IMPULSIVE DRIVES
- an irresistible urge to perform certain actions, completely taking over the mind with the simultaneous suppression of any other aspirations, ideas, desires. With developed I. century. There is no explanation of the motives for the actions.
Initially I.v. were considered as manifestations of an isolated defeat of the instincts, which was the reason for separating them into an independent disease, called instinctive monomania by J. Esquirol (1838). In the middle of the 19th century. I.v. under the name “instinctive insanity” were considered by V. Magnan (1892) as one of the mental signs (stigmas) of degeneration. The main symptom uniting into a single concept a disorder of impulses began to be considered a sign of impulsiveness, characterized by “suddenness”, impetuosity, followed by incomplete and inconsistent recollection of one’s actions, when a person follows the impulse of a painful impulse without any reason and does not understand what he is doing and why does. Therefore, later the concept of “instinctive insanity” was replaced by the concept of “impulsive insanity.” At the beginning of the 20th century. it was found that I. v. are not a separate painful form, but only a syndrome that can occur in a wide variety of mental illnesses.
Clinical picture
I.v. found in the form of vagrancy (dromomania, poriomania, vagabondage), arson (pyromania), theft (kleptomania), binge drinking (dipsomania); to I.v. There are some cases of sexual perversions (see) in the form of sadism, masochism, homosexuality, pedophilia, gerontophilia, exhibitionism and some other conditions.
In some cases, only one type of IV appears, in others their various forms coexist. Thus, dromomania can be combined with dipsomania, pyromania with kleptomania, etc.
I.v. may develop suddenly, without any warning signs, or their appearance is preceded by a period of hours, days, or even weeks of vague anxiety with the inability to perform usual work; a depressed mood arises, combined in some cases with anxiety, irritation, or hostility towards others (see Dysphoria ). In a number of cases, consciousness can be filled with ideas, the content of which reflects one or another form of I. v. In the initial period, a certain struggle of motives may occur, and only then does the execution of the task take place. At the height of I. v. An affective narrowing of consciousness may be observed.
End of I.V. may occur suddenly; in some cases the transition to the normal state occurs lytically. Recollection of the contents of I.V. always in one way or another incomplete and inconsistent. Often, persons who have committed an action caused by IV experience a feeling of sharp relief, combined with a state of mental and physical weakness. Often I.v. repeated in a stereotypical form.
Impulsive wandering is a spasmodic, uncontrollable need to change the usual environment, carried out by any means - on foot, using various types of random transport. Patients give up everything without thinking about the consequences. Lack of material resources is not an obstacle to the realization of desire. Movement on foot can be carried out until the state of physical activity occurs. exhaustion.
Impulsive arson is the commission of arson of various sizes and consequences. Patients can take various precautions to avoid being caught, but often such measures are naive. Some of them, with detachment from everything and lethargy, are completely absorbed in contemplating the spectacle of the fire and the situation of vanity, anxiety, and panic that arises when extinguishing it, while others themselves take a direct part in the fight against the fire. Affect is usually heightened, accompanied by curiosity, enthusiasm and even ecstasy.
Impulsive theft manifests itself in the form of thefts devoid of selfish goals. In this regard, patients steal random, often completely unnecessary things, which they then either put away, lose, or give away. In some cases, patients steal things that are fetishes for them (see Sexual Perversions), and in these cases, in order to possess the desired item, they can show great dexterity, consistency in actions, and ingenuity. K I.v. To a certain extent, some cases of writing anonymous letters, statements, buying unnecessary things, pathological gambling - betting, card games, etc. can be attributed.
Impulsive behavior in a teenager
© Gianne Karla Tolentino/Pexels
Adolescence is a critical period of neurological development that can explain many of its behaviors. While we understand that children's brains are still developing, we often expect teenagers to think and behave like adults. The truth is that during this time there are major changes in their development that require parental involvement. By understanding the biological aspects of adolescent brain development, parents can not only improve empathy, but also create a safe environment for their child.
Cynthia Germanotta, head of the Born This Way Foundation and mother of Lady Gaga, believes that understanding how the teenage brain works is important. This will help him transition into adulthood and create conditions in which he will be happy and healthy. The CEO of the Lieber Institute for Brain Development at Johns Hopkins University agrees. The human brain is an ever-changing organ, and a lot happens to it during adolescence. When you are born, your brain is no more than three-quarters the size of an adult's. He goes through huge changes over the next 20 years - more than he will experience for the rest of his life.
Diagnosis
The diagnosis is made on the basis of a combination of wedges and signs. I.v. occurs in a wide variety of diseases: schizophrenia (see), epilepsy (see), progressive paralysis (see), organic diseases of c. of various origins. n. p., mental retardation (see) and psychopathy (see).
In cases of indolent diseases with psychopathic personality changes, I. v. develop more often than in states of pronounced intellectual decline or manifest psychoses. In cases of sluggish mental illness and psychopathy, irresistible I. v. may be preceded for some period by a struggle of motives.
I.v. should be distinguished from impulsive actions. Impulsive actions are relatively simple motor acts, actions that arise and are performed by patients suddenly, without a struggle of motives, without weighing them, without comprehension. The most common example is the impulsive actions of patients with catatonic disorders (see Catatonic syndrome). Impulsive actions are also committed in a state of melancholic raptus (suddenly arising during depression, melancholy excitement with a desire for suicide, self-harm) or under the influence of delusional ideas (see Delirium). They are distinguished from I. v., in addition to external forms of manifestations, by the presence of manifest symptoms of psychosis. I.v. must be differentiated from obsessive drives (see Obsessive states). The latter are accompanied by constant internal struggle and are not put into action.
Treatment and prevention
depend on the underlying disease.
Forecast
is associated with the characteristics of the disease against which I. century develops.
How to get rid of impulsiveness?
If you do not pay attention in time to the first signs of impulsiveness, it will quickly develop into a persistent character trait and become a stumbling block in relationships with other people - after all, they are not interested in the reasons, they only see their unpleasant manifestation. What to do with impulsiveness and how to get rid of it? We offer simple ways:
Relieving nervous tension and fighting stress: meditation, yoga, SPA treatments and massages, pleasant hobbies, sports and visiting the pool, even shopping - everything that will return your emotional state to its previous course and will not allow the genie of impulsiveness to break out. It is recommended to set specific achievable goals for deadlines: do you need renovations in your apartment, but don’t have the money? – renovate the apartment gradually; Don’t have time to go to a water park with your child? – a walk in the nearest park on skis will be a good alternative; Are your relatives and friends “fed up”? — turn off your phone after 21:00 and enjoy a pleasant movie or book.
3. Impulsivity can manifest itself due to a banal lack of time: endless requests from relatives, demands from superiors, children demanding attention - where to find the necessary time for all this? And now even an efficient woman turns into a twitchy monkey who has no time to even look at herself in the mirror. When should we sit down and calmly think about pressing matters? In this case, healthy selfishness will help:
you can calmly explain to relatives that they themselves are able to choose a new leash for their dog in the store; You can’t argue much with your superiors, but an adequate superior person will listen to healthy arguments and take note; You can’t put children aside, but for them there will certainly be an interesting activity that can occupy children’s brains and hands for at least a couple of hours.
4. Love relationships and impulsiveness are concepts that, to some extent, coexist peacefully until the latter develops into temper and hysteria. In such cases, psychologists recommend starting from the root causes (lack of attention and sex, fear of losing such a loved one, etc.) and talking with your partner about problems arising in the relationship.
5. Find the causative agent of the problem that causes this state: it certainly exists, and when it is eliminated, the emotional background will become calmer and more balanced, and the rationality of thoughts and actions will not take long to arrive.
In any case, it should be remembered: impulsivity is not a disease with a critical diagnosis, but an emotional and mental state of the individual, which, under the influence of circumstances and environment, can arise in anyone. Depending on the situation, impulsiveness becomes a defense or turns into attack and aggression. It suddenly appears and just as suddenly goes away. She is easily provoked, but is subject to control if she works on her own behavior.
Forensic psychiatric assessment
Persons who have I.v. arise against the background of psychosis or a sluggish mental illness, which tends to progress, i.e., deepen personal changes, are insane. Persons with pronounced intellectual decline—congenital (mental retardation) or acquired (various organic diseases of the central nervous system)—are also considered insane. Persons with a psychopathic character and mild intellectual changes are usually recognized as sane.
Bibliography:
Vasilyeva L.P. Disorders of desires (a group of so-called pyromanias) in psychopathic individuals and their forensic psychiatric assessment, in the book: Vopr. court. psychiatrist, p. 13, M., 1969; Gannushkin P. B. Clinic of psychopathy, their statics, dynamics, systematics, M., 1933; Korsakov S.S. Course of psychiatry, vol. 1-2, M., 1901; Kretschmer E. Medical psychology, trans. from German, M., 1927, bibliogr.; Serbsky V.P. Forensic psychopathology, c. 2, M., 1900; Handbuch der forensischen Psychiatrie, hrsg. v. H. Goppinger ua, B.-NY, 1972; Jaspers K. Psychologie der Weltanschauun-gen, B., 1960; Magnan Y. Psychiatry-sche Yorlesungen, Hft 1-4, Lpz., 1891-1893.
A. K. Kachaev.
Why are we able to do them?
Why do we manage to do impulsive things? After all, we know that we will regret most of them later.
It's actually quite simple. Most often we get the following chain: We have an impulse. The mind says that we don’t need to do this. But something at the subconscious level already insists that this is what we have the right to. This is what we deserve. That is, at the moment of committing an impulsive act, we have the justification necessary to avoid feelings of guilt. And there is a strong desire that requires action. In such conditions it is almost impossible to resist.
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How to increase self-control?
Try to distract yourself
When you start following an impulse, try to distract yourself with something else. The interesting thing about impulse is that it can easily disappear when distracted. By switching to something else, you will gain time to take control of the situation, or by switching, you will not even remember your impulse a few minutes later.
Invite your loved ones, friends and acquaintances
It can be extremely difficult for us to deal with impulses on our own, but it is often very simple if it is pointed out to us. In other words, if we are caught violating some obligations, then our effectiveness increases many times over, which is confirmed by authoritative research.
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Kill the impulse with your breath
Breathing is a universal technique when you need to “slow down” yourself. An impulse is always tension, it’s like a spring suddenly lost its lock and began to straighten. Breathing allows you to take control of the situation. You can learn special breathing techniques, or just try to limit yourself to a few deep breaths.
Catch yourself
You are almost always aware that momentum is coming. You just have an excuse that reduces your control. So, at such a moment it is important to stop and ask yourself the question “What am I doing now?, What is happening? Why can't I stop? " This is definitely sobering and often allows you to not follow the impulse. This helps move the impulse into an area of control and block it.
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Plan ahead
Impulses often arise for several reasons well known to you. Think in advance what you will do, how you will resist him. Then, at the moment the impulse manifests itself, you will have a ready-made counteraction scheme, which, gradually, can be worked out until it becomes completely automatic.
Develop willpower
Willpower is a universal tool that can guide our lives from a rational perspective. From this point of view, impulsive behavior is completely irrational and willpower helps to cope with it.
Meditate
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Regular meditation allows you to master self-control and, more importantly, it can reduce the strength of our desires and stress levels. In other words, meditation helps us not to be led by our desires, to better understand ourselves and what we really need.
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Self-esteem encouragement
Whenever an impulse arises, remember how you will feel if you can overcome it. You will be able to increase your self-esteem, your level of self-respect, and this is something that can please you more than momentary satisfaction of desire, which gives rise to feelings of guilt.
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