Mental Disorders

Mental disorders make up 15 % of the burden of diseases in established market economies. A mental illness is describe as any disturbance of emotional equilibrium, as manifested in maladaptive behavior and impaired functioning, caused by genetic, physical, chemical, biological, psychological, or social and cultural factors. Schizophrenia is a disease that strikes people in their prime. It does not matter who you are, you can be diagnosis with schizophrenia. A disease not to be taken likely that often affects pregnant women is postpartum depression. There are three phases of postpartum depression; postpartum blues (baby blues), postpartum depression and postpartum psychosis. Many people all over the world are affected by bipolar disorder. There are two phases of bipolar manic and depressive. There are many new types of treatments used, such as drug therapy and psychological therapy. There are also some harsh therapies that are not seen as often but I would like to mention; prefrontal lobotomy, electro convulsive and insulin-coma.
The history of mental dates back to around 40 centuries ago when people considered mental illness to be a punishment form the gods. Hippo crates was the first physician to documen

Some symptoms of postpartum depression are dysphoric mood, loss of interest in usually pleasurable activities, difficulties concentrating or making decisions, psychomotor agitation or retardation, fatigue, changes in appetite or sleep, recurrent thoughts of death or suicide, feelings of worthlessness or guilt, especially failure at motherhood, and excessive anxiety over child’s health. At least one in ten new mothers experiences various degrees of postpartum depression. Postpartum complications can occur within days of the delivery or appear gradually, sometimes up to a year or so later. A women suffering from postpartum depression will usually experience several of the mentioned symptoms ranging from mild to severe. She may experience good days and alternating bad days. Although postpartum depression does not take the same form for every woman , all of the symptoms can be equally distressing and often leave the women feeling ashamed, guilty and isolated. Some women may not feel depressed, but may feel very anxious.

Postpartum blues is a self-limited syndrome of mood lability, euphoria, tearfulness, confusion and insomnia that is experienced 39% to 85% of new mothers. The baby blues is an extremely common reaction occurring in the first few days after delivery, usually appearing suddenly on the third or fourth day. Fifty to seventy five percent of all new mothers experience this feeling of letdown after the emotionally changed experience of birth. Symptoms may include crying for no apparent reason, impatience, irritability, restlessness and anxiety. Postpartum depression is an insidious onset and chronic course that complicates 10% to 15% of all deliveries and a staggering 26% to 32% of all adolescent deliveries. Postpartum psychosis begins precipitously and is associated with hallucinations and delusional beliefs about the infant. This level of depression is considered to be the most severe and rarest of all. It occurs in about 1 out of 1000 women who give birth. Onset is sudden and usually occurs within the first 2 to 3 weeks. It usually would require hospitalization and alienation from the infant for fear of infanticidal impulses.

It is very important that people seek help during the manic phase. Many people do not seek medical attention during periods of mania because they feel manic symptoms (increased energy, heightened mood, increased sexual drive, etc.) have a positive impact on them. However, left unchecked, these behaviors can have harmful results. When symptoms of mania are left untreated, they can lead to illegal or life-threatening situations because mania often involves impaired judgment and reckless behavior. Manic behaviors vary from person to person. All symptoms should be discussed with your doctor.

Families and patients are given realistic and scientifically sound information about the mental disorder as a disability that can be controlled but is probably lifelong. Medication is only part of the treatment. If the patient does not take the medication there is usually the revolving door pattern where the patient is discharged and then readmitted and discharged again and so on and so on. It is important to teach the patient social skills that will help them function effectively out side of the hospital. Families affected by mental disorders are encouraged to join support group.

Diagnosis of psychological disorders is done by the Diagnostic and Statistic Manual of Mental Disorders(DSM)). In the DSM they use the 5 axes. Axis I is all categories of abnormal behavior except for personality disorder and mental retardation. Axis II is all personality disorders and mental retardation. Axis III is the general medical conditions believed to be relevant to the mental disorder in question. Axis IV is all psychological and environmental problems that may contribute to the disorder. Lastly Axis V is the patient’s current level of adaptive f