A mental disorder is a psychological pattern or syndrome that can be interpreted clinically.
Mental disorder is a syndrome or pattern of a psychological nature subject to clinical interpretation that is generally associated with discomfort or disability . In this framework, it is interesting to highlight that a mental illness is one that occurs as a result of an alteration that has an impact on the affective and cognitive procedures of development, which translates into difficulties in reasoning, behavioral alterations, impediments to understanding. reality and to adapt to various situations.
It is important to mention that mental disorders can be a consequence of biological factors (whether genetic, neurological or other), environmental or psychological factors . That is why they require a multidisciplinary approach focused on improving the quality of life of the subject .
Symptoms of a mental disorder
There are many signs or symptoms that show that someone is suffering from a mental disorder. Thus, for example, among them are sleep disorders, sadness, anxiety and alterations in memory.
Palpable difficulty in thinking with absolute clarity, aggressive behavior or even changes and problems in both visual and auditory perception are other issues that may reflect a disorder of this kind.
Mental disorders can be classified in different ways.
Classification according to type
Although there are various categories of mental disorders, the main ones are based on neurotic disorders and psychotic disorders .
Those mentioned first alter the perception that the individual has about himself and the degree of approval of the Self. Beyond this, they do not represent a distortion of the real plane nor do they cause significant isolation from social life.
Psychotic disorders, on the other hand, can include delusions, strong emotional and relational difficulties, or hallucinations. These are usually determined by relevant organic reasons.
The definition of mental disorder over time
It is important to keep in mind that the definition of mental disorder has undergone variations over time. Until 1990 , the World Health Organization (WHO) included homosexuality and transsexuality in its list of mental disorders.
Entity that classifies the aforementioned mental disorders into nine categories. Let's see what they are:
- Symptomatic and organic , such as delirium.
- Schizotypal . These include psychosis or schizophrenia .
- Neurotics . Within this category there are a multitude of disorders such as amnesia , anxiety , obsessive-compulsive disorder, neurasthenia or agarophobia.
- Of behavior and personality . In this case, reference is made to emotional instability , paranoid or schizoid disorder, anxious personality disorder...
- Behavior in childhood and adolescence . This would be the case of behavioral disorders, tics, stuttering, enumeration or selective mutism.
- Psychotropic drug use disorders : withdrawal syndrome, water intoxication, dependence syndrome...
- Of humor or affective . Among them we can talk about dysthymia, bipolar disorder or depressive episode, among many others.
- Mental disorders caused by physiological dysfunctions . In this case, reference is made to those of a dietary nature such as anorexia or bulimia , those of biological origin such as premature ejaculation or those motivated by sleep such as night terror, insomnia or sleepwalking.
- Mental retardation : aphasia, autism, dysphasia …
On the other hand, mental health is defined as absolute well-being on a psychological and social level, while a mental disorder implies the loss of said well-being for reasons of different kinds.