How can you tell if a loved one has a mental illness?

For some reason, many people ignore emotional pain when it comes from people, but it is important to remember that we all suffer to some degree too. Emotional pain takes its toll on us, whether we want to admit it or not.

Men are considered the masculine and rough type by women, but not all of them fit into this stereotype. The same can be said about women in relation to female stereotypes, according to men. Sometimes people find it difficult to express their feelings. Therefore, it is unlikely to find out what is going on in a person’s soul now.

Mental disorders and illnesses

Mental illness is not only schizophrenia, it also includes neuroses, psychoses, mania, panic attacks, paranoia, dementia and bipolar disorder. In turn, each mental disorder is divided into several more types. It is believed that if situations that cause acute stress reactions in people: hysteria, crying, attack, nervous tremors and other aggressive actions directed at others or at themselves, are episodic in nature and pass after some time, then they do not interfere with life and are not deviation from the norm.

However, it often happens that after an examination the doctor does not reveal any mental disorders in the patient, but after some time he commits a brutal, planned murder or harms the health of himself or others. This is a clear deviation in the psyche and in order not to become a victim of such a patient, it is very important to have some ideas about how signs of mental deviations manifest themselves and how to behave when communicating or even living with them.

So, 5 signs of a broken person

He never talks about his problems

If your interlocutor refuses to talk about what is happening in his life, most likely he does not want to burden you with his problems. When a person closes his emotions, our inner self is suppressed. But this can be corrected with a heart-to-heart conversation.

Everything goes to extremes with him

On the outside, a person may seem completely normal, but on the inside, he struggles with himself every day. It makes up for this by improving and maintaining your appearance more than before. However, when it comes to completing some tasks, he goes to extremes. A dark barrier has now formed around him, due to which he cannot perform any action normally.

Every now and then it seems colder

Have you ever noticed a change in your friend, partner or colleague? This could be a sign that he is struggling with something right now. That is why such emotional factors appeared. Anger, aggression, stress, or, conversely, constant silence are all common symptoms of emotional brokenness.

It happens that a person distances himself from everyone, even when a small problem arises, which will not be difficult to solve. However, due to the barrier built around them, he believes that he will not be able to handle her. That’s why they try in every possible way to escape from it.

He holds back his emotions

A person doesn't actually say everything he really wants. He finds it difficult to accept his weak side. He understands and knows that if he accepts it, then all this negative turmoil will immediately surface.

Stopped trusting

He stopped trusting people, is afraid to enter into relationships or, on the contrary, falls into codependency, and does almost all things on his own.

In conclusion…

So, it has gotten to the point where being around an emotionally broken person is difficult. BUT! You have to weigh the good with the bad and decide whether a relationship with this person is worth something to you or not.

If you really want to help this person, then share his sadness and bear the brunt of his problems. Help him get through these obstacles. If a person has neglected himself, then seek help from a specialist.

Dear readers, have you ever found yourself in situations where a person was emotionally broken? What did you do in such cases? Tell us about it in the comments!

How do mental disorders manifest themselves in people?

Deviations in the psyche primarily manifest themselves in the fact that a person’s perception of the world changes and his attitude towards the people around him changes. Unlike healthy people, people with mental disorders strive to satisfy only their physical and physiological needs; they do not care how their inappropriate behavior will affect the health and mood of others. They are cunning and attentive, selfish and hypocritical, unemotional and resourceful.

It is very difficult to understand when someone close to you shows excessive anger, aggression and unfounded accusations against you. Few are able to remain calm and accept the inappropriate behavior of a loved one associated with mental disorders. In most cases, people think that a person is mocking them and try to apply “educational measures” in the form of moral teachings, demands and evidence of innocence.

Over time, mental illness progresses and can combine delusional, hallucinatory and emotional disorders. Manifestations of visual, auditory and delusional hallucinations include the following:

a person talks to himself, laughs for no apparent reason.
cannot concentrate on the topic of conversation, always looks preoccupied and alarmed.
hears extraneous voices and sees someone that you cannot perceive.
is hostile towards family members, especially those who serve him. In later stages of the development of mental illness, the patient becomes aggressive, attacks others, and deliberately breaks dishes, furniture and other objects.
tells stories of implausible or dubious content about himself and loved ones.
fears for his life, refuses to eat, accusing his loved ones of trying to poison him.
writes statements to the police and letters to various organizations with complaints about relatives, neighbors and just acquaintances.
hides money and things, quickly forgets where he put them and accuses others of stealing.
does not wash or shave for a long time, there is sloppiness and uncleanliness in behavior and appearance.

Knowing the general signs of mental disorders, it is very important to understand that mental illness brings suffering, first of all, to the patient himself, and only then to his loved ones and society. Therefore, it is completely wrong to prove to the patient that he is behaving immorally, to blame or reproach him for not loving you and making your life worse. Of course, a mentally ill person is a problem in the family. However, he must be treated as a sick person and react to their inappropriate behavior with understanding.

MENTALLY ILL

MENTALLY ILL

(Greek psychikos mental; synonym:
mentally ill, insane, crazy, insane
) - patients with an acquired or congenital disorder of mental activity.

For P. b. characterized by a change in the reflection in the consciousness of the real world, which is associated with disruption of brain activity. In this case, psychopathological disorders arise (affective, delusional, in the form of hallucinations, clouding of consciousness, etc.), painful deviations in behavior, and a critical attitude towards one’s condition and the environment is disrupted. The nature and severity of the disorder of brain activity depend on the characteristics of mental illnesses (see), their form and stage of progression. From P. b. usually distinguish patients with borderline states—neuroses (see), psychopathy (see), etc., in which, as a rule, there is no disturbance in the reflective and cognitive activity of the brain. However, the question of delimiting P. b. and patients with borderline conditions is controversial. Often the term “mentally ill” refers to patients with any mental disorders.

Deviations in behavior, unmotivated actions, inability to comprehend the situation and regulate one’s relationship with the environment, a state of excitement and aggressive actions cause the need for special care for P. b., the creation of a special type of medical care - psychiatric care (see).

The helplessness of P. b., the lack of consciousness of some of them about their illness and the tendency to socially dangerous actions pose legal issues before the state, the resolution of which is aimed both at protecting the rights and interests of P. b. and at protecting the society from social dangerous actions of such patients. In this regard, the attitude towards P. b. and their position in society depends not only on the level of honey. knowledge, but also from the social system, the characteristics of the socio-economic formation.

Separate descriptions of the state and behavior of P. b. recorded in ancient times. The unusual behavior, incomprehensibility of statements and actions for a long time gave grounds to others to explain their condition as the intervention of an evil spirit, a consequence of the wrath of the gods, or punishment from above. In different eras, the attitude towards P. b. changed depending on the level of development of medicine and science in general, the nature of the socio-economic structure, and the dominant worldview. Ancient Greek medicine, based on materialistic views, was characterized by a scientific approach to P. b. Hippocrates considered mental disorders to be the result of diseases, mainly of the brain. He was the first to describe various manifestations of mental illness (states with depressed or elevated mood, with motor and speech excitation, epilepsy with major convulsive seizures and confusion), introduced a number of terms to refer to them, and developed some measures for the treatment of P. b. and etc.

In Ancient Rome, A. Celsus attempted to create the first systematic treatise on psychiatry. At this time, melancholy, mania, epilepsy, and acute mental disorders due to somatic diseases were described. Along with previously used treatment methods (emetics and laxatives, walks, diet, baths, gymnastics, climate change, etc.), massage, bloodletting, restorative therapy, elements of psychotherapy were proposed, and the importance of physical labor was indicated.

During the heyday of Muslim culture (8th-11th centuries AD), a humane attitude towards P. b. was noted; they were considered to be suffering from some illness and they sought means of helping them. A significant contribution to the study of mental illness was made by Ibn Sina, who, like Hippocrates, considered P.’s incorrect behavior b. a consequence of the disease and, first of all, the brain.

The Middle Ages are characterized by regression in the understanding of mental illness. In this regard, P. b. no longer considered sick, they were accused of witchcraft, punished or destroyed. Particular cruelty towards P. b. The Inquisition was different. Among the heretics there were many P. b., who voluntarily or under torture confessed to “relations with the devil.” At the end of the 15th century. A special work was published entitled “The Hammer of the Witches,” which described in detail the methods of searching for and bringing before the Inquisition persons who had “given themselves to demons.” The main method of combating heresy was considered to be burning alive, and therefore every year thousands of innocent people (among them many mentally ill) died at the stake.

During the Renaissance, along with cruel treatment of P. b. as “possessed by demons” a tendency appeared towards their charity. P. b. were kept in prisons and monasteries. In Western Europe, the so-called dolgauzes (madhouses) and various kinds of shelters in which P. b. often kept in chains, in iron handcuffs, often together with criminals and vagabonds. Individual attempts to help P. b. reduced, ch. arr., to distracting methods (patients were flogged with rods, stabbed with sharp objects, covered with mustard plasters, etc.). Calm P. b. remained among the population, lived with families or wandered.

In ancient times in Rus' it was believed that the possessed were in need of charity, so they, along with other kaliks (sick, wretched, infirm) found refuge, care and concern, ch. arr. in monasteries. The peculiarities of Russian culture led to the development of monastic treatment. medicine, including and psychiatry (see).

In Russia there was no cruel treatment of P. b., as a rule, chains and shackles were not used, and a philanthropic attitude towards P. 6 prevailed.

A radical change in attitude towards P. b. associated with the reform of F. Pinel, who first created hospital conditions for their treatment. F. Pinel and his student J. Esquirol laid the foundations of scientific psychiatry. Since that time, I.'s medical history was introduced, and new methods of care and treatment began to be developed, including individual occupational therapy. Shelters and shelters turned into hospitals. For care and supervision of P. b. Specially trained personnel were hired. The first scientific classifications of psychopathol were created. manifestations, and scientific guidelines on psychiatry have been published. Legislative acts have appeared that protect the rights and interests of P. b. At the same time, there were still such measures of restraint for P. b. as straitjackets, tying patients with bandages, and keeping them in isolation wards.

In the first half of the 19th century. There was a turning point in the treatment of P. b.: the doctrine of “non-restraint” arose, the initiator of which was the English. psychiatrist J. Conolly, who published the book “Treatment of the Mentally Ill Without Mechanical Restraints.” Humane attitude towards P. b. subsequently introduced by progressive psychiatrists from different countries: in Germany - J. E. Meyer and V. Griesinger (see vol. 25, additional materials), in France - V. Magnan, in Russia - S. S. Korsakov .

In the USSR, treatment of P. b. based on principles common to Soviet healthcare (see) as a whole. This is, first of all, free and universally accessible medical care, the unity of therapeutic and preventive work. In the USSR, starting from the 20s, along with psychiatric hospitals, a network of psychoneurological dispensaries was deployed (see Dispensary), whose task is to identify P. b., provide outpatient treatment, hospitalize P. b., provide them with therapeutic and social -preventive care after discharge from psychiatric hospitals. Great importance for improvement and further improvement to lay down. help P. b. had a Resolution of the Collegium of the NK RCP of the RSFSR dated October 26, 1931 on checking the state of psychiatric affairs in the republic. It was decided to create a system of standard psychiatric treatment and preventive institutions - hospitals (see Psychiatric hospital), sanatoriums, labor colonies, etc., and to immediately begin organizing production workshops at psychiatric hospitals and psychoneurol. dispensaries (see Medical-industrial, labor workshops), strengthen work on employment of P. b.; improve care for patients with borderline conditions; pay special attention to strengthening measures to organize assistance to children; expand work on mass psychoprophylactic propaganda. All this was the basis for the creation of a system of psychiatric care (see).

The widespread use of psychopharmacological agents (see) in psychiatry has changed both the general situation in psychiatric hospitals and departments, and the nature of care for P. b. who are in hospital treatment (see Nursing). Stuporous states and cases of agitation are much less common. However, in some patients, excitement does not disappear immediately or completely; such P. b. need gig. care and constant supervision so that they cannot harm themselves. They are best kept in wards with a small number of patients. Due to the high prevalence of psychopharmacotherapy in psychiatric hospitals, monitoring the somatic state of patients receiving psychotropic drugs and their compliance with treatment becomes important. mode. Inhibited (state of stupor) and somatically weakened patients also need special care, since they often refuse to eat, and therefore require forced or artificial feeding. With a prolonged state of lethargy, they, just like somatically weakened patients, may experience trophic disorders. Therefore, gigabytes are of particular importance. care and restorative treatment.

In the system of general care and monitoring of P. b. Constant attention must be paid to preventing dangerous actions on their part towards staff and other patients, and attempts to commit suicide. One should also keep in mind the possibility of patients dissimulating (concealing) their intentions for dangerous actions. It is also necessary to take measures to help eliminate the wariness of patients in relation to psychiatric clinics: conducting group conversations with patients in order to help them better adapt to the conditions of the hospital, to realize the need for their stay in it (see Psychotherapy).

Treatment psychopharmakol. means is carried out for a long time and systematically even after the patient is discharged from the hospital. Active treatment of patients and care for them outside the hospital should contribute to their social and labor adaptation and readaptation. Work has a beneficial effect on the mental state of the patient, so it is necessary to include the patient in work as early as possible. The nature and working conditions of the patient must be determined taking into account his mental state. Particular attention is paid to creating favorable living conditions. If the patient has difficulties in the family, in relationships with others, then he should be helped to eliminate them; Explain to his loved ones the rules for caring for P. b. If the patient’s mental state worsens, monitoring of him should be intensified, and the issue of the nature and conditions of his further treatment should be resolved in a timely manner.

Bibliography:

Dzhagarov M. A. Experience in organizing a semi-inpatient facility for the mentally ill, Neuropath, and Psychiat., vol. 6, no. 8, p. 137, 1937; Dzhagarov M. A. and Balabanova V. K. Day hospital for the mentally ill, M., 1944; Zenevich G.V. Issues of clinical examination of mentally and neurologically ill people, L., 1972, bibliogr.; Ibn Sina Abu Ali. Canon of Medical Science, trans. from Arabic, vol. 1, book. 3, Tashkent, 1958; Kabanov M. M., S l u c h e v s k i y F. I. and Dedov V. F. Day hospitals as institutions of “partial hospitalization” in the system of psychiatric care, Zhurn. neuropath, and psychiatrist., i.e. 65, No. 8, p. 1266,1965, bibliogr.; Kannabikh Yu. V. History of psychiatry, L., 1929; Seventh All-Union Congress of Neuropathologists and Psychiatrists, vol. 1, M., 1981.

M. V. Korkina; N. M. Zharikov (treatment and care for the mentally ill).

Causes of mental disorders

Genetic predisposition. It is heredity that plays a big role in the development of further disease in children. For example, diseases such as schizophrenia and epilepsy can be transmitted from mother to child.

Taking a large number of psychopharmacological drugs
Reduced immunity, frequent hormonal imbalances in the body, metabolic disorders.
Mental trauma in the past. After any psychological trauma, a person’s perception and thinking can change beyond recognition.
Intrauterine disorders during pregnancy
Developmental problems at an early age
Alcoholism, drug addiction.
Presence of somatic diseases. These diseases can affect the overall health of the brain and also contribute to insufficient blood supply to the body. For example, hypertension, hypothyroidism, severe liver and kidney diseases.
Presence of traumatic brain injuries, concussions.
Great emotional experiences, chronic stress.

The symptoms of mental illness can be quite varied. As a rule, the main symptoms can be divided into sensory disorders, problems with orientation, thinking, emotions, memory, speech, as well as behavioral problems and delusions.

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What are mental illnesses?

Mental illnesses are those that lead to mild or severe changes in thinking and behavior, disconnect a person from reality, and prevent them from adequately interacting with others, performing work, and everyday activities.

Mental disorders are very diverse - there are more than 200 types. The most common are depression, dementia (dementia), bipolar disorders, anxiety disorders, and schizophrenia.

The causes of mental illness are also different: genetic predisposition, biochemical changes (improper functioning of certain substances) in the nervous system, illness and injury, severe emotional shock, chronic stress. Often several different factors work in combination, some making a person predisposed, and others acting as a trigger.

What symptoms should you look out for?

One page on our website is not enough to describe all the symptoms of mental illness. You can learn more about them by reading other articles on our blog or in the section that lists the diseases treated by doctors at the Cordia Clinic. Here we list the main ones, those that you need to pay attention to first:

Social isolation . A person ceases to be interested in those around him, he stops communicating and participating in common affairs.
Decreased performance . Mentally ill people no longer cope normally with household chores and work. Children's performance at school sharply declines, and complaints from teachers are received more often.
Thinking disorder . Problems arise with memory, concentration, and logic. A person does not understand the obvious, it is difficult for him to explain something to others, he cannot find the right words. In severe cases, speech turns into a meaningless set of words.
Increased sensitivity to irritants . Patients can feel sounds, light, taste, touch more acutely, they avoid irritants that cause them discomfort.
Apathy . You lose interest in anything at all, even in activities that previously brought you pleasure.
Brad . A person talks about something that does not exist in reality. He greatly exaggerates or downplays his capabilities, believes that someone is watching him, pursuing him, trying to cause harm.
Emotional problems . Frequent companions of mental illness are increased irritability, isolation, depression, anger, violent causeless joy and optimism, suspicion, and a feeling of internal tension.
Unusual behavior . The person is clearly behaving inappropriately.
Frequent and severe mood swings.
Appetite and sleep disorders . Some patients become gluttonous, while others, on the contrary, do not eat anything. May cause insomnia or excessive sleepiness.
Destructive thoughts and behavior . Very alarming bells are thoughts of suicide, the desire to harm yourself and others.
Hallucinations . A person sees, hears and feels something that is not really there.

Patients often refuse to acknowledge the severity of their condition. They believe that everything is fine with them, but something “wrong” is happening to others. Any attempts to convince them of anything, reproaches and complaints lead nowhere and can only provoke a negative response. This symptom in psychiatry is called lack of criticism, and it clearly indicates a mental disorder.