fact.
• As a Listener
• Dont give unsolicited advice.
• Listen reflectively, Dont interrupt, judge,
  blame,or evaluate.
• Really listen, Try to tune in to the other
  persons feelings.
• Let the other person know that you value what he
  or she is saying and want to understand.

10
Dealing With Anger

• Distinguish between assertiveness and hostile
  anger
• Manage your anger.
• Reframe
• Distract
• Dealing with anger in other people
• Try to focus on solving the problem
• Assertive/calm

11
Psychological Disorders

• Anxiety Unfocused worry/excessive concern
• Simple, specific phobias-
• Social phobias
• Panic disorders
• Generalized Anxiety disorder (GAD)
• Obsessive-Compulsive disorders (OCD)
• Compulsions
• Post-Traumatic stress disorders (PTSD)

12
Generalized Anxiety Disorder

• Characteristics
• Anxiety expressed more consistently and intensely
  than most people
• Difficulty expressing excessive concern
• Restless
• Inability to Concentrate
• Fatigue
• Tense

13
Generalized Anxiety Disorders

• Treatment
• Counseling/psychotherapy/behavioral therapy
• Drugs
• Combination

14
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder

• Neurotransmitterserotonin
• As many as 1 in 40
• Genetic Predisposition
• Obsession Recurrent, unwanted thoughts or
  impulses
• Compulsions Repetitive, difficult-to-resist
  actions
• Exp. Handwashing/germs, HIV from handshake,
  counting or repeating tasks, checking things,
  hoardingrealize bizarre but cant control

15
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder

• Treatment
• Behavioral therapy, such as desensitation
• Drugs
• Combination
• 70-80 improve with medication

16
Panic Attacks

• Genetic predisposition to excessive cortical
  activity combined with a triggering event (may be
  without reason or warning)

17
Panic Attacks

• Symptoms
• Rapid heart rate, chest pain
• Sweating, chills, hot flashes, dizziness, feeling
  light-headed
• Choking, smothering, SOB
• Nausea/vomiting
• Feelings of numbness
• Feelings of loss of control, going crazy,
  impending death, live with dread of another
• Females more than twice as likely

18
Panic Attacks

• Treatment
• Drugs (block excessive flow of excitatory signals
  reaching cortex of brain)
• Teaching coping strategies, such as breathing
  techniques

19
Simple Phobias

• Phobias are the most prevalent type of anxiety
  disorder
• A persistent, excessive, specific fearanimals,
  certain locations, high places
• Sometimes no explanation
• Sometimes results from a bad experience

20
Social Phobias

• Specific fears relating to social aspects
• Exp Fear humiliation/embarrassment in public,
  fear of public speaking
• Treatment
• Systematic desensitationa type of behavioral
  therapy
• Meds often not effective by themselves
• Medical hypnosis

21
Schizophrenia

• A psychological disorder that involves a
  disturbance in thinking and in perceiving reality
• Can diagnose your own depression, but not this
• Profoundly affects sense of reality
• 1 in 100-150, runs in families, clinical onset
  late adolescence 17-24, may be triggered by
  environmental factors

22
Schizophrenia

• Neurotransmitter disorderfaulty functioning of
  receptor sites (dopamine and others)
• Partial recovery more likely than return to
  high-level functioning
• Some do recover with treatment, others do not

23
Schizophrenia

• Symptoms
• Delusions (false beliefs of importance)
• Hallucinations (false sensory perceptions)
• Hear, see, feel things that dont exist
• Some quite logical except on the subject of their
  disillusions
• Some show disorganized thoughts/speech
• Catatonic behavior (immobility)
• Odd or purposeless movement
• Negativism (motiveless response to all
  instruction)

24
Schizophrenia--Symptoms

• Inappropriate emotions (absent or strong but
  inappropriate
• Observable dysfunction in work, social, and
  self-care activities (compared to how they were
  before onset)

25
Schizophrenia

• Treatment
• Therapy
• Drugs
• Thorazine, Haldol, Risperidone (Risperal),
  Olanzapine (Zyprexa), Clozapine (Clozaril)
• Some of the new drugs, less side effects
• Combination
• Regular medication is a key element!

26
Mood Disorders

• Bipolar disorder (Manic depression)
• Emotional disorder in which the mood swings
  between highly excited and depressed periods

27
Mood Disorders

• Bipolar (Manic)
• Highly excited
• Easily distracted
• Devote themselves to fantastic projects
• Spend more money than they have
• Very confident
• Need little sleep
• Talk nonstop

28
Mood Disorders

• Bipolar (Manic)
• Depressed period
• Withdraw from personal involvement
• Abandon projects
• Negative feelings of self-worth
• Low periods of depression
• May consider suicide

29
Mood Disorders

• Bipolar Treatment
• Tranquilizers to treat individual episodes
• Traditional longterm therapy to prevent further
  episodes (Lithium)

30
Mood Disorders

• One of the most frequently occurring conditions
  physicians fail to recognize
• Many dont seek help (35)dont want to tell
  anyone
• Symptoms masked or confused with symptoms
  associated with other conditions
• Most treatable80 marked improvement

31
Mood Disorders

• Depression many forms and degrees
• A feeling of sadness, hopelessness, worthlessness
• Loss of pleasure in usual activities
• Poor appetite and weight loss
• Or eating too much
• Insomnia or disturbed sleep
• Restlessness or, alternatively, fatigue
• Thought of worthlessness and guilt
• Trouble concentrating or making decisions
• Thoughts of death or suicide
• Persistent physical symptoms or pains that do not
  respond to treatment

32
Mood Disorders

• Depression
• Thought to be caused by a chemical imbalance
• May be due to a triggering event marital
  problems, death of someone close, repressed
  problems from childhood (exogenous vs. endogenous)

33
(No Transcript)
34
Getting Help

• Professional
• Psychiatrists/psychologists (difference?)
• Social workers
• Licensed Counselors
• Clergy
• Treatment Team
• Drugs (i.e. Zoloft, Prozac)
• ECT (severe cases)
• SADlight therapy
• Often combination of drugs/therapy best

35
Getting Help

• Self-Help Strategies for Mild Depression
• Identify stressorschange surroundings
• Dont cut yourself off from otherstalk it out
• Exercise
• Do something you are good at
• Dont vary normal routine
• Pamper yourself
• Give yourself some quiet time each day
• Write in a journal
• Be informed
• Minimize contact with others who are depressed
• Be realisticare you exaggerating the
  significance of the event
• Avoid temptation to ease depression by using
  alcohol or other drugs

36
Gender Differences

• BipolarMen/women approximately same
• Major depressive episode--Women almost twice as
  likely as men
• Panic disorderMore than twice as likely in women
  as in men
• OCD1.7 men vs. 2.8 women
• See Table 3-3
• Why?
• Gender matterspage 80

37
Suicide Figure 3-2

• Warning signs
• Expressing the wish to be dead or revealing
  contemplated methods
• Increasing social withdrawal and isolation
• Decreased interest in activities that used to
  bring pleasure
• Inappropriate or excessive guilt
• Feelings of worthlessness, hopelessness and
  self-reproach
• Giving away prized possessions
• Making things right
• A sudden, inexplicable lightening of mood
• Change in appetite, sleep patterns, concentration
  levels

38
Myth/Fact

• Myth People who really intend to kill themselves
  do not let anyone know about it.
• Fact Most people who eventually commit suicide
  have talked about doing it.

39
Myth/Fact

• Myth People who succeed in suicide really wanted
  to die.
• Fact Some people are only trying to make a
  dramatic gesture or plea for help. We cannot be
  sure.

40
Myth/Fact

• Myth Suicide is proof of mental illness.
• Fact Many suicides are committed by people who
  do not meet ordinary criteria for mental illness,
  although people with depression, schizophrenia,
  and other psychological disorders have a MUCH
  higher than average suicide rate.

41
Myth/Fact

• Myth People inherit suicidal tendencies.
• Fact Certain kinds of depression that lead to
  suicide do have a genetic component. But many
  examples of suicide running in a family can be
  explained by factors such as psychologically
  identifying with a family member who committed
  suicide, often a parent.

42
Myth/Fact

• Myth If you ask an adolescent about suicidal
  intentions, you will encourage the young person
  to commit suicide.
• Fact Frequently asking a person about suicide
  will not only allow that person to unload built
  up anxiety and stress, but also reduce the
  likelihood of suicide.

43
Myth/Fact

• Myth When a depression lifts, there is no longer
  any danger of suicide.
• Fact Research suggests that the time of greatest
  risk of suicide is in the first 3 months after an
  adolescent begins recovery.