mental illness

any disease of the mind

the psychological state of someone who has emotional or behavioral problems serious enough to require psychiatric intervention

'', the famous painting commonly thought of as depicting the experience of mental illness.]]Spoken WikipediaMental_illness.ogg2005-08-20 A mental illness is a disorder of the brain that results in a disruption in a person's thinking, feeling, moods, and socializationability to relate to others. Mental illness is distinct from the legal concepts of sanity and insanity.Mental health, ''mental hygiene'', ''behavioral health'', and ''mental wellness'' are all terms used to describe the state or absence of mental illness.Most psychologists attribute mental illness to organic/neurochemical causes that can be treated with psychiatric medication, psychotherapy, lifestyle adjustments and other supportive measures; however, many of the causes of mental illness are still unknown. The battle between "nature" and "nurture" goes on as it has for years. Neuroscience and genetics are still unable to fully explain the effects of genetic inheritance and developmental environment.Advocacy organizations have been trying to change the common perception of psychiatric disorders, which are frequently seen as signs of personal weakness and something to be ashamed of. Advocacy organizations instead liken psychiatric disorders to physical diseases such as measles.

Prevalence and diagnosis - According to the 2003 report of the U.S. President's New Freedom Commission on Mental Health, major mental illness, including clinical depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, and obsessive-compulsive disorder, when compared with all other diseases (such as cancer and heart disease), is the most common cause of disability in the United States. According to National Alliance for the Mentally Ill (nami.org - NAMI), an American advocacy organisation which accepts funding from the pharmaceutical industry, 23% of North American adults will suffer from a clinically diagnosable mental illness in a given year, but less than half of them will suffer symptoms severe enough to disrupt their daily functioning. Approximately 9% to 13% of children under the age of 18 experience serious emotional disturbance with substantial functional impairment; 5% to 9% have serious emotional disturbance with extreme functional impairment due to a mental illness. Many of these young people will recover from their illnesses before reaching adulthood, and go on to lead normal lives uncomplicated by illness.At the start of the 20th century there were only a dozen recognized mental illnesses. By 1952 there were 192 and the DSM-IVDiagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorder, Fourth Edition (DSM-IV) today lists 374. Depending on perspective, this could be seen as the result of one or more of:

More effective diagnosis and better characterization of mental illness, due to over a century of research in a new field of science and academia;

A highly increased incidence of mental illness, due to some causative agent such as diet or the ever-increasing stress of everyday life

An over-medicalisation of human thought processes, and an increasing tendency on the part of mental health experts to label individual "quirks and foibles" as illness.

Increasing politicization of the ''DSM'', perhaps due in part to the Peter principle, which may allow decision-makers with more discriminating, compartmentailizing thought processes to dominate the higher ranks of the medical establishment.

Controversy over its nature - The subject is profoundly controversial. For example, homosexuality was once considered such an "illness" (see Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental DisordersDSM-II), and this perception varies with cultural bias and theory of conduct. Neurochemical studies have proven that there are systemic lacks of certain neurotransmitters in the brains of certain individuals. Also, some structural differences between brains of people with behavioral differences can be detected in brain scans. Some mental illnesses tend to run in families, and there have also been strongly suggestive, but not conclusive, links between certain genes and particular mental disorders. Routine tests for these conditions are, however, not generally required for prescription of drugs, and are not always employed in law either.It is not clear whether these differences in brain chemistry are the cause or the result of mental disorders. Traumatic life experiences may exceed an individual's coping ability and result in lasting changes in brain chemistry. Patterns of learned behavior can also alter brain chemistry, for better or for worse. Cognitive behavior therapy focuses on changing patterns of thinking through learning, which may ultimately restore so-termed "healthy" brain chemistry.Drug therapies for severe mental illnesses such as bipolar disorder and clinical depression, which are consistent with biochemical models, have been remarkably effective, and there are reports of increasingly effective treatments for schizophrenia. Some argue that drugs merely mask the symptoms of mental suffering by physically crippling the brain's emotional response system. Studies have shown that many patients' symptoms return once drug treatment is ceased. Others reply that many physical conditions, such as diabetes, must also be controlled with use of medications for an indefinite period of time.It is important to note that the existence of mental illness and the legitimacy of the psychiatric profession are not universally accepted. Some professionals, notably Doctor Thomas Szasz, Professor Emeritus of Psychiatry at Syracuse, are profoundly opposed to the practice of labelling "mental illness" as such. The anti-psychiatry movement often refers to what it considers to be the "myth of mental illness" and argues against a biological origin for mental disorders, or else suggests that all human experience has a biological origin and so no pattern of behavior can be classified as an ''illness'' per se.Other arguments against psychiatry include controversial treatments, such as Electroconvulsive therapy, or the practice of placing patients in a mental institution with other mentally ill people. This does much to increase the emotional stress levels of the patient by influence of the other patients, causing the mental illness to worsen.See the topics anti-psychiatry and Causes of psychiatric disordercauses of mental illness for a fuller treatment of these topics.

Categorization - In the United States, mental illnesses have been categorized into groups according to their common symptoms in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, compiled by the American Psychiatric Association. There are thirteen different categories, some containing a myriad of illnesses and others only a few. Selecting any of the Wikipedia categories in the table will allow you access to all the articles and subcategories in that category.DSM !GroupExampl es? !? ! ! ! ! !

Wikipe dia? !category
Disorders usually first diagnosed in infancy, childhood or adolescence. *Disorders such as autism and epilepsy have also been referred to as ''developmental disorders''.	Mental retardation, autism, ADHD	:Category:Disorders usually first present before adulthood
Delirium, dementia, and amnesia and other cognitive disorders	Alzheimer's disease	:Category:Memory disorders and :Category:Cognitive disorders
Mental disorders due to a general medical condition	AIDS-related psychosis	:Category:Mental disorders due to a general medical condition
Substance-related disorders	Alcohol abuse	:Category:Substance- related? disorders
Schizophrenia and other psychosispsychotic disorders	Delusional disorder	:Category:Psychosis& lt;/td>?
Mood disorders	Clinical depression, Bipolar disorder	:Category:Mood disorders
Anxiety disorders	General anxiety disorder	:Category:Anxiety disorders
Somatoform disorders	Somatization disorder	:Category:Somatoform disorders
Factitious disorders	Munchausen syndrome	:Category:Factitious disorders
Dissociative disorders	Dissociative identity disorder	:Category:Dissociati ve? disorders
Sexual disorderSexual and gender identity disorders	Dyspareunia, Gender identity disorder	:Category:Sexual and gender identity disorders
Eating disorders	Anorexia nervosa	:Category:Eating disorders
Sleep disorders	Insomnia	:Category:Sleep disorders
Impulse-control disorders not elsewhere classified	Kleptomania:Category:Impulse-co ntrol? disorder not elsewhere classified
Adjustment disorders	Adjustment disorder	:Category:Adjustment disorders
Personality disorders	Narcissistic personality disorder	:Category:Personalit y? disorders
Other conditions that may be a focus of clinical attention	Tardive dyskinesia, Child abuse	:Category:Other conditions that may be a focus of clinical attention

Many organizations do not view mental retardation as a mental illness. mhasp.org - The Mental Health Association of Southeastern Pennsylvania states: 'Mental illness and mental retardation are not the same thing. People are born with mental retardation, a condition characterized by below-average intelligence throughout one's life. Mental illness, however, can affect anyone at any time. In fact, certain mental illnesses are more common among people with high intelligence and creativity.'

Symptoms - In addition to the categorized illnesses, there are many well-defined symptoms of mental illness, such as paranoia, that are not regarded as illnesses in themselves, but only as indicators of one of the illnesses belonging to one of the classes listed above.Crime is not a symptom of mental illness; however, movies often portray murderers as being mentally ill. This makes a villain more emotional, interesting, and dramatic. In truth, mentally disturbed people commit fewer crimes than the elderly.

Treatment - Strictly speaking, there is no cure for mental illness. Many conditions, like schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and clinical depressiondepression, can be treated with medication, however. The function of the psychiatrist is in administering, monitoring, and managing the prescription of these medications and their effects on the patient.Loosely speaking, there is a cure for some mental conditions in the same sense that there is a cure for cancer. That is, if a person has a mental illness, it can be treated until the symptoms disappear. The chances of the symptoms recurring will be affected by the number of episodes the patient has had in the past, the effectiveness of the treatment, as well as external factors. If the patient's symptoms never recur, he is said to be 'cured'. If they recur, it is the same concept as a cancer patient coming out of remission, i.e. the patient never was cured in the first place.Since mental illness is at its base behavioral illness, most mentally ill patients also benefit from psychotherapy, either from a psychiatrist or some other qualified clinician, like a social worker or Doctor of Psychologypsychologist. The most basic treatment involves identifying maladaptive, self-destructive, or inappropriate behaviors and finding ways, with the patient, of coping with, eliminating, or altering those behaviors to promote overall mental health.Often individuals with serious mental illness will engage in several different treatment modalities, all with specific goals. For example, a patient with chronic schizophrenia may be involved in treatment with a psychiatrist for medication, and he or she may also be engaged in psychotherapy to help manage their life-long condition, as well being engaged in case management (sometimes referred to as "service coordination") or a partial hospitalizationday treatment or vocational educationvocational program to help move them towards a more productive and independent role in the community.

In art and literature -

Books -

''One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest'' by Ken Kesey

''The Catcher in the Rye'' by J. D. Salinger

''The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time'' by Mark Haddon

''The Bell Jar'' by Sylvia Plath

Motion Pictures - Many motion pictures portray mental illness in inaccurate ways leading to misunderstanding and heightened stigma. Some movies, however, are lauded for dispelling stereotypes and providing insight into mental illness. In a study by George Gerbner, it was determined that 5 percent of 'normal' television characters are murderers while 20 % of 'mentally ill' characters are murderers. 40% of normal characters are violent while 70% of mentally ill characters are violent. Contrary to what is portrayed in films and television, Henry Steadman and his colleagues found that, overall, former mental patients did not have a higher rate of violence than their control group of people who were not formal mental health patients. In both groups, however, substance abuse was linked to a higher rate of violence. (Hockenbury and Hockenbury 2004)See List of films featuring mental illness.

See also -

Anti-psychiatry

Automatism

Causes of psychiatric disorderCauses of mental illness

Chemical imbalance theory

Electroconvulsive therapy

Evidence-based medicine

God complex

History of mental illness

International Center for the Study of Psychiatry and Psychology

Medical algorithm

Mental Health Act 1983

Mental illness (alphabetical list)Alphabetic list of mental illnesses

Mindfreedom.org

New Freedom Commission on Mental Health

Outpatient commitment

Patch Adams

Psychiatric survivors movement

Psychopathology

Reality

Rubber ceiling

Sally Satel

Sectioning

Psychiatric hospital

Texas Medication Algorithm Project

WikiBooks -

!wikibooks:Neuroscience/Dysfunc tionDysfunction section of the Neuroscience Book

External links -

Government sites -

!mentalhealthcommission.gov - MentalHealthCommission.gov - 'Interim Report of the President's New Freedom Commission on Mental Health' (United States)

nimh.nih.gov - NIMH.NIH.gov - 'Working to improve mental health through biomedical research on mind, brain, and behavior', National Institute of Mental Health (United States)

nimhe.org.uk - NIMHE.org.uk - 'Responsible for supporting the implementation of positive change in mental health and mental health services', National Institute for Mental Health (United Kingdom)

kc.nimhe.org.uk - NIMHE.org.uk - 'Joined up knowledge sharing for mental health service improvement', NIMH (UK)

History and professional specialties -

caslater.freeservers.com - CaSlater.freeservers.com - 'From Idiocy to Intellectual Impairment - 1000AD-2000AD: A history of people who have been described over the years as fools and intellectually impaired, mentally retarded and developmentally delayed, mentally handicapped and learning disabled' Catherine Slater, M.A.

ericdigests.org - EricDigests.org - 'Mental Health Counseling: Identity and Distinctiveness'

ericdigests.org - EricDigests.org - 'Mental Health and the Adult Refugee: The Role of the ESL Teacher'

ericdigests.org - EricDigests.org - 'Mental Health Counseling Assessment: Broadening One's Understanding of the Client and the Clients Presenting Concerns'

ohiou.edu - OhioU.edu - 'The History of Mental Illness' Ohio University, The Ridges

plato.stanford.edu - Plato.stanford.edu - 'Mental Illness', Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy

Media coverage -

news-medical.net - News-Medical.net - 'Globalisation affecting children's mental health around the world' (July 4, 2005)

publicintegrity.org - PublicIntegrity.org - 'Pushing Prescriptions: Drug Lobby Second to None: How the pharmaceutical industry gets its way in Washington D.C.Washington', M. Asif Ismail (July 7, 2005)

Compiled mental health news and resources -

whatsnextnetwork.com - Mental Health News

freewebs.com - FreeWebs.com - 'Gambling Help'

mental-health-matters.com - Mental-Health-Matters.com - 'Mental Health, Self Help & Psychology Information and Resources'

nami.org - NAMI.org - 'In The News', National Alliance for the Mentally Ill (NAMI California)

psychcentral.com - PsychCentral.com - 'Dr. Grohol's Psych Central Mental Health Symptoms, Treatments and Resources'

seemescotland.org - SeeMeScotland.org - 'Latest News and Events' (Scotland)

Online support group -

mentalhealth.about.com - About Mental Health - 'About Mental Health & Eating Disorders Support'

psychforums.com - PsychForums.com - 'Mental Health Support Community'

forums.psychcentral.com - Psych Central - 'Psych Central's Self-Help Support Forums'

References - Hockenbury, Don and Sandy Title=Discovering Psychology Publisher=Worth Publishers Year=2004 ID=ISBN 0-7167-5704-4

Roy Porter, Madness. A Brief History, Oxford University Press 2003Category:Abnormal !psychologyCategory:DisabilityC ategory:Medical? ethicsCategory:Mental illness diagnosis by DSM and !ISCDRHPCategory:PsychiatryCate gory:Mental? healthcs:Duševní nemocda:Psykisk !sygdomde:Geisteskrankheites:En fermedad? mentalfr:Maladie mentalelt:Psichikos sutrikimasnl:Psychische !aandoeningja:精神疾患pl:Za burzenie? psychicznero:Boală !mintalăru:Психическ� �е? !расстройствоsimple :Mental? illness

Childrens' Counselors.com
Directory of therapists, psychologists, psychiatrists and counselors who specialize in working with children, adolescents, teens.
http://www.childrenscounselors.com/

The Human Growth Center
The Human Growth Center is located in Holland, PA and provides comprehensive psychological and counseling services with sliding scale fees. Expert therapists provide services on a volunteer basis.
http://www.humangrowthcenter.org/

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2 Bear Ranch
a residential treatment program dedicated to providing help to persons with various forms of mental illness.
http://www.2bearranch.com/

A Bipolar Odyssey
A site that offers alternative perspectives of bipolar and other mental disorders and suggests, among other things, a role for nutrients and targeted intervention of specific risk factors such as chronic infections.
http://www.bipolarodyssey.com/

National Alliance for the Mentally Ill
A grass roots, self-help, support and advocacy organization. Medical and legislative news, book reviews, meeting announcements and links to other sites can be found here.
http://www.nami.org/

Screening for Mental Health
Organization dedicated to coordinating nationwide mental health screening programs and to ensure cooperation, professionalism, and accountability in mental illness screenings. Contains support information for setting up screenings for specific disorders.
http://www.mentalhealthscreening.org/

National Resource Center on Homelessness and Mental Illness
Trainings, publications, bibliographies, referral lists, fact sheets and resource library.
http://www.nrchmi.com/

Internet Mental Health
The 52 most common mental disorders, medications, news, recovery stories, links.
http://www.mentalhealth.com/