Disorders

Claustrophobia is the fear of small, enclosed spaces; those who suffer from it often go to extremes to avoid encountering such spaces. Symptoms include a racing heartbeat, dizziness, hyperventilation, shaking, headaches, nausea, and chest tightness. While symptoms are often brought on by simply entering a small space, the actual phobia…

While there isn’t a cure for personality disorders, there are effective treatment methods out there for those who struggle with these conditions, such as therapy. These clients can often be described as “change-resistant” as they have a particularly difficult time making changes, even when those changes will benefit them. That…

Personality disorders are characterized by unhealthy thoughts and behaviors that make everyday functioning significantly difficult. The 10 personality disorders have each been analyzed and defined; however, there is still much to understand, such as how and why these disorders develop. Many experts agree that both genetic and environmental factors are…

When one is hurt by the world—initially by our parents or caretaking environment—it is a natural human reaction to try to control our external environment. Having a controlling personality is not considered to be a personality disorder; however, contemporary psychodynamic theory and practice see DMS-V personality disorders as being environmental…

There are a lot of words we throw around nonchalantly: two of those being sociopath and psychopath. Mr. Daron is a psychopath, he made us dissect frogs in class today. She never talks to anybody, she’s a complete sociopath. As you can see, it’s easy to declare someone a sociopath…

Depression Portrait: Seasonal Affective Disorder Emily’s mood darkened. She lost touch with her closest friends. She mixed up the names of the kids she worked with. And at home, she found herself watching way too much television: not her old favorite smart dramas and Comedy Central programs, but reality shows…

We hear the terms “manic depression” and “bipolar disorder,” and we picture two different things: one, a depressed individual (hence, the word depression) who has trouble enjoying life, and two, an unpredictable person who experiences drastic mood swings and changes in behavior. We compartmentalize them as two different medical conditions….

Making a schizophreniform disorder diagnosis can be tricky because its characteristics are identical to those of schizophrenia, considering it is a short-term type of schizophrenia. However, the key to distinguishing the two is looking at the very duration of the episodes. Schizophreniform episodes last for at least 1 month but…

None of us live perfect lives—we make mistakes, we lose our way, and sometimes we’re total victims of unfortunate circumstances. However, life’s blows hit some of us a little harder than others. For example, someone somewhere in the world has just gotten fired. Let’s call him Tom. While it might…

There are several personality disorders that can have a direct and harmful effect on those who suffer with them—a few examples include dependent personality disorder, histrionic personality disorder, and narcissistic personality disorder. These mental illnesses are characterized by strange thinking, feeling, and behavioral patterns, which cause individuals marked distress and/or…

There are several sexual disorders that can have a direct and harmful effect on both males and females—a few examples include hypoactive sexual desire disorder (HSDD), sexual aversion disorder (SAD), and male or female orgasmic disorders. These disorders are characterized by specific sexual dysfunctions, such as low sex drive, aversion…

Personality disorders belong to a group of mental illnesses characterized by unhealthy thoughts and behaviors, which can seriously hinder one’s everyday functioning. A few examples include schizoid personality disorder (cluster A), borderline personality disorder (cluster B), and obsessive-compulsive personality disorder (cluster C). These clusters are subgroups of personality disorders and…