Mental health

 What are Mental Disorders?*

* Please note that we will use the phrases mental disorder and mental illness as synonyms.

Here's what we know about mental disorders:

• Disturbances of emotion, thinking, and/or behaviour

• Derive from perturbations in the function of various brain circuits • Arise from a complex interplay between

genetic and environmental factors • May range in intensity

• Lead to functional assessment (interpersonal, social, vocational, etc.) • Respond to evidence-based

Treatments provided by trained professionals

Mental disorders are not:

• The consequence of poor parenting or bad behaviour

• The manifestation of malevolent spiritual intent

• Caused by poor nutrition

• Poverty or lifestyle choices

How is the brain involved?

• Everything that a person does, feels, thinks or experiences involves the functioning of their brain•

Most things a brain does depends on many different parts of the brain working together in a network•

The brain is made up of cells, connections amongst the cells and various neurochemicals• The

neurochemicals provide a means for the different parts of the brain to communicate

The Functions of the Brain

(being responsive and reacting to the

environment)

What happens inside the brain when it is not functioning effectively?

• Brain pathways that help different parts of the brain communicate are not working as they should

How does the brain show it's not working well?

• If the brain is not working properly, one or more of its functions will be disturbed

• Disturbed functions that a person directly experiences (such as sadness, sleep problems, etc.) are

called symptoms

• Disturbed functions that another person sees (such as overactivity, withdrawal, etc.) are called signs • Both

signs and symptoms can be used to determine if the brain may not be working well • The person's usual life

or degree of functioning is disrupted because of these signs and symptoms

Mental disorders are associated with disturbances in six primary domains of brain function:

• Thinking

• Perception

• Emotion

• Signaling

• Physical

• Behaviour

Each of these brain functions is the result of millions of cells (neurons) communicating with each other through

Various circuits, using various chemical messengers called neurotransmitters (eg serotonin, dopamine, etc.).

When the brain is not functioning properly in one or more of its six domains, and the person experiences

develop the signs and symptoms of a mental disorder.

Mental disorder is characterized by perturbations in these brain functions, but not all changes in these

functions signify a mental disorder. For example, negative emotions are a characteristic of many mental

disorders, but most negative emotions are not the result of a mental disorder. Some can be a normal or

expected response to the environment – ​​for example: grief when somebody dies or acute worry, sleep

problems and emotional tension when faced with a natural disaster such as a hurricane. Mental

Disorder? Yes, no, maybe.

Understanding how to differentiate a mental disorder from the usual “slings and arrows of outrageous fortune”

is a core mental health literacy competecy. This is discussed in the next section below and also repeated in

In the following diagram we can see the inter-relationship of different mental health states, discussed in more

are the various states and on the left side are the words that more properly describe each state. It is essential

that our language be clear and convey what we intend it to mean. Using the word Depression when we mean

upset is confusing and unhelpful in advancing understanding and communication.

Check the book :

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1pMDHtC24gZa_gkQKl4DHOl42tbyxc-NH/view?usp=drivesdk