The human mind is an organ with a balance of power, strength, and fragility that has produced many wondrous and disastrous things in its wake. The potential and power of the mind has yet to be fully explained nor even comprehended but yet like so many other areas of the human existence the fascination with it has left many daunting questions about its machinations. At its disposal is a limitless array of creativity and purpose. Sciences have been developed and studied, evoked from concepts of the very thoughts that have been produced by this human machinery. The intricacies of the human mind may never be explained, but it will always leave us with subject matter to explore.
For years doctors have been presented with the challenge of dealing with human behavior and the reasons for its inner workings. Whether socio or economic factors guide individuals into certain behaviors or even both is yet to be seen. Enter such a subject topic as Somatoform Disorders, a mental disorder characterized by a series of physical symptoms ailing an individual with no real proof that would characterize any physiological cause. “Somatoform disorder is an umbrella term encompassing the following conditions: somatization disorder, conversion disorder, undifferentiated disorder, pain disorder, hypochondria, and last but not least, body dysmorphic disorder” (Schonbeck, 2006).
At the root of this disorder is stress. More females than males experience these symptoms because of the high pressures that are placed on them by societal expectations. “Somatoform disorder is the third highest psychological disorder following depression and anxiety”, respectively (Yates, 2011). Many patients are misdiagnosed because of the need for physical treatment instead of ...
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...aforementioned conditions can change the way they express their emotions, feeling comfortable externalizing what is happening to them internally, instead of having to suppress any kind of thought or feeling that is counterculture. Moreover, relatives need to encourage closer bonds among each other to create a more fostering environment of communication and support.
Although somatoform disorder is pervasive in today’s society, with open conversation, knowledge, and programs to bring the true nature of these conditions to light, there is hope for the many sufferers of this disease.
Works Cited
Longe, E. J. (2006). Somatoform Disorder. Detroit: Gale.
Rebecca J. Frey, P. (2006). Somatoform Disoders. Health & Wellnes Resource Center.
William R. Yates, M. M. (2011). Medscape Reference. Retrieved from http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/294908-overview#a0199
Understanding psychological disorders are very important in human development, the first step is to define what is meant by a disorder. How do psychologists determine that there something is psychologically wrong with a person? What behaviours are abnormal? A psychological disorder, also known as a mental disorder, is a pattern of behavioural or psychological symptoms that impact multiple life areas and/or create distress for the person experiencing these symptoms. A clear sign of abnormal behaviour or mental state is when an individual's behaviour is destructive to themselves or their social group, such as family, friends. Above all psychological disorders create a maladaptive pattern of thoughts, feelings, and behaviours that lead to detriments in relationships and other life areas. There are several ethical issues in treating psychological disorders. There two ways of treating psychological disorders through; psychotherapy this form of treatment involves social interactions between a trained professional (therapist) and client. This is delivered on a one-to-one, face-to-face meeting. Another way of treating psychological disorder is through pharmacological treatments. This is the use of proactive drugs to treat certain disorders. This essay will aim to highlight the pros and cons of using pharmacological and psychological treatments.
Biological theorists, have very little to say since there seems to be no physical cause of the symptoms, except that there may be some genetic predisposition to Somatoform disorders.
The ICD-10 Classification of Mental and Behavioural Disorders: Clinical Descriptions and Diagnostic Guidelines. Geneva: World Health Organization, 1992. Print.
In the book "The boy who couldn't stop washing" by Judith L. Rapoport, M.D., the narrator, Rapoport, deals with hundreds of mentally disturbed children and adults who suffer of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD). Rapoport describes the intricacies of the disease and its treatments as well as the fact that the cause is unknown but there are many probable theories. Victims of this horrible disease are plagued with overwhelming thoughts of insecurity that tear apart their lives and haunt them, increasingly, over their lifetimes. Rapoport while learning about OCD, herself, learned how to treat each one with many different psychological perspectives including: biological, behavioral, and psychodynamic contributions. A story on ABC's 20/20 about OCD brought Rapoport's new study on the disease to the light, resulting in thousands of calls to her office daily from desperate OCD sufferers.
If a slight physical abnormality or inconsistency exists in a BDD sufferer’s physicality, their concern is excessive – even to the point of experiencing social withdrawal and suicidal tendencies.
Schildkrout, Barbara. “Unmasking Psychological Symptoms: How Therapists Can Learn To Recognize The Psychological Presentation Of Medical Disorders”. n.p.: Hoboken, N.J. : John Wiley & Sons, c2011., 2011. USMAI Catalog. Web. 12 Nov. 2013.
What is it that makes us human? Is it our actions, our sense of purpose, or our ability to keep our mind on as well as perform complex tasks? Is it that we analyze our own mental processes, as well as the processes of others? What exactly is a mental state, and what creates it? Is it a level of attentiveness, an impulse, or an emotional state? What is it that allows us to experience these things? The answers all lie within our brains.
The biological and mental functions that are present in the body process the information that is given, and the mind is the mediator of the information that is processed through these biological and mental functions. It constructs an interpretation of the sensory input that is received by both functions. The information that is received by the brain is further interpreted by the mind and it constructs a unique reality from the basic information. The mind as the mediator can be seen in topics such as categorization and bias in social realities, but also in the language and thought of both humans and non-human animals. ***CONSOLIDATE THIS (LESS WORDY)***
The human mind is the greatest aesthetic of human accomplishment ,but it is also the greatest downfall of mankind because the existence of fear dictates what humans are will and will not
There are many cognitive and emotional consequences of SO. Among these consequences are increased body shame, increased appearance anxiety, and a decreased ability to reach high states of motivation. Many studies have shown that there is a positive relation between SO, body shame, and eating disorders (Mercurio & Landry, 2008). It can also be argued that depression, sexual dysfunction, and eating disorders are additional consequences. Depression is most often caused due to body shame an...
...ple an individual may begin to take off his/her clothes and not see anything wrong. But in reality the patient’s brain is becoming more and more affected with this mental disorder.
In philosophy, the majority of studies relate to the mind. Whether it is the main subject or just a helpful side topic to move the main subject along, this term is used often. Defining the term mind is difficult, and is a topic that is popularly studied and debated among philosophers. These qualified and knowledgeable people try to determine whether or not the mind is who people are or if they are their body or a combination. Although they have learned many helpful truths and defined other useful terms, the debate is still evident in the philosophical community today. Learning about how the mind relates to the body, and whether the mind and the brain are the same thing are other ways to look at the many options of how to discern
The biological perspective examines how brain processes and other bodily functions regulate behaviour. It emphasizes that the brain and nervous system are central to understanding behaviour, thought, and emotion. It is believed that thoughts and emotions have a physical basis in the brain. Electrical impulses zoom throughout the brain’s cells, releasing chemical substances that enable us to think, feel, and behave. René Descartes (1596–1650) wrote an influential book (De Homine [On Man]) in which he tried to explain how the behaviour of animals, and to some extent the behaviour of humans, could be like t...
Rene Descartes’ Theory of Ideas has helped to shape our entire world of thought as it applies to all subjects. While it may seem to be an overstatement to say all subjects, it is not. Whether it is science, literature, or the fine arts, all of these meditations require some degree of thought. People think all day long; they are constantly and unknowingly solving problems, analyzing, detecting, observing, questioning, wondering, and sensing; yet they rarely question their ability to do so or where the knowledge comes from. In his studies, Descartes sought to discover the origin of these thoughts and abilities. Is the information in our head learned or have we had it all along and are simply remembering? Why is it that all animals, humans included, acquire a specific set of survival instincts at birth? While Descartes’ theory led to the further investigation and questioning by other philosophers, it also allowed for many discoveries in the world of psychology, as it relates to development and instinctual behavior.
...society. As stated before this disorder untreated can cause great distress in an individual’s life, which can result in losing a job or can even ruin any relationships they may have with others. The individual’s pain can also render them incapable of getting out, which may cause them to be depressed, or even become anti-social. The DSM-5 checklist states, that somatic symptom disorder is a presence of one or more somatic symptoms that are distressing and/or significantly disruptive to daily life. It goes on to say that these excessive thought and feeling behaviors, can take up excessive time and energy that is devoted to their symptoms or health concerns and these can typically last longer than six months, but may not always be continuously (Comer, 2014).