Essay Sample on Mental Disorders: A Growing Threat to Lives

Introduction

Several diseases have become a threat to the lives of many people. One of the major health condition that has affected different people is mental disorders. Mental disorders affect the normal working of a human mind making a person to behave or act in a different way than he or she was used. According to Insel & Cuthbert (2015), the major categories of mental disorders that face human beings include anxiety disorders, personality disorders, trauma-related disorders, eating disorders, and attention deficit disorders.

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Diagnosis of Mental Disorders

These mental disorders may affect human beings in different ways. Therefore, there are different methods of diagnosis that have been developed to ensure that these conditions can be identified and treated. The first mental disorder that has been identified is the anxiety disorder. The anxiety disorder is one of the most common mental disorder that is characterized by feelings of anxiety, worry, fears that are strong to the extent that they could affect the normal activities of an individual. There are various methods which have been developed, and they can be used to diagnose this condition. One of the methods of diagnosis is through a physical exam. The physical exam is normally undertaken to any signs of anxiety that may be linked to a certain medical condition or medication. The other methods that is used to diagnose anxiety disorders is using the criteria that have been listed in the DSM-5 (Van der Kolk, 2017). The third approach to diagnose this condition is by performing a blood test or urine tests. Lastly, psychological questionnaires can be used to identify a diagnosis.

The other mental disorder is a personality disorder. A personality disorder is a mental disorder whereby a person develops a rigid as well as unhealthy thinking patterns, behaving, and functioning. Therefore, a person who has a personality disorder will have difficulty in perceiving as well as relating to different people and situations. The major method of diagnosis for this condition is the psychiatric evaluation. Psychiatric evaluation entails a detailed discussion about feeling, thoughts as well as behavior to identify the condition. The second method of diagnosis that is available for this condition is the physical examination (Van der Kolk, 2017). Physical examination may be performed by the doctor as well as to inquire in-depth question regarding the condition. Also, the criteria listed in the DSM-5 can be used to diagnose a personality disorder.

The third group of mental disorder is trauma-related disorder. Trauma-related disorders are mental conditions that result from stress full as well as traumatic experiences. Most of these experiences keep on coming on the mind of a person making it difficult for him or her carry out with normal activities. An example of a related traumatic disorder is Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. The main method that is used to diagnose this condition is performing a physical exam (Van der Kolk, 2017). The second method that is used to diagnose the related traumatic disorders is using the criteria listed in the PTSD criteria. Also, the doctor can use physical evaluation whereby all the signs and symptoms evident in a person will be discussed in details.

Another group of mental disorder is the eating disorder. The eating disorder mainly affects the eating pattern of a person. The eating disorder is diagnosed using physical examination whereby the doctor looks at the eating behavior of a person before asserting that he or she has an eating disorder. Additional test may be performed on a person to identify whether the eating disorder may have been developed due to certain health complications.

The last group of mental disorders that have been identified is the attention deficit disorder (Van der Kolk, 2017). The attention deficit disorder is a mental condition that mostly affects the children. This condition results in poor concentration, learning difficulties, and hyperactivity. The most appropriate method to diagnose this condition is using the Attention Deficit Hyperactive Scale(Woo & Keatinge, 2016). Also, the doctors diagnose this condition through physical examination whereby the symptoms and signs related to the disease are observed.

Treatment of Mental Disorder

The presence of mental disorder in various people can greatly affect their way of life. As a result of this issue, there are various methods of treatment that have been proposed. The method of treatment that is used to treat the anxiety disorders include psychotherapy and use of medications such as antidepressants, benzodiazepines, and buspirone (Woo & Keatinge, 2016).

The other mental condition that was identified is the personality disorder and the common method of treatment used are psychotherapy, medications, and hospital as well as residential treatment programs.

Trauma-related disorders were the third mental disorder, and the best way to treat the condition is through cognitive therapy (Woo & Keatinge, 2016). Apart from cognitive therapy, the other mode of treatment that can be used for the condition is prolonged exposure therapy. This mode of treatment ensures that the patient is exposed to the condition that led to the post-traumatic stress so that he or she can get used to it.

Eating disorders are best treated through a team approach. Therefore, some of the methods of treatment include eating healthy diets and medication. Furthermore, psychotherapy can be used to treat eating disorders, which involved the use of family-based therapy as well as cognitive-behavioral therapy. Lastly, the significant modes of treatments used for attention deficit disorders are medications.

Reference

Insel, T. R., & Cuthbert, B. N. (2015). Brain disorders? Precisely. Science, 348(6234), 499-500.Retrieved from: https://science.sciencemag.org/content/348/6234/499.short

Van der Kolk, B. A. (2017). Developmental trauma disorder: toward a rational diagnosis forchildren with complex trauma histories. Psychiatric Annals, 35(5), 401-408. Retrievedfrom: https://www.healio.com/psychiatry/journals/psycann/2005-5-35-5/%7B3119e8d0-bf35-4e6d-b8f6-aa9f3c6720b0%7D/developmental-trauma-disorder-toward-a-rational-diagnosis-for-children-with-complex-trauma-histories

Woo, S. M., & Keatinge, C. (2016). Diagnosis and treatment of mental disorders across alifespan. John Wiley & Sons.