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Psychological disorders and their treatments essay
Psychological disorders and their treatments essay
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Depression. Alzheimer’s. Autism. Stroke. Each of these words correlates with negative connotations. They afflict the mind, snatching away members of society like a ghost in the wind, leaving empty, damaged shells in their wake. Days drag into a dull grey blur, mental capacities weakening with each moment. For decades, medical researchers, working tireless hours with stark determination, have committed themselves to finding the cures to these and many more diseases that affect the brain. These scientists leapt over obstacles, ducking under impossibilities to see the clear picture, the clear goal. They refused to stop before discovering treatments that took the form of chemical drugs. Despite this, these treatments come riddled with side effects, strong chemicals alleviating some symptoms while bringing more into play. So research continued. Now, repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) has risen as a potential treatment for various mental disorders. Although many chemical drugs have spelled relief for countless victims of depression and bipolar disorder, repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation stands strong as the most effective treatment for mental disorders because of its influential effect on multiple disorders, minimal display of side effects, low potential for weaponization, and high capacity to surpass chemical drugs. Many people live with mental disorders that seem unbeatable and unbearable. Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation is changing all of that. This treatment utilizes electromagnets smaller than the palm of a hand to deliver magnetic impulses to targeted areas of the brain. These waves stimulate the neurons in that region, enhancing their performance and improving the brain’s abilities. The t... ... middle of paper ... ...reatly increased, and the results in treating disorders such as depression have become more dramatically positive (Gross 1). Unlike technology, chemicals such as those found in antidepressants cannot be easily altered. Complex biological processes often have to take place, and testing must be done on animals with each new chemical manipulation. This takes time and money, where adjusting rTMS methods is fairly simple and inexpensive to the medical industry. Rising through the ranks of mental treatments, rTMS is revolutionary. It is a treatment that spans widely, operates safely, exists innocently, and treats effectively when utilized. With few side effects and many advantages over chemical drugs, rTMS is the most effective treatment for mental disorders. Its continuation in growth and utilization is key to winning the battle against diseases that ravage the brain.
Treating depressive and bipolar disorders with antidepressants remains a popular option in clinical practice. Most clinicians choose the drug or class of drugs, usually selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, SSRI's, that is most effective and best tolerated with fewer severe side effects. These drugs are beneficial because they specifically target serotonin-based areas of the brain without affecting other neurotransmitter systems. SSRI's largely replaced tricyclic antidepressants which work by blocking the absorption (reuptake) of the neurotransmitters serotonin and norepinephrine, thereby increasing the levels of these two neurotransmitters in the brain. Tricyclic antidepressants present severe side effects and thus are usually only used when other treatments have failed. If SSRI's or tricyclics are not effective Monoamine oxidase inhibitors may be prescribed. MAOI's, enhance tyramine to increase norepinephrine and serotonin. While taking MAOI's you must abstain from foods and alcohol that contain tyramine such as, yogurt, aged cheese, and substances such as cold medications. This is because a potential toxic reaction could occur. Additionally, other antidepressants may be utilized such as Wellbutrin (bupropion) an NDRI-
The purpose of this paper is to inform the reader about Wilder Penfield and his research over electric brain stimulation. This essay will give a brief biography of Wilder Penfield, a description of his research, and finally discuss the insight his experiments provided and the influence they had on our body and behavior in general.
During the later part of the 19th century magents were used to induce neuronal activity; however, in the later part of the 20th century, Barker and his colleagues illustrated that magnetic stimulation in human motor cortexes produces depolarization of cortical areas (Eitan, & Lerer, 2006). TMS is a noninvasive therapeutic technique where an electromagnetic coil is put above the awake patient’s scalp and then magnetic pulses are moved throughout the brain (George, Lisanby, & Sackeim, 1999). The magnetic pulses and coil combine to create an electrical activity in the cortical tissue which can cause localized neuronal depolarization. Not only has TMS been the topic of many recent research studies, but deep transcranial magnetic stimulation (deepTMS) has also been researched to decipher the effectiveness for treating depression. DeepTMS is when the coils have been designed to create a more intense electrical field deep in the brain tissue. DeepTMS uses several separate points of projection around the periphery of the brain while minimizing the electrical charge to the br...
As a Psychiatrist, they are to proficiently understand the function of the human mind to be able to penetrate into their patient’s thoughts and feelings. These medical doctors are required to spend approximately twelve years gaining a better insight into the complex structure of the brain. They are trained to understand how specific sections of the brain work together to achieve varieties of functions and how a mutation can cause a severe malfunction (Zorumski and Rubin). As a result of the years spent training, Psychiatrists are to differentiate and categorize physical and psychosomatic stress caused by chemical changes in the special parts of the brain. Psychiatrists are also trained to use neurotic technologies such as deep brain stimulation. Additionally, the medical doctors are equi...
performance that involves, but is not limited to, a loss in at least 2 of the
... Circuitry and a Road Map for Future Research. The American Journal of Psychiatry, 72-84, 88. doi:10.1176/appi.ajp.2014.13081008
Alzheimer’s disease is a complex illness that affects the brain tissue directly and undergoes gradual memory and behavioral changes which makes it difficult to diagnose. It is known to be the most common form of dementia and is irreversible. Over four million older Americans have Alzheimer’s, and that number is expected to triple in the next twenty years as more people live into their eighties and nineties. (Johnson, 1989). There is still no cure for Alzheimer’s but throughout the past few years a lot of progress has been made.
In this day and age, it seems as though almost everyone has experience a loved one taken away form a very serious disease known as Alzheimer’s disease. Alzheimer’s disease is unbelievably devastating for everyone affected by it. This disease is causing major economical problems such as less occupancy in the nursing homes, and hospitals due to the rising population of elderly men and women being diagnosed with it everyday. Because there is not yet a cure for this disease and the percent of the population being diagnosed keeps rapidly rising, more time and money needs to go towards Alzheimer’s research.
Alzheimer's Disease Introduction to Alzheimer's Alzheimer's disease is a progressive, degenerative disease of the brain. It was first described by the German neuropathologist Alois Alzheimer (1864-1915). in 1905. This disease worsens with advancing age, although there is no evidence. that it is caused by the aging process.
The ancient Romans were the first to use electricity to treat disease several thousand years ago; however, “electrical medicine” has improved and has been utilized in the forms predating ECT in a relatively short amount of time. In the 16th, 17th, and 18th centuries, doctors began to notice that giving people camphor could “cure lunacy” (Abrams, 2002). The doctors noticed that when administering camphor orally, it caused seizures, and upon waking up, were “in a rational state” (Abrams, 2002). In fact, in 1798, a German scientist reported that 80% of manic patients that were treated with camphor and had seizures, were cured (Abrams, 2002). As medical and technological advances occurred, so did the use of inducing a seizure to cure mental illness. In 1934, a scientist was able to bring a schizophrenic patient, who had been on a hunger strike and had not moved in four years, to recovery through a seizure that had been brought on by camphor (Abrams, 2002). And, “thus, convulsive therapy was born” (Abrams, 2002). By the end of the year, this scientist published results of the same action given to twenty-six schizophrenics, ten patients were cured, thirteen had no re...
Autism is a form of neurodevelopment disorder in the autism spectrum disorders. It is characterized by impaired development in social interactions and communication, both verbal and non-verbal. There is an observed lack of spontaneous acts of communication; both receptive and expressed, as well as speech impairments. A person diagnosed with Autism will also show a limited range of activities and interests, as well as forming and maintain peer relationships. The individuals will display limited interests, which are often very focused and repetitive. He or she is likely to be very routine oriented and may show behavioral symptoms such as hyperactivity, impulsivity, aggressiveness, and self-injurious behaviors.
Depression is a mental illness, which affects millions of Americans each year. Currently there are many prescription drugs, called anti-depressants that have been proven to successfully treat it. The causes of depression are somewhat of a medical enigma, however, it is known that depression is associated with a change in the brains chemistry involving the function of neurotransmitters (Reichert). This chemical change occurs in healthy brain’s, which experience sadness, but ends after the unpleasant stimulus is removed. In people suffering from depression this chemical change does not correspond to any particular stimulus. Symptoms of depression are often incapacitating and include severe and extended sadness, feelings of worthlessness, feelings of emptiness, irritability and anxiety (Reichert, Spake).
Turner, E.H., Matthews, A.M., Linardatos, E., Tell, R.A., & Rosenthal, R. (2008). "Selective publication of antidepressant trials and its influence on apparent efficacy". N. Engl. J. Med. 358 (3): 252–60. doi:10.1056/NEJMsa065779. PMID 18199864
14) Loo, Colleen FRANZCP, Mitchell, Philip MD, FRANZCP, FRCPsych, Sachdev, Perminder PhD, MD, FRANZCP, McDarmont, Benjamin BSc(Psych), Parker, Gordon PhD, MD, DSc, FRANZCP, Gandevia, Simon PhD, DSc, FRACP. (1999). Double-Blind Controlled Investigation of Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation for the Treatment of Resistant Major Depression. The American Journal of Psychiatry, 156(6), 946-948.
Antidepressant drugs are designed to correct the imbalance. Sutton believes that feedback between his brain machine and MRI pictures of the brain at work will provide more insight not only of depression and Alzheimer's, but of stroke, multiple sclerosis, and other disorders that affect large areas of the brain. In one experiment, he and his colleagues looked at pictures of brains while their owners did simple motor tasks, such as tapping their fingers in simple and complex patterns. As expected, they saw activity in small networks of cells located in brain areas that control movements.