A Beautiful
Mind is the first time I ever heard of/ actually learned about
schizophrenia. In the movie, John Nash (Russell
Crowe) is a math genius who believes that he is enlisted by the military to
crack some code and if he doesn't they will get him. When I first saw this, I was in 7th
grade and my health teacher showed it in class as an example as schizophrenia. I haven’t seen it since then, but I remember
thinking that it was a really good movie.
I hadn't really given it any thought until this week and I started to
think that at age 11, I believed that Russell Crowe was schizophrenia. I never thought that it may not be like that
for all people. Now as a psychology
major, I know that not all schizophrenia is like that, although, it is the most
common. There are five different types
of schizophrenia: paranoid-type, disorganized-type, catatonic type, undifferentiated-type
and residual-type. Each of the types is
respectfully named for the main symptom. WebMD describes the basics that makes up each of the five types, but PsychCentral takes the cake. From their screening test to all their tabs on the left, there is all
sorts of other links (within their website) that really go into schizophrenia. I found it really helpful to have all the
information in one place. This year I have really fallen in love with youtube and psychcentral. Although, they aren't my only learning tools, they certainly help to enhance anything I read about.
Wednesday, November 28, 2012
Tuesday, November 13, 2012
Moody or Bipolar?
“You’re so bipolar!” My siblings
would throw around that phrase when we had unexplainable mood swings. Never did
we give a thought of what it really meant or that one of us would someday be
diagnosed with it. I always knew my
brother was a little “crazy”. He would
get so hyper and run around sometimes and then be blissful and then just angry
and antisocial. Bipolar has three main
subcategories: type I, type II, & cyclothymia. Type I, previously known as manic depression,
is basically one manic episiode (at least) and periods of major
depression. Type II is hypomania (not full
mania but bursts of energy and impulsiveness) and episodes of depression. Cyclothymia is less mood swings, but is
similar to type II. There are several
symptoms like being easily distracted or poor judgment. Each person varies with their symptoms and
sometimes can even be diagnosed as depressed instead of bipolar. The hyperlink above on bipolar gives detailed
symptoms as well as treatment and mood stabilizers that are usually used. Bipolar is an actual disorder and not
something that should be taken lightly.
I’ve always wondered what causes
it, how can a doctor be sure that someone really has a bipolar disorder and
what part does genetics play? (Click genetics to access the article) The Scripps Research Institute has found
variations in genes that increase the risks of bipolar disorder. Those genes appear to be associated with a
biochemical pathway know as cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) signaling
system. About 29 genes determine if
someone’s risk is higher than another persons.
This disorder is 5 to 6 more likely to happen in someone
that has a sibling or family member with bipolar so I find it interesting that
testing one’s genes can tell a person’s possible story before they even live it
(so to speak just because someone has a higher risk doesn’t necessarily mean
they’ll get it). The video below is of
girl explaining what it’s like to live with the disorder. She goes into what it is, how it feels, and
types of treatment she’s tried. Hearing
her personal struggle and how treatments are different in everyone makes it
feel more real and easy to relate to.
Finding the right “concoction” is important and does make a difference
on how a person reacts from day to day. I also found it really cool that psych central
has a screening quiz so the link on the bottom of the video.
Tuesday, November 6, 2012
PTSD: Blame It On the Genes?
I'm not much of a tv person, but one show has always had me hooked since high school, Grey's Anatomy. While I admit the last year I haven't been that committed and I'm super behind, (Of course I had to start all the way from the beginning again. Got to love Netflix.) I now understand some of the stuff they're saying! Playing catch up I have re-met Dr. Major Hunt whom is the trauma surgeon and has served a couple of tours in Iraq. As the show progress, it hints in on to Dr. Hunt having post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Post traumatic stress disorder is caused by a experiencing a severe traumatic experience which leads to long-lasting state of frequent distressing recollections and nightmares about the traumatic event, avoidance of reminders of it and exaggerated arousal in response to noise and other stimuli. Grey's Anatomy is fictional so I know that not everything is accurate; however, Dr. Hunt cannot sleep, overreacts when he gets startled and has uncontrollable flashbacks, which now I can see so much more clearly as symptoms of PTSD. It made me wonder why some people get PTSD and others don’t. Here is a basic guide to PTSD. I thought this picture was really neat with all the statistics and basic knowledge of the disorder. (It's a little small, but if you click on the link under, it should take you to the see the picture larger.)
http://msw.usc.edu/wp-content/uploads/Post-Traumatic-Stress-Disorder-PTSD-Awareness-Infographic.jpg |
Studies have shown that smaller than averages hippocampi are more susceptible to PTSD. Also, those resulting with PTSD have lower than normal cortisol levels possibly meaning that they aren’t “equipped” to fight. Recently, in my memory class we have discussed PTSD and how certain genes may lead to a higher risk of being more vulnerable to get PTSD. In the link below, is an article that discusses how serotonin transporting genes may have to do with PTSD. It is still relatively new and studies are still being conducted to further locate and specify exactly what this means. I find this completely exciting that something like PTSD that happens from traumatic events can be found in a gene and how it just takes one life changing event to activate this disorder that seems to take a great toll on people’s lives.
Heredity Article.
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