Wednesday, November 28, 2012

A Not So Beautiful Mind?



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.  


The video above is a simulation of paranoid schizophrenia.  The person believes the weather is out to get him and everyone is helping.  I don’t know if it actually goes like this, but this video is merely a simulation of what it could be like and it helped me grasp it a little better.  

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.