Mental disorders are health conditions that involve changes in thinking, emotion, or behavior—or some combination of the three. Mental disorders are connected with distress and/or impairment in functioning, whether that be socially, occupationally, or in some other dimension of life. According to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), about…
Why is there a bipolar 2 and a bipolar 1? There’s no depression 2 or depression 1. There’s no anxiety 3.0. What makes bipolar disorder (formerly known as manic depression) different? The quick answer is that people with bipolar 2 have enough variation in their symptoms from type 1 bipolar…
Borderline personality disorder (BPD) is a condition that can make trusting other people and establishing lasting relationships extremely difficult. This can make coping with BPD in relationships frustrating for the person carrying the diagnosis, as well as for a loved one trying to understand and be supportive. While navigating borderline…
Attachment disorders in adults often stem from childhood issues and impact how a person relates and connects with others and themselves. If you think you have an adult attachment disorder, it can be worthwhile to explore the causes and symptoms. Once you better understand attachment disorders, you can begin healing…
Many mental health conditions and disorders can influence emotions and emotional stability, including histrionic personality disorder. Histrionic personality disorder involves a pattern of excessive sensitivity and attention-seeking behavior, sometimes causing people with the disorder to go to extreme lengths to garner attention for themselves. There are a few ways to…
Depression is one of the most well-known and studied mental health conditions. It’s characterized by feelings of sadness or emptiness, low energy, lack of concentration, and sleep and appetite changes, among a myriad of other symptoms, with episodes recurring over months or years. The different forms of depression are complex…
An “affect” is a nonverbal method of communication that expresses emotion on an individual’s face. Though people’s feelings can appear on their faces without conscious effort or even notice, one’s affect doesn’t have to match their feelings. Different from someone’s affect, mood is specifically what someone is feeling, something that…
The subject of alcohol tends to elicit strong reactions. Most of us have deliberated about how much to drink, what, when, and why. We might associate alcohol with friends and fun times, or with guilt, loss, and shame. Often, our feelings are mixed. But how do you know when drinking…
When it comes to diagnosing autism, several distinctions are made by clinicians, which separate the disorder into the three levels of autism. This condition is recognized as a spectrum disorder. The purpose of delineating these levels is to provide clinicians with insight into the severity of symptoms and the level…
Autism is a neurological difference that affects 2.2% of the general population in the U.S. While living with autism does not prevent anyone from having a rich and meaningful life, the stigma that continues to plague the diagnosis of autism still leads many people to have incorrect ideas about what…
Despite being different disorders, bipolar disorder and borderline personality disorder have so many symptomatic similarities that they can often be mistaken for one another. That being said, the functioning and root causes, and therefore the treatment, of each disorder are quite different, which makes it very important to discern one…
Hyperfixation is a unique state of mind, which, while often linked to conditions like ADHD, doesn’t always indicate a mental health condition. Hyperfixation involves an intense and prolonged focus on a specific interest, something that many individuals with and without conditions like ADHD may experience. This article explores the nuances…
