Intro to Psychological and Anxiety Disorders

deviant + distressful + dysfunctional =DISORDER

deviance depends on context and culture

ex. hearing voices vs. hearing ancestors' voices during worship

• ex 2. homosexuality before and after 1973
• -stigma and stress related to being gay increase mental health

ex 3. Recent, ADHD

Ancient Treatments: Caged or given horrific treatment/therapy

trephination- drilling skull holes in attempt to relieve spirits

• Pinel, Philippe -- The Medical Model
• -physical cause for disorders concept

• Medical Model
• 1.Etiology-cause and development
• 2. Diagnosis
• 3. Treatment
• 4. Prognosis
• Diagnosis--treat--cure w/therapy

All behavior= nature + nurture (genetic physiological)

• To Classify: Use DSM-IV-TR
• -manual with disorder examples

• How to Diagnose:
• Axis I Is a Clinical Syndrome present?

• Axis II Is a Personality Disorder or Intellectual Disability present?
• Axis III Is a General Medical Condition, such as diabetes, hypertension, or arthritis, also present?

Axis IV Are Psychological or Environmental Problems, such as school or housing issues, also present?


Axis V What is the Global Assessment of this person's functioning?

• 1950s- 60 disorder categories
• Today- 400 disorder categories

DSM-IV cases reliable, diagnoses by different professionals are similiar

DSM-IV cases criticized for "putting any kind of behavior within compass of psychiatry"

1. Labels may stigmatize individuals

2. Labels may be helpful for healthcare professionals when communicating with one another and establishing therapy

3. "Insanity" labels raise moral and ethical questions about how society should treat people who have disorders and have committed crimes

• 1. General anxiety disorder
• 2. Panic Disorder
• 3. Phobias
• 4. Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder
• 5. Post-traumatic disorder

tense, apprehensive, stat of autonomic nervous system arousal

free-floating-person cannot identify, deal with cause of certain feeling

depressed mood--high blood pressure

rare by age 50

unpredictable, episodes of dread

1/75 w/disorder rises to panic attacks

heart palpitations, shortness of breath, choking sensation, trembling, dizziness

smokers double risk--nicotene is a stimulant

persistant, irrational fear and avoidance of specific object or situation

specific phobias-fear of animals, heights, closed spaces, etc.

social phobias- extreme shyness

• unwanted repetitive thoughts that won't go away
• (obsessions thoughts/compulsive behaviors)

high metabolic activity in frontal lobe areas

after a traumatic experience; feelings of haunting memories, nightmares, social withdrawl, jumpy anxiety, sleep problems

war veterans, survivors of disasters

post-traumatic growth- positive change and understanding after a traumatic event