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Mental Health Disorders

Overview of Mental Health Care
Anxiety and Stress-Related Disorders
Dissociative Disorders
Drug Use and Abuse
- Substance-Induced Disorders
- Substance Use Disorders
Eating Disorders
Mood Disorders

Obsessive-Compulsive and Related Disorders
Personality Disorders
- Personality Disorders
Schizophrenia and Delusional Disorder
- Schizophrenia
- Delusional Disorder
Sexuality
Somatic Symptom and Related Disorders
Suicidal Behavior and Self-Injury
- Suicidal Behavior
- Nonsuicidal Self-Injury
  - Diagnosis
  - Treatment

Sometimes referred to as psychiatric or psychologic disorders, mental health disorders are caused by complex interactions between physical, psychologic, social, cultural, and hereditary influences. They involve disturbances in thinking, emotion, and/or behavior. Small disturbances in these aspects of life are common, but when such disturbances distress the person greatly, interfere with daily life, or both, they are considered mental illness or a mental health disorder. The effects of mental illness may be long-lasting or temporary.

Mental Health DisordersSections (A-Z)

Anxiety and Stress-Related Disorders

Anxiety disorders involve a state of distressing chronic but fluctuating nervousness that is inappropriately severe for the person's circumstances.

Overview of Anxiety Disorders
Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD)
Panic Attacks and Panic Disorder
Specific Phobic Disorders
Social Phobia
Agoraphobia
Overview of Trauma- and Stress-Related Disorders
Acute Stress Disorder (ASD)
Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

Dissociative Disorders

Occasionally everyone has minor problems integrating their memories, perceptions, identity, and consciousness. For example, people may drive somewhere and then realize that they do not remember the drive. They may not remember it because they are absorbed—with personal concerns, a program on the radio, or a conversation with a passenger—or are just daydreaming. Such problems, referred to as normal dissociation, typically do not disrupt everyday activities.

Overview of Dissociative Disorders
Depersonalization/Derealization Disorder
Dissociative Amnesia
Dissociative Fugue
Dissociative Identity Disorder

Drug Use and Abuse

Drugs are an integral part of everyday life for many people, whether the drugs are used for legitimate medical purposes or recreationally (see Table: Drugs With Medical and Recreational Uses ).

Substance-Induced Disorders
Substance Use Disorders

Eating Disorders

Eating disorders involve a disturbance of eating or of behavior related to eating, typically including

Definition of Eating Disorders
Anorexia Nervosa
Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder
Binge Eating Disorder
Bulimia Nervosa
Pica
Rumination Disorder

Mood Disorders

Mood disorders are mental health disorders that involve emotional disturbances consisting of long periods of excessive sadness (depression), excessive joyousness or elation (mania), or both. Depression and mania represent the two extremes, or poles, of mood disorders.

Overview of Mood Disorders
Depression
Bipolar Disorder
Cyclothymic Disorder

Obsessive-Compulsive and Related Disorders

Obsessive-compulsive disorder is characterized by recurring, persistent, unwanted, anxiety-provoking, intrusive ideas, images, or urges (obsessions). Also, some people feel driven to repeatedly perform certain rituals (compulsions)—particular actions or mental acts—to try to lessen or prevent the anxiety caused by the obsessions.

Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD)
Body Dysmorphic Disorder
Hoarding Disorder
Hair-Pulling Disorder
Skin-Picking Disorder
Body-Focused Repetitive Behavioral Disorder
Olfactory Reference Syndrome

Overview of Mental Health Care

Mental health (psychiatric or psychologic) disorders involve disturbances in thinking, emotion, and/or behavior. Small disturbances in these aspects of life are common, but when such disturbances distress the person greatly and/or interfere with daily life, they are considered mental illness or a mental health disorder. The effects of mental illness may be long-lasting or temporary. These disorders are caused by complex interactions between physical, psychologic, social, cultural, and hereditary influences.

Introduction to Mental Health and Mental Health Care
Mental Illness in Society
Classification and Diagnosis of Mental Illness
Personality and Behavior Changes
Treatment of Mental Illness

Personality Disorders

Personality disorders are relatively stable patterns of thinking, perceiving, reacting, and relating that differ from expected norms and that begin early in life. These patterns cause the person significant distress and/or impair the person's ability to function socially.

Personality Disorders

Schizophrenia and Delusional Disorder

Schizophrenia is a mental disorder characterized by loss of contact with reality (psychosis), hallucinations (usually, hearing voices), firmly held false beliefs (delusions), abnormal thinking and behavior, reduced expression of emotions, diminished motivation, a decline in mental function (cognition), and problems in daily functioning, including work, social relationships, and self-care.

Schizophrenia
Delusional Disorder

Sexuality

Sexuality is a normal part of human experience. However, the types of sexual behavior that are considered normal vary greatly within and among different cultures. In fact, defining “normal” sexuality may be impossible. There are wide variations in people’s sexual behavior, including the frequency of or need for sexual release. Some people desire sexual activity several times a day, but others are satisfied with infrequent activity (for example, a few times a year).

Overview of Sexuality
Gender Identity
Gender Dysphoria and Transsexualism
Overview of Paraphilias and Paraphilic Disorders
Fetishism
Transvestism
Pedophilia
Exhibitionism
Voyeurism
Sexual Masochism Disorder
Sexual Sadism Disorder

Somatic Symptom and Related Disorders

Somatic symptom and related disorders are mental health disorders characterized by an intense focus on physical (somatic) symptoms, which cause significant distress and/or interfere with daily functioning.

Overview of Somatic Symptom and Related Disorders
Conversion Disorder
Factitious Disorder Imposed on Self
Illness Anxiety Disorder
Psychological Factors Affecting Other Medical Conditions
Somatic Symptom Disorder

Suicidal Behavior and Self-Injury

Suicidal behavior includes completed suicide, and attempted suicide. Thoughts and plans about suicide are called suicide ideation.

Suicidal Behavior
Nonsuicidal Self-Injury

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Also of Interest

Test your knowledge

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is characterized by recurrent, intrusive recollections of an overwhelming traumatic event. Which of the following is true of flashbacks, a symptom of PTSD?

They are the most common symptom. They are nightmares of the traumatic event. They are memories of the traumatic event. They are a reliving of the traumatic event.