Introduction
Psychological disorders are reported to be very severe and are usually debilitating resulting in an inability of an individual affected to perform the usual routine practices for example household matters effectively and efficiently. This paper will therefore analyze various psychological disorders that are commonly found to be affecting individuals in society.
Schizophrenia
The schizophrenic disorder is usually a multifaceted illness and has a lot of different clinical presentations. The main behavioral indications of Schizophrenic disorder include hallucinations, catatonia, unsystematic thinking or communication, delusions, social withdrawal, segregation, low moods, being short of unprompted thinking, and lack of caring for oneself among other symptoms. There are three most common Schizophrenic disorders and include paranoid Schizophrenic disorder which is considered to be the most prevalent. Under this, the person affected is comparatively steady, frequently paranoid, and has illusion indications and hallucinations among other symptoms. Usually, paranoid Schizophrenic disorder can either be chronic or intermittent. The other Schizophrenic disorder is that of Hebephrenic Schizophrenic disorder which usually takes the form of individuals exhibiting negative indications such as famous effective alterations, temporary hallucinations, distorted speech and feelings, reckless and random behavior e.g. laughing nervously. The third category of Schizophrenic disorders is that of catatonic schizophrenia whereby the individuals affected exhibit principally psychomotor disorders and such disorders usually rotate between limits. Usually, individuals with this disorder are engaged in violent activities.
Causes of Schizophrenia
Research indicates that there has been no establishment of the main cause of this disorder but many scientists argue that the disorder may be caused by the overproduction of dopamine in the brain and even when an individual being oversensitive towards various circumstances. We also find that other neurologists claim that this disorder comes up as a result of inheritance through genes but this has always been regarded as a mystery (Lee and Cleghorn, 1991).
The Areas Affected In the Brain
Neurological research shows that the brain is the most affected part of an individual in which the neurotransmitters are released amid the neurons; this is the reason why the symptoms appear. In this case, we find that the neurotransmitter serotonin is one of causing agents of these symptoms in an individual. In many cases when an individual is attacked it is reported that the lateral ventricles the sacs which are fluid-filled surrounding the brain usually enlarge, we also find that in the same case the size of the brain is also reduced, making the cerebral cortex to be small (Lee and Cleghorn, 1991).
Treatment
It is also difficult to treat such disorders and research indicates that the best way of treating is through self-help as well as psychotherapy which reduces the magnitude of the disorders. However, the use of antidepressants drugs can be utilized to suppress the disorders only for a while.
Case Study 1
Anxiety
In this case of Tom, we find that he reported being facing several anxiety symptoms such as lack of sleep, nausea, tensions in the body muscle and he even faces difficulties in concentrating and becomes fatigued most of the time. This indicates that he is suffering from a psychological disorder referred to as anxiety research indicates that anxiety makes a person sometimes feel anxious with no noticeable cause. Medical practitioners also argue that such a disorder sometimes is accompanied by uncomfortable feelings of which it is difficult to stop such feelings once it occurs (Lee and Cleghorn, 1991).
An individual with an anxiety disorder may suffer from irregular bouts that are reported to be severe and on many occasions results in frightening and immobilizing the individual diagnosed with it. Anxiety disorder is the most common disorder associated with human beings and usually, it is associated with psychological health disorders i.e. mental disorders. In this case OF Tom who is an engineer we find that he has been suffering from the most common type of anxiety disorder is known as generalized anxiety disorder commonly abbreviated as GAD for the last six months, this disorder is considered to be severe than the usual anxiety encountered by human beings in their daily lives. It is also persistent and is characterized by overstated anxiousness and nervousness and such characteristics can just occur without aggravation by anything (Hauser, 2005).
Anxiety can attack an individual and such attack usually attacks those persons who are related to those individuals who were diagnosed earlier with the disease. A general anxiety disorder may arise because of an individual perturbing extremely about his/her health condition, work-related issues, domestic matters, and financial problems among other factors. However, medical doctors have indicated that worries associated with this kind of anxiety disorder cannot be traced but usually the issue of an individual meditating on how to solve the problems affecting him/her may provoke it to erupt this is indicated in the case of Tom where it has been reported that he has recently been to his doctor for a physical, but no health issues were discovered to because of the anxiety. Research indicates that individuals diagnosed with general anxiety disorder are always not capable of relaxing and in some cases, they frequently experience sleeping disorders like lacking sleep completely (PsychCentral, 2006).
Medical doctors have proved that these worries by individuals suffering from this kind of anxiety disorder usually exhibit physical signs that may comprise of trembling, jerking, headaches, muscle pressures, bad tempers, and sweating profusely among other symptoms from the case study we find that these are the exact symptoms that Tom has been facing for the last six months. Individuals suffering from GAD may also exhibit behaviors such as being dizzy, regularly taking showers, easily startle when contrasted to other persons, tend always feeling tired even though they have done nothing, experience lack of concentration, exhibits depression signs, and in some other cases experience some funny feelings of thinking that they have swelling in their throats (Lee and Cleghorn, 1991).
Another sign of anxiety is that of blushing where the individuals affected in the society tend to view such blushing as an embarrassing experience because they always think that everyone is seeing them in that state.
Methods of Anxiety Treatment
General anxiety disorder can be treated in different ways but it has been recommended that the best way is the utilization of a method that integrates both cognitive and behavioral involvements and the commonly preferred method depends heavily on the harshness of the disorder. Methods of treatment include Psychotherapy which should be directed to fighting the person’s low intensity, the ever there nervousness and also assisting the affected person to develop improved thoughts guides that will reduce worries and in the process containing GAD (Hauser, 2005).
The utilization of relaxation skills can also be applied whereby the affected person such as Tom can receive learning on how to relax and at the same time engage the patient in exercises that will achieve relaxation mood which in turn will reduce stress. The other treatment is that of medication by the doctors by use of some drugs like benzodiazepines that include Lorazepam and Xanax to ease the disorder. However such medicines may have side effects or lead to patients being addictive and thus may cause health problems in the long term (Hauser, 2005).
Case Study 2
Substance Abuse Relapse
Looking at the case of Ron who is thirty-three years old and is reported to be an alcohol addict, he is reported to have been indulging in alcohol addiction since he was a teenager and he is unable to control his behavior this is actually when it indicated that he has been undergoing various treatment programs which could help him overcome the problem of alcoholism but he has been going back to his daily routine of alcoholism, we find that his wife has been concerned about this issue of alcoholism but she has no clue of how to help come over the alcoholic addiction. In this case study, we find that it is not the liking of Ron not to stop the alcoholism behavior but he is suffering from what many psychologists term as substance abuse relapse.
Substance abuse relapse is a condition where one feels to have failed to recover fully from addiction to substance abuse even though they have gone under a professional recovery plan. It means that one comes back or is tempted to use the substance even after they have undergone a medical response process. Relapse to substance abuse is a common problem that can have devastating effects on the victim especially physical and emotional impacts (Wang, 1999).
Causes of Relapse
The causes of relapse after substance abuse include; chaotic home environment, ineffective parenting, lack of nurturing, and parental attachment, factors related to a child’s socialization outside the family may also increase the risk of drug abuse and association with deviant peer groups. Like in the case of Ron we may say that his substance relapse came up as ineffective parenting since it is indicated that he started his alcoholism behavior while he was a teenager.
Characteristics of a Persons Affected By Relapse
The main symptoms of substances relapse can be easily noticed by family members and can include; irritability and aggressiveness, difficulty in controlling use, declining performance at work or in school, forgetfulness, hopelessness, selfishness, neglect of other interests and activities, strong desire to take the substances, increased tolerance, frequent hangovers, withdrawal syndrome, planning substance abuse, among others. In the case study we find that the symptoms that Ron has been facing are that of lack of control in the use of alcohol whereby some times he has been found Driving under the Influence through which he has been arrested several times, we also find that he admits to being an alcoholic where he does not have full control of the behavior (Witkiewitz and Walker, 2005).
Prevention
Since substance abuse and relapse, in general, may start during adolescence or childhood, like in the case of Ron who started alcoholism at his teenage stage. Prevention efforts in community and schools settings may be strengthened to curb relapse. Recent programs championed by the Office of Drug Abuse and Prevention in the U.S have focused more on educating vulnerable groups such as the youth. The programs are intended to teach resistance skills and how to fully keep away from drugs. (Wang, 1999) Through education and the media, support and service groups are seeking to educate parents on the importance to support their families and help their children keep off drugs.
Scientific research conducted in the past has shown that effective treatment from a relapse can help people like Ron to completely recover from destructive behaviors after undoing treatment or recovery process from substance abuse. People can successfully remove themselves from a life of substance abuse through effective treatment and long-term commitments.
Pharmacotherapies
To a greater or lesser extent, certain drugs have been developed and manufactured to assist in solving issues of relapse. They include opioid medications such as methadone, buprenorphine, morphine, oxycodone, etc. which have been used as remedies for relapse. One of the most successful ones includes ibogaine which, according to medics, can help reduce the temptation of going back to substance abuse and is specifically suited for narcotics and alcohol. It is believed to interrupt both psychological cravings and physical dependence on stimulants, nicotine, and alcohol. Parks, in his book ‘Relapse prevention therapy,’ argues that morphine enables the patient to cease substance abuse “to avoid the psychological, legal, financial, social, and physical consequences that can be caused, especially by extreme abuse”. Other antidepressants can moderate substance use particularly narcotics. All these Pharmacotherapies have helped in the reduction of relapse of substance abuse for all genders; I would therefore suggest that Ron should be given such medication that could help him get out the relapse problem (Wang, 1999).
Medics promote the use of rehabilitation strategies to minimize the effects of relapse since it is a slow but sure process of withdrawal. The method involves the use of psychological dependency which attempts to teach and train the victim new methods of freely interacting with a drug-free environment and avoid relapse. Isolation of victims or patients of relapse from people who are still substance abusers is very important as it prevents them from admiring the practice. In some organizations, moderations are utilized to allow substance abusers to re-examine their habits and compare themselves before and after stopping the practice. Many other programs utilize rehabilitation initiatives to make their initiatives more effective (Wang, 1999).
Recommendations and Conclusion
Psychological disorders in some other instances can be very severe and during such chronic stages, it is usually debilitating which results in the inability of an individual affected to perform the usual routine practices for example household matters effectively and efficiently. There are also specific signs of these disorders and include extreme anxiety and being anxious that occur to an individual for a period up to around twenty-four weeks. The key symptoms of anxiety and worry which are the main cause of psychological disorders may comprise getting easy exhaustion, restlessness, poor concentration, being temperamental, and sleep disorders. Such worries and anxiety causes major stress and may cause a bad image in the social aspect as well as in the work-related environment contexts and other significant parts of operation in an individual’s daily life. We can also deduce that such turbulences caused by psychological disorders are not related however to other psychological causes such as drug abuse or medical conditions that might be related to this kind of anxiety (PsychCentral, 2006).
Counseling plays a key role in the treatment of psychological disorders and patients with such disorders should be subjected to such programs to aid them to recover slowly from such attacks which may affect their lives. Counseling programs designed should be well formulated to address all the problems that the patients with such disorders are facing in society to avoid the repeat of the attacks. These counseling services should be made easier in terms of getting access to it for example building counseling centers in all parts of the county. The relevant authorities should also chip in and offer the counseling services for free or at affordable rates to the members of the society (Chopra and Kulhara, 1996).
References
Chopra P and Kulhara P (1996)-Social support social dysfunction & stressful life events In neurotic patients, Indian Journal of Psychiatry.
Hauser, J. (2005). Anxiety: Generalized anxiety disorder.
Lee M, and Cleghorn, J (1991) Understanding & treating mental illness the strengths And limits of modern psychiatry Hogrefe and Huber Lewiston, New York
PsychCentral® (2006) Anorexia nervosa: Symptoms.
Wang, M. (1999): Efficacy of relapse prevention; Meta-analytic review. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, Ontario 1 (3), 107–119
Witkiewitz, K. & Walker, D (2005): Mindfulness-based relapse prevention for alcohol use disorders: The meditative tortoise wins the race. Journal of Cognitive Psychotherapy, 11 (7), 221–243.