Symptoms of mental illness: how to recognize the disease. How to determine that a person has a mental disorder: the main signs

Women are emotional and sensitive beings, and therefore are more prone to nervous and mental disorders than men. Moreover, for a certain period in the life of the beautiful half, certain mental disorders are characteristic.

Of course, not everyone and not always, but the risk exists. The main thing here is to recognize the symptoms in time and begin timely treatment. This will help bring life back to normal.

What are the signs of a mental disorder, what is the behavior of women in this case? Let's talk about it today on the site "Popular about health":

Common Mental Disorders

Representatives of the weaker sex often suffer from mental disorders: depression, eating disorders, seasonal affective and somatic mental disorders.

They often have tantrums of panic, anxiety and fear. Manic-depressive psychosis, various phobias and suicidal attempts can be observed.

For each period, a critical stage in life, there is a group of the most likely mental disorders. Let's consider them in more detail:

During childhood, girls are much less at risk of developing a mental disorder than boys of the same age. But, even at this stage, they are not immune from the occurrence of anxiety and disorders associated with relationships with peers and learning.

Young girls are more likely to develop premenstrual dysphoria, which may appear after the first menstrual bleeding. Well, after puberty, girls are twice as likely as boys to suffer from depression.

Young women are subject to various mental disorders during pregnancy and after childbirth. They are afraid of the fear of bearing and future motherhood, there are frequent mood swings, a depressive state and other disorders may develop.

Most of the time it goes away and no treatment is needed. However, some have more severe psychotic symptoms requiring prompt treatment.

Women of the so-called middle age are at high risk of developing affective and anxiety states, fears, mood swings and other disorders, up to schizophrenia. At this age, sexual function may decrease, especially when taking antidepressants.

During menopause, the risk of severe depression increases. In addition to hormonal changes, which do not have the best effect on mental health, many are undergoing changes in their personal lives and families.

During menopause, women experience severe physical discomfort, which, among other things, is associated with hot flashes. They often have tantrums. It should be noted here that those women who previously had problems with the nervous system or psyche experience this period most of all.

Most older women are shifting their focus from raising children who are adults themselves to aging parents. Some become, in the truest sense of the word, nurses - they take on all the care and care for them. Which, of course, reduces the quality of life.

As we age, the likelihood of developing dementia, stroke and associated psychiatric complications increases.

In older women, who usually have many somatic pathologies and take a large number of different drugs, the risk of delirium increases. After 60 years, they often suffer from a psychotic disorder - paraphrenia.

In addition, women of elderly and senile age begin to lose loved ones, some even remain completely alone. All this they experience very hard, which cannot but affect the state of the psyche.

How to recognize the problem, what behavior?

There are common characteristic signs of a mental disorder in women. They are associated with changes in behavior and attitudes towards others. It must be understood that often they themselves do not notice anything strange behind them.

Therefore, close people should know the symptoms of violations in order to provide timely assistance to a loved one. Here are the most common:

Frequent tantrums and scandals, often from scratch. This often happens in women who do not have resistance to stress.

There is a strong craving for the occult, everything supernatural and unreal - magical and religious rituals, shamanism, etc.

Often overwhelmed by anxiety, fears and phobias.

Concentration decreases, lethargy appears, there is a violation of mental activity, lack of activity.

There is apathy, a breakdown, there are frequent mood swings for no reason.

Sleep is disturbed. This manifests itself in insomnia, or excessive sleepiness.

Appetite is disturbed - from bouts of gluttony to complete unwillingness to eat.

The reason to immediately contact a specialist are also: confusion in the mind, forgetfulness, inadequate self-esteem, as well as obsession, or complete unwillingness to communicate and, of course, suicidal thoughts or actions.

The treatment of mental disorders is carried out in a complex manner and includes drug therapy and psychotherapy. It is also recommended to change the diet, in favor of foods rich in vitamins, alcohol is excluded.

You can use infusions of plants that have a calming effect. In particular, healers recommend taking tincture of valerian, chamomile, mint, St. John's wort, etc.

However, in any case, before you do something, you must definitely consult with a specialist - a psychotherapist or psychiatrist. Be healthy!

If you're a woman suffering from depression, an anxiety disorder, or another mental health condition, you're not alone: According to a recent survey, 14,000,000 Russian women experienced mental health problems in the past year. And these are just the known cases. Experts say millions of other cases go unaddressed - and go untreated.

Mental disorders in women

Some mental disorders are more common in women and can play a significant role in women's overall health.

While men experience higher levels of autism, early onset schizophrenia, social personality disorder, and alcoholism, psychiatric disorders are more common in women, which include:

Depression. Women are twice as likely as men (12% of women compared to 6% of men) to suffer from depression.
Anxiety and phobias. Although men and women suffer equally from mental health disorders such as obsessive-compulsive disorder and social phobias, women are twice as likely as men to have panic disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, and certain phobias.
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Women are twice as likely to develop PTSD after a traumatic event.
Suicide attempts. Men die by suicide four times more than women, but women attempt suicide two or three times more often than men.
. Women account for at least 85 percent of all cases of anorexia and bulimia, and 65 percent of compulsive overeating.

Women's traits are different from men's

Even when men and women share a common diagnosis of a mental disorder, the symptoms, and subsequently treatment, may differ.

For example, a man who is depressed is more likely to report work-related problems, while women are more likely to report physical problems such as fatigue or disturbed appetite and sleep. Unlike their depressed male counterparts, women tend to develop problems with alcohol abuse within a few years of the onset of depression. Women are more likely to use religion and emotions to compensate for symptoms of depression compared to men, who often find relief through sports and other hobbies.

Women with schizophrenia are more likely to experience depression, while men with schizophrenia become lethargic and socially withdrawn. Women tend to respond more quickly to antipsychotics and require less grooming. They also report more depressive symptoms, which can make the diagnosis difficult and may require a prescription for mood stabilizers in addition to antipsychotics.

Why such gender differences?

What happens in the female brain and body that leads to differences in mental illness? The answers may lie in:

Biological factors. Female hormonal fluctuations are known to play an important role in mood and depression. The hormone estrogen may have beneficial effects on the brain, protecting women with schizophrenia from severe symptoms during certain phases of the menstrual cycle and maintaining neuronal structures in the brain that protect against some aspects of Alzheimer's disease. On the less positive side, women tend to produce less mood-stabilizing serotonin and synthesize it more slowly than men, which may explain the higher rates of depression. Women's genetics are also thought to play a role in the development of neurological disorders such as Alzheimer's disease.

Socio-cultural factors. Despite gender equality, women still face challenges when it comes to socioeconomic power, status, position, and dependency, which can contribute to depression and other disorders. Women still play a major role in childcare, and they are also thought to provide 80 percent of all care for chronically ill elderly, adding stress to women's lives.
Girls tend to be unhappy with their bodies during puberty, a reaction that is linked to depression. Girls are sexually abused more than boys, and one in five women will experience rape or attempted rape, which can lead to depression and panic disorder.

Behavioral factors. There is some contention that women are more likely to report mental health problems than men, and that physicians are more likely to diagnose women with depression and treat the condition with psychotropic drugs. Women are more likely to report mental disorders to a psychotherapist, while men discuss their problems with a psychologist. However, women are sometimes afraid to talk about physical violence and abuse.

Typical signs of a mental disorder are behavioral changes and thought disorders that go beyond existing norms and traditions. Basically, these signs are associated with the complete or partial insanity of a person and make a person incapable of performing social functions.

Similar disorders can occur in men and women at any age, regardless of nationality.

The pathogenesis of many mental disorders is not completely clear, but scientists have come to the conclusion that a combination of social, psychological and biological factors influences their formation.

A person who feels the early symptoms of a disease is worried about how to understand that you have a mental disorder? In this case, you should take a multi-item test and get the opinion of a professional psychotherapist. Questions must be answered as honestly and frankly as possible.

During the progression of the disease, symptoms appear that are noticeable, if not to the patient himself, then to his relatives. The main signs of a mental disorder are:

emotional symptoms ();
physical symptoms (pain, insomnia);
behavioral symptoms (drug abuse, aggression);
perceptual symptoms (hallucinations);
cognitive symptoms (memory loss, inability to formulate a thought).

If the first symptoms of the disease are persistent and interfere with normal activities, then it is recommended to undergo a diagnosis. There are borderline mental states of the individual, which are present in many mental and somatic diseases or ordinary overwork.

Asthenia

Asthenic syndrome is manifested by nervous exhaustion, fatigue, low performance. The female psyche is more vulnerable and therefore such disorders are more characteristic of the weaker sex. They have increased emotionality, tearfulness and mood lability.

The male psyche reacts to asthenic syndrome with outbursts of irritation, loss of self-control over trifles. With asthenia, severe headaches, lethargy and disturbed night sleep are also possible.

Obsessions

This is a condition in which an adult persistently has various fears or doubts. He cannot get rid of these thoughts, despite the awareness of the problem. A patient with mental pathology can check and recount something for hours, and if he was distracted at the time of the ritual, start counting again. This category also includes claustrophobia, agoraphobia, fear of heights, and others.

Depression

This painful condition for any person is characterized by a persistent decrease in mood, depression, and depression. The disease can be detected at an early stage, in which case the condition can be quickly normalized.

Severe cases of depression are often accompanied by suicidal thoughts and require inpatient treatment.

Characteristic are:

feeling of guilt, sinfulness;
feeling of hopelessness;
sleep disorders.

The condition may be accompanied by a violation of the heart rhythm, excessive sweating, pressure surges, loss of appetite, weight loss, dyspeptic disorders. Mild forms of the disease respond well to treatment, and if severe depression occurs, the patient needs to go to the doctor.

Mania

This neuropsychiatric disorder is characterized by sleep disturbances: usually, adults with this disorder can sleep for 4-6 hours and feel alert. In the initial stage (hypomania), a person notes an increase in vitality, increased efficiency, and a creative upsurge. The patient sleeps little, but at the same time works a lot and is very optimistic.

If hypomania progresses and turns into mania, then a change in personality, the inability to concentrate, joins the indicated signs. Patients are fussy, talk a lot, while constantly changing their position and gesticulating vigorously.

Typical symptoms of mania in adults are increased appetite, increased libido, and defiant behavior. A good mood can be abruptly replaced by irritation. As a rule, with mania sanity is lost, and patients do not understand that their condition is pathological.

hallucinations

This is an acute mental disorder in which the patient feels, sees or hears things that do not really exist. Hallucinations may occur due to alcohol consumption or the progression of mental illness.

Hallucinations are:

auditory (voices);
tactile (itching, pain, burning);
visual (visions);
taste;
olfactory (smells), etc.

However, a situation is also possible when a sick person feels several of them at the same time. Imperative hallucinations are dangerous, when the "voices" in the patient's head order certain actions to be performed (sometimes to kill oneself or someone else). Such conditions are an indication for pharmacotherapy and constant monitoring.

delusional disorders

These disturbances are a sign of psychosis. Delusional beliefs do not correspond to reality, but it is not possible to convince the patient of this. Erroneous ideas are extremely important for the patient and affect all his actions.

Brad has a variety of content:

fear of persecution, damage, poisoning, material damage, etc.;
belief in one's own greatness, divine origin, all sorts of inventions;
ideas of self-accusation and self-negation;
ideas of a love or erotic nature.

Often, the appearance of crazy ideas is preceded by depersonalization and derealization.

Catatonic syndromes

These are conditions in which motor disorders come to the fore: complete or partial inhibition, or vice versa, excitation. With a catatonic stupor, the patient is completely immobilized, silent, the muscles are in good shape. The patient freezes in an unusual, often ridiculous and uncomfortable position.

For catatonic excitation, the repetition of any movements with exclamations is typical. Catatonic syndromes are observed both with clouded and clear consciousness. In the first case, this indicates a possible favorable outcome of the disease, and in the second, the severity of the patient's condition.

clouding of consciousness

In an unconscious state, the perception of reality is distorted, interaction with society is disrupted.

There are several types of this condition. They are united by common symptoms:

Disorientation in space and time, depersonalization.
Detachment from the environment.
Loss of the ability to logically comprehend the situation. Sometimes incoherent thoughts.
Decreased memory.

Each of these signs sometimes occurs in an adult, but their combination may indicate a clouding of consciousness. Usually they pass when the clarity of consciousness is restored.

dementia

With this disorder, the ability to learn and apply knowledge is reduced or lost, and adaptation to the outside world is disrupted. Distinguish congenital (oligophrenia) and acquired form of intellectual decline, which occurs in people aged or patients with progressive forms of mental disorders.

Psychiatry has traditionally dealt with the recognition and treatment of mental illnesses and disorders. Those violations of a person's mental activity that are manifested in thoughts, feelings, emotions, actions, and behavior in general are studied. These violations may be obvious, strongly pronounced, and may not be so obvious as to speak of "abnormality". Not always unbalanced people are mentally unhealthy.

The line where pathology begins beyond the norm is rather blurred and has not yet been clearly defined either in psychiatry or psychology. Therefore, mental illness is difficult to unambiguously interpret and evaluate. If there are signs of a mental disorder in women, then they can be the same in men. Explicit gender differences in the nature of the manifestation of mental illness are sometimes difficult to notice. In any case, with clearly expressed mental disorders. But the level of prevalence by gender can be different. Signs of mental disorders in men are manifested with no less force, although they are not without originality.

If a person believes, for example, that he is Napoleon or has superpowers, or he has sudden mood swings for no reason, or longing begins, or he falls into despair because of the most trivial everyday problems, then we can assume that he has signs of mental diseases. There may also be perverted desires or his actions will be clearly different from normal. Manifestations of painful states of the psyche are very different. But what will be common is that, first of all, the personality of a person, his perception of the world will undergo a change.

Personality is a combination of mental and spiritual properties of a person, his way of thinking, responding to changes in the environment, his character. Personality properties of different people have the same differences as bodily, physical - the shape of the nose, lips, eye color, height, etc. That is, the individuality of a person has the same meaning as physical individuality.

By the manifestations of personality traits, we can recognize a person. Personality properties do not exist separately from each other. They are closely interconnected, both in their functions and in the nature of manifestation. That is, they are organized into a kind of integral system, just like all our organs, tissues, muscles, bones form a bodily shell, a body.

Just as the body undergoes changes with age or under the influence of external factors, the personality does not remain unchanged, it develops, changes. Personality changes can be physiological, normal (especially with age) and pathological. Personality changes (normal) with age, under the influence of external and internal factors occur gradually. The mental image of a person is also gradually changing. At the same time, the properties of the personality change so that the harmony and integrity of the personality are not violated.

What happens when there is a sudden change in personality traits?

But sometimes, a person can change dramatically (or at least, it will seem so to others). Familiar people suddenly become boastful from modest, too harsh in judgments, were calm, balanced, and became aggressive and quick-tempered. From detailed turn into frivolous, superficial. Such changes are hard to miss. The harmony of personality is already broken. Such changes are clearly pathological, are mental disorders. That it is mental illness that can cause such changes is obvious. Doctors and psychologists talk about this. After all, mentally ill people often behave inappropriately to the situation. Yes, and it becomes obvious to others over time.

Factors provoking the occurrence and development of mental illness:

Traumatic head and brain injuries. At the same time, mental activity changes dramatically, obviously not for the better. Sometimes it stops altogether when a person falls into an unconscious state.
Organic diseases, congenital pathologies of the brain. In this case, both individual mental properties and the entire activity of the human psyche as a whole can be violated or "fall out".
General infectious diseases (typhus, septicemia or blood poisoning, meningitis, encephalitis, etc.). They can cause irreversible changes in the psyche.
Intoxication of the body under the influence of alcohol, drugs, gases, medicines, household chemicals (such as glue), poisonous plants. These substances can cause profound changes in the psyche and disruption of the central nervous system (central nervous system).
Stress, psychological trauma. In this case, signs of mental abnormalities may be temporary.
Burdened heredity. If a person has a history of close relatives with chronic mental illness, then the likelihood of such a disease among subsequent generations increases (although this point is sometimes disputed).

There may be other causes among the above factors. There may be many of them, but not all of them are known to medicine and science. Usually, a clearly mentally unbalanced person is immediately noticeable, even to the townsfolk. And yet, the human psyche is perhaps the most poorly understood system of the human body. Therefore, its changes are so poorly amenable to a clear and unambiguous analysis.

Each case of pathological changes in the psyche must be studied individually. Mental disorder or illness can be acquired or congenital. If they are acquired, it means that a certain moment has come in a person’s life when the pathological properties of the personality come to the fore. Unfortunately, it is impossible to trace the moment of transition from the norm to the pathology, and it is difficult to know when the first signs appeared. Also, how to prevent this transition.

Where and when does the "abnormality" begin?

Where is the line beyond which mental illness immediately begins? If there was no obvious interference from the outside in the psyche (head injury, intoxication, illness, etc.), in any case, there was no, in the opinion of both the sick person himself and his environment, then why did he get sick or mental disorders occurred, Even if not psychogenic? What went wrong, at what point? Physicians do not give answers to these questions yet. One can only speculate, carefully study the history, try to find at least something that could provoke changes.

Speaking of congenital, it is assumed that the mental properties of a person have never been in harmony. The person was born already with the broken integrity of the personality. Mental disorders in children and their symptoms represent a separate area for study. Children have their own mental characteristics, which differ from adults. And it should be borne in mind that the signs of a mental disorder can be obvious and obvious, or they can appear as if gradually and by chance, occasionally. Moreover, anatomical changes (in this case, most often they mean changes in the brain, in the first place) in diseases and mental disorders can be visible and obvious, but it happens that they cannot be traced. Or their changes are so subtle that they cannot be traced at a given level of development of medicine. That is, from a purely physiological point of view, there are no violations, but the person is mentally ill and needs treatment.

The pathophysiological basis of mental illness should be considered primarily disorders of the central nervous system - a violation of the basic processes of higher nervous activity (according to I.P. Pavlov).

If we talk directly about the signs of mental disorders, then we should take into account the peculiarities of the classification of mental illness. In each historical period in the development of psychiatry, classifications have undergone various changes. Over time, it became obvious that there is a need for consistent diagnosis of the same patients by different psychiatrists, regardless of their theoretical orientation and practical experience. Although even now this can be difficult to achieve, due to the conceptual disagreement in understanding the essence of mental disorders and diseases.

Another difficulty is that there are different national taxonomy of diseases. They may differ from each other according to various criteria. At the moment, from the point of view of the significance of reproducibility, the International Classification of Diseases of the 10th revision (ICD 10) and the American DSM-IV are used.

Types of pathology of the psyche (according to the domestic classification), depending on the main causes that cause them:

Endogenous (under the influence of external factors) mental illness, but with the participation of exogenous factors. These include schizophrenia, epilepsy, affective disorders, etc.
Exogenous (under the influence of internal factors) mental illness, but with the participation of endogenous factors. These include somatogenic, infectious, traumatic diseases, etc.
Diseases caused by developmental disorders, as well as due to dysfunctions or disruptions in the functioning of the formed body systems. These types of diseases include various personality disorders, and so on.
Psychogeny. These are diseases with signs of psychoses, neuroses.

It should be noted that all classifications not perfect and are open to criticism and improvement.

What is a mental disorder and how can it be diagnosed?

Patients with mental disorders may visit physicians frequently. Many times they can be in the hospital and undergo numerous examinations. Although, first of all, mentally unhealthy people often complain about their somatic condition.

The World Health Organization has identified the main signs of a mental disorder or illness:

Clearly expressed psychological discomfort.
Impaired ability to perform normal work or school duties.
Increased risk of death. Suicidal thoughts, suicide attempts. General disturbance of mental activity.

It is worth alerting if even a thorough examination does not reveal somatic disorders (and complaints do not stop), the patient has been “treated” for a long time and unsuccessfully by different doctors, and his condition does not improve. Diseases of the psyche or mental illness can be expressed not only by signs of a violation of mental activity, but in the clinic of the disease there may also be somatic disorders.

Somatized symptoms caused by anxiety

Anxiety disorders are twice as common in women as in men. Patients with anxiety disorders are more likely to present somatic complaints than complaints about changes in their general mental state. Often, somatic disorders are observed with various types of depression. It is also a very common mental disorder among women.

Somatized symptoms caused by depression

Anxiety and depressive disorders often occur together. ICD 10 even has a separate anxiety-depressive disorder.

Currently, in the practice of a psychiatrist, a complex psychological examination is actively used, which includes a whole group of tests (but their results are not a sufficient basis for making a diagnosis, but only play a clarifying role).

When diagnosing a mental disorder, a comprehensive personality examination is carried out and various factors are taken into account:

The level of development of higher mental functions (or their changes) - perception, memory, thinking, speech, imagination. What is the level of his thinking, how adequate are his judgments and conclusions. Are there any memory impairments, is attention exhausted? How do thoughts correspond to mood, behavior. For example, some people can tell sad stories and laugh at the same time. Assess the pace of speech - whether it is slow or vice versa, the person speaks quickly, incoherently.
Evaluate the general background of mood (oppressed or unreasonably high, for example). How adequate are his emotions to the environment, to changes in the world around him.
They monitor the level of his contact, readiness to discuss his condition.
Assess the level of social, professional productivity.
The nature of sleep is assessed, its duration,
Eating behavior. Whether a person suffers from overeating, or vice versa, takes food too little, rarely, haphazardly.
The ability to experience pleasure, joy is assessed.
Can the patient plan his activities, control his actions, behavior, are there any violations of volitional activity.
The degree of adequacy of orientation in themselves, other people, in time, place - do patients know their name, are they aware of who they are (or consider themselves a superhuman, for example), do they recognize relatives, friends, can build a chronology of events in their lives and the lives of loved ones.
Presence or absence of interests, desires, inclinations.
The level of sexual activity.
The most important thing is how critical a person is to his condition.

These are only the most general criteria, the list is far from complete. In each specific case, age, social status, state of health, and individual personality traits will also be taken into account. In fact, the usual behavioral reactions can serve as signs of mental disorders, but in an exaggerated or distorted form. Of particular interest to many researchers is the creativity of the mentally ill, its influence on the course of the disease. Mental illness is not such a rare companion even for great people.

It is believed that "Mental illnesses have the ability to sometimes suddenly open the springs of the creative process, the results of which are ahead of ordinary life, sometimes for a very long time." Creativity can serve as a means of calming and beneficially influence the patient. (P.I. Karpov, “Creativity of the mentally ill and its influence on the development of art, science and technology”, 1926). They also help the doctor to penetrate deeper into the soul of the patient, to better understand him. It is also believed that creators in the field of science, technology and art often suffer from nervous imbalance. According to these views, the creativity of the mentally ill often has no less value than the creativity of healthy people. Then what should be mentally healthy people? This is also an ambiguous wording and approximate signs.

Signs of mental health:

Adequate to external and internal changes behavior, actions.
Healthy self-esteem, not only of yourself, but also of your capabilities.
Normal orientation in one's personality, time, space.
Ability to work normally (physically, mentally).
Ability to think critically.

A mentally healthy person is a person who wants to live, develop, knows how to be happy or sad (shows a large number of emotions), does not threaten himself and others with his behavior, is generally balanced, in any case, this is how he should be assessed by people around him. These characteristics are not exhaustive.

Mental disorders most common in women:

Anxiety disorders
Depressive disorders
Anxiety and depressive disorders
Panic Disorders
Eating Disorders
Phobias
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
Adjustment disorder
Histrionic Personality Disorder
dependent personality disorder
Pain disorder, etc.

Often, signs of a mental disorder are observed in women after the birth of a child. Especially, signs of neuroses and depressions of various nature and severity can be observed.

In any case, doctors should deal with the diagnosis and treatment of mental disorders. The success of the cure is highly dependent on the timeliness of therapy. The support of family and friends is very important. In the treatment of mental disorders, combined methods of pharmacotherapy and psychotherapy are usually used.

Psychosis is a serious mental disorder, such a deep violation of the mental, emotional and affective components is considered quite dangerous for patients.

The disease manifests itself in a sharp change in the patient's behavior, the loss of an adequate attitude to life and others, in the absence of a desire to perceive the existing reality. At the same time, mental disorders interfere with the awareness of the presence of these same problems, a person cannot eliminate them on his own.

Due to the emotional component, hormonal explosions and susceptibility to stress, psychosis and other mental disorders are twice as common in women than in men (7% vs. 3%, respectively).

What are the reasons and who is most at risk?

The main causes of the development of psychosis in females are as follows:

pregnancy and childbirth;

menopause;

diseases of various organs and systems;

infectious diseases;

alcohol poisoning or drug abuse;

prolonged chronic stress;

mental illness of various types;

depressive states.

One of the main reasons is increased emotional excitability or the presence of a similar disease in the woman's family, mother, sister, that is, the genetic component.

Who is at risk

The root cause of the appearance of psychosis is often alcohol abuse and subsequent intoxication of the body. In most cases, men are most susceptible to alcoholism, so the female sex suffers from alcoholic psychosis much less often and endure it faster and easier.

But there is also a reason that is characteristic only for women, which increases the risk of the disease. This is pregnancy and childbirth. The physical factors of the appearance of psychosis in this case include toxicosis, vitamin deficiency, a decrease in the tone of all body systems, various diseases or complications due to difficult gestation and childbirth.

Psychological ones include fear, worries, increased emotional sensitivity, unwillingness to become a mother. At the same time, postpartum mental disorder is more common than during pregnancy.

Behavioral features

For a woman with mental disorders, such changes in behavior and life activity are characteristic (with the symptoms noticeable only from the outside, the sickest and unaware that she is sick):

lack of resistance to stress, which often leads to tantrums or scandals;

the desire to isolate oneself from communication with colleagues, friends and even relatives;

there is a craving for something unreal, supernatural, interest in magical practices, shamanism, religion and similar areas;

the emergence of various fears, phobias;

decreased concentration, mental retardation;

loss of strength, apathy, unwillingness to show any activity;

sudden mood swings for no apparent reason;

sleep disturbances, which can manifest itself both in excessive drowsiness and insomnia;

decrease or complete lack of desire to eat food.

Varieties of deviations in the mental state

Psychosis can be conditionally divided into two large groups:

organic. In such cases, psychosis is a consequence of a physical illness, a secondary disorder after disturbances in the functioning of the central nervous and cardiovascular systems.

Functional. Such disorders are initially due to the psychosocial factor and the presence of a predisposition to their occurrence. These include affective disorders, disturbances in the process of thinking and perception. Among others, the most common are: manic-depressive psychosis, schizophrenia, paranoia, paranoid.

Separately, postpartum psychosis can be distinguished, it appears in 1-3% of women in the first months after the birth of a child, unlike the more common postpartum depression, psychotic deviation does not go away on its own and requires treatment under the qualified supervision of specialists.

decreased appetite and rapid weight loss;

constant anxiety, sudden mood swings;

desire for isolation, refusal to communicate;

violation of the level of self-esteem;

thoughts about committing suicide.

Symptoms appear individually, some may be within a day after giving birth, others a month later.

The failure of the psyche can be accompanied by various conditions that provoke disturbances in the work of the whole body of a woman.

Violation of diet, activity and rest, emotional tension, taking medications. These factors "hit" the nervous, cardiovascular, respiratory, digestive and endocrine systems. The manifestation of concomitant diseases individually.

Who to turn to for help?

Self-medication in this case is contraindicated. You should also not contact familiar doctors of various specialties, psychologists, traditional healers. Treatment should be carried out only by a public or private doctor - a highly qualified psychotherapist!

The specialist will examine the patient, refer him for additional tests and, based on their results, prescribe treatment and the necessary drugs.

Treatment can take place in a hospital with the participation of medical staff, or at home. When treating at home, a mandatory safety measure will be taking care of the baby with the least intervention of the mother (in case of postpartum mental failure). The nanny or relatives should take care of these concerns until the disappearance of all symptoms of the disease in the patient.

Treatment usually consists of a complex, which includes:

medications, usually antipsychotics, antidepressants, mood stabilizers;

psychotherapy - regular sessions with a psychotherapist and a family psychologist;

social adaptation.

The patient can not immediately realize, accept her condition to the end. Relatives and friends must be patient to help the woman return to normal life.

The consequences of the lack of therapy are extremely unfavorable. The patient loses touch with reality, her behavior becomes inadequate and dangerous not only for her own life and health, but also for those around her.

A person is suicidal, may become a victim or cause of violence.

How to prevent mental breakdown?

Preventive measures include:

regular monitoring of their health;

treatment of diseases that can cause mental disorders;

strengthening immunity;

physical activity;

active social life;

quitting smoking, taking alcohol, drugs;

reduction of stress and fatigue in everyday life;

thorough, diverse preparation for pregnancy and childbirth;

preparation for menopausal changes in the body.

Prevention should be a priority, especially in those women who are prone to emotional disruption or have a hereditary predisposition to psychotic disorders.

How to determine that a person has a mental disorder: the main signs

The main symptoms of psychopathology

Similar disorders can occur in men and women at any age, regardless of nationality.

The pathogenesis of many mental disorders is not completely clear, but scientists have come to the conclusion that a combination of social, psychological and biological factors influences their formation.

During the progression of the disease, symptoms appear that are noticeable, if not to the patient himself, then to his relatives. The main signs of a mental disorder are:

emotional symptoms (anxiety, fear);

physical symptoms (pain, insomnia);

behavioral symptoms (drug abuse, aggression);

perceptual symptoms (hallucinations);

cognitive symptoms (memory loss, inability to formulate a thought).

The male psyche reacts to asthenic syndrome with outbursts of irritation, loss of self-control over trifles. With asthenia, severe headaches, lethargy and disturbed night sleep are also possible.

Obsessions

Severe cases of depression are often accompanied by suicidal thoughts and require inpatient treatment.

feeling of guilt, sinfulness;
feeling of hopelessness;
sleep disorders.

hallucinations

This is an acute mental disorder in which the patient feels, sees or hears things that do not really exist. Hallucinations may occur due to alcohol consumption or the progression of mental illness.

auditory (voices);
tactile (itching, pain, burning);
visual (visions);
taste;
olfactory (smells), etc.

However, a situation is also possible when a sick person feels several of them at the same time. Imperative hallucinations are dangerous when the "voices" in the patient's head order certain actions to be performed (sometimes to kill oneself or someone else). Such conditions are an indication for pharmacotherapy and constant monitoring.

delusional disorders

These disturbances are a sign of psychosis. Delusional beliefs do not correspond to reality, but it is not possible to convince the patient of this. Erroneous ideas are extremely important for the patient and affect all his actions.

Brad has a variety of content:

fear of persecution, damage, poisoning, material damage, etc.;
belief in one's own greatness, divine origin, all sorts of inventions;
ideas of self-accusation and self-negation;
ideas of a love or erotic nature.

Often, the appearance of crazy ideas is preceded by depersonalization and derealization.

Catatonic syndromes

clouding of consciousness

In an unconscious state, the perception of reality is distorted, interaction with society is disrupted.

There are several types of this condition. They are united by common symptoms:

Disorientation in space and time, depersonalization.
Detachment from the environment.
Loss of the ability to logically comprehend the situation. Sometimes incoherent thoughts.
Decreased memory.

Each of these signs sometimes occurs in mental disorders in an adult, but their combination may indicate clouding of consciousness. Usually they pass when the clarity of consciousness is restored.

Symptoms of mental disorders

The article provides an overview of the symptoms and syndromes of mental disorders, including the features of their manifestation in children, adolescents, the elderly, men and women. Some methods and means used in traditional and alternative medicine for the treatment of such diseases are mentioned.

Causes of emotional illness

Pathological changes in the psyche can lead to:

Obsessive thoughts are reproduced by consciousness arbitrarily (against the will of a person), while consciousness remains clear. The patient tries to fight the obsession.
Obsessions are alien to thinking, there is no visible connection between obsessive thoughts and the content of thinking.
Obsession is closely related to emotions, often of a depressive nature, anxiety.
Obsessions do not affect intellectual abilities.
The patient is aware of the unnaturalness of obsessive thoughts, maintains a critical attitude towards them.

affective syndrome

Affective syndromes are symptom complexes of mental disorders that are closely associated with mood disorders.

There are two groups of affective syndromes:

With a predominance of manic (elevated) mood
With a predominance of depressive (low) mood.

In the clinical picture of affective syndromes, the leading role belongs to disorders of the emotional sphere - from small mood swings to quite pronounced mood disorders (affects).

By nature, all affects are divided into sthenic, which occur with a predominance of excitation (delight, joy), and asthenic, which occur with a predominance of inhibition (longing, fear, sadness, despair).

Affective syndromes are observed in many diseases: with circular psychosis and schizophrenia, they are the only manifestations of the disease, with progressive paralysis, syphilis, brain tumors, vascular psychoses - its initial manifestations.

Affective syndromes are disorders such as depression, dysphoria, euphoria, mania.

Depression is a fairly common mental disorder that requires special attention, since 50% of those who make suicide attempts have signs of this mental disorder.

Characteristic features of depression:

low mood;
pessimistic attitude to reality, negative judgments;
motor and volitional retardation;
inhibition of instinctive activity (loss of appetite or, conversely, a tendency to overeat, decreased sexual desire);
concentration of attention on painful experiences and difficulty in concentrating it;
decrease in self-esteem.

Dysphoria, or mood disorders, which are characterized by an angry, melancholy, intense affect with irritability, reaching outbursts of anger and aggressiveness, are characteristic of excitable psychopaths and alcoholics.

Dysphoria is often found in epilepsy and organic diseases of the central nervous system.

Euphoria, or high spirits with a touch of carelessness, contentment, not accompanied by an acceleration of associative processes, is found in the clinic of atherosclerosis, progressive paralysis, and brain injury.

Psychopathological syndrome, which is characterized by a triad of symptoms:

unmotivated elevated mood,
acceleration of thinking and speech,
motor excitement.

There are signs that do not appear in all cases of manic syndrome:

increased instinctive activity (increased appetite, sexual desire, self-protective tendencies),
instability of attention and reassessment of oneself as a person, sometimes reaching delusional ideas of greatness.

A similar condition can occur with schizophrenia, intoxication, infections, injuries, brain damage and other diseases.

Senestopathy

The term "senestopathy" is defined as a suddenly appearing painful, extremely unpleasant bodily sensation.

This sensation devoid of objectivity arises in the place of localization, although there is no objective pathological process in it.

Senestopathies are frequent symptoms of mental disorders, as well as structural components of a depressive syndrome, hypochondriacal delirium, and a syndrome of mental automatism.

hypochondriacal syndrome

Hypochondria (hypochondriac disorder) is a condition characterized by constant anxiety due to the possibility of getting sick, complaints, concern about one's well-being, perception of ordinary sensations as abnormal, assumptions about the presence, in addition to the underlying disease, of any additional one.

Most often, concerns arise about the heart, gastrointestinal tract, genitals and brain. Pathological attention can lead to certain malfunctions in the body.

To the development of hypochondria have some features inherent in the personality: suspiciousness, anxiety, depression.

Illusions are distorted perceptions in which a real-life object or phenomenon is not recognized, but another image is perceived instead.

There are the following types of illusions:

Physical, including optical, acoustic
Physiological;
affective;
verbal, etc.

Metamorphopsia (organic), physical and physiological illusions can occur in people whose mental health is not in doubt. A patient with optical illusions can perceive a raincoat hanging on a hanger as a lurking killer, spots on bed linen seem to him to be bugs, a belt on the back of a chair - a snake.

With acoustic illusions, the patient in an overheard conversation distinguishes threats addressed to him, perceives the remarks of passers-by as accusations and insults addressed to him.

Most often, illusions are observed in infectious and intoxication diseases, but can occur in other painful conditions.

Fear, fatigue, anxiety, exhaustion, as well as distortion of perception due to poor lighting, noise, hearing loss and visual acuity predispose to the appearance of illusions.

Hallucination

An image that appears in consciousness without an irritant is called a hallucination. In other words, this is a mistake, an error in the perception of the senses, when a person sees, hears, feels something that does not really exist.

Conditions for hallucinations:

severe fatigue,
the use of certain psychotropic substances,
the presence of mental (schizophrenia) and neurological diseases.

There are true, functional and other types of hallucinations. True hallucinations are usually classified according to analyzers: visual, acoustic, tactile, gustatory, olfactory, somatic, motor, vestibular, complex.

delusional disorders

A delusional disorder is a condition characterized by the presence of delusions - a disorder of thinking, accompanied by the appearance of reasoning, ideas and conclusions that are far from reality.

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There are three groups of delusional states, united by a common content:

With total dementia there are profound violations of criticism, memory, judgments, unproductive thinking, the disappearance of individual character traits previously inherent in the patient, as well as a careless mood.

With partial dementia there is a moderate decrease in criticism, memory, judgments. The lowered mood with irritability, tearfulness, fatigue prevails.

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Symptoms of a mental disorder

Among women. There is an increased risk of developing mental disorders in the premenstrual period, during and after pregnancy, during middle age and aging. Eating disorders, affective disorders, including postpartum, depression.

In men. Mental disorders occur more often than in women. Traumatic and alcoholic psychoses.

In children. One of the most common disorders is Attention Deficit Disorder. Symptoms are problems with long-term concentration, hyperactivity, impaired impulse control.

Teenagers. Eating disorders are common. There are school phobias, hyperactivity syndrome, anxiety disorders.

In the elderly. Mental illnesses are detected more often than in young and middle-aged people. Symptoms of dementia, depression, psychogenic neurotic disorders.

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Treatment and prevention

In the treatment of asthenic syndrome the main efforts are directed to the elimination of the cause that led to the disease. General strengthening therapy is carried out, including the intake of vitamins and glucose, proper organization of work and rest, sleep restoration, good nutrition, dosed physical activity, medications are prescribed: nootropics, antidepressants, sedatives, anabolic steroids.

Treatment of obsessive-compulsive disorders It is carried out by eliminating the causes that injure the patient, as well as by influencing the pathophysiological links in the brain.

Therapy of affective states begins with the establishment of supervision and referral of the patient to a specialist. Depressed patients who are capable of making a suicidal attempt are subject to hospitalization.

When prescribing drug therapy, the characteristics of the patient's condition are taken into account. For example, in depression, which is a phase of circular psychosis, psychotropic drugs are used, and in the presence of anxiety, combined treatment with antidepressants and antipsychotics is prescribed.

Acute mental disorder in the form of a manic state is an indication for hospitalization, necessary to protect others from the inappropriate actions of a sick person. Antipsychotics are used to treat such patients.

Since delirium is a symptom of brain damage, pharmacotherapy and biological methods of influence are used to treat it.

For the treatment of hypochondria It is recommended to use psychotherapeutic methods. In cases where psychotherapy is ineffective, measures are taken to reduce the significance of hypochondriacal fears. For most cases of hypochondria, drug therapy is excluded.

Folk remedies

The list of remedies used by traditional healers to treat depression includes:

pollen,
bananas,
carrot,
tinctures of ginseng roots and Manchurian aralia,
infusions of angelica and bird mountaineer,
decoction of peppermint leaf,
baths with infusion of poplar leaves.

In the arsenal of traditional medicine there are many tips and recipes to help get rid of sleep disorders and a number of other symptoms of mental disorders.