Disorders

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…

Genito-pelvic pain or penetration disorder is a fairly new disorder listed in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5), that is characterized by significant pain upon penetration and overall difficulty having intercourse. This pain can range in severity: some individuals are able to easily experience penetration…

We all have a pet peeve that involves disturbing or annoying noises: whether it’s loud, obnoxious chewing, constant foot tapping, or one’s quiet, yet ever-present mumbling. Some of us suck it up and just deal with the noise or drown it out by putting earphones in and others…well, scream. Flashback…

All of a sudden, my playful, adventurous little brother developed an obsession with using hand sanitizer. He had to squirt some into his hands after running outside and before eating dinner. He insisted on using it after touching the dog and before shaking someone’s hand. We didn’t think too much…

According to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5), one may be diagnosed with language disorder if there are difficulties in the attainment and use of language due to comprehension or discourse shortfalls. These deficits can exist in spoken as well as written communication and even…

The Good Doctor, modeled after the South Korean series of the same name, is a television series coming to ABC this fall about a surgeon, Shaun, with autism and savant syndrome. Shaun leaves his troubled town and childhood behind to join the pediatric unit at San Jose St. Bonaventure Hospital—he…

To call Game of Thrones a worldwide phenomenon doesn’t even do it proper justice. It’s by far the most captivating and addicting show ever created and it’s largely due to the fact that the show has so many amazing characters… with severe mental disorders. As season 7 of GOT rages on this…

According to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5), pyromania is typically diagnosed after multiple episodes of deliberate and purposeful fire setting. People with this disorder are extremely fascinated by fire and are often regular “watchers” at fires, may set off false fire alarms, and receive…

Tourette’s Disorder is a continuous, hereditary neuropsychiatric (attributed to the nervous system) disorder that involves bodily and vocal spasms/tics that first started in childhood. The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5)* has made a distinction between the incessant/chronic tics and those tics that have existed for…

According to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5)*, Inhalant Use Disorder is diagnosed when people use inhalants (aerosols, gases, nitrites and solvents) for a psychoactive effect. (The chemicals that are misused as inhalants are contained in a variety of household products.) People inhale the chemicals…

Gambling continuously and repeatedly to the point where it causes problems in a person’s life and anxiousness is deemed a Gambling Disorder by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5)*. According to the National Council on Problem Gambling (NCPG), it is estimated that two million—or one…

Cocaine is made from the leaves of a coca plant native to South America. A powerfully addictive stimulant, its use has serious short and long-term health effects. In addition, there’s risk of great harm when cocaine is taken with alcohol, heroin and other substances. One of the most frequent and…