Psychopathology - abnormality Essay

Submitted By jadeee100
Words: 1808
Pages: 8
Open Document
1) Chlorpromazine is a type of medicine called a phenothiazine antipsychotic. It is used in the treatment of various psychiatric illnesses and is also used in the management of nausea and vomiting associated with terminal illness. Chlorpromazine works by blocking a variety of receptors in the brain, particularly dopamine receptors. Dopamine is a neurotransmitter known to be involved in regulating mood and behaviour, amongst other things. Chlorpromazine blocks the receptors that dopamine acts on and this prevents the overactivity of dopamine in the brain. This helps to control psychotic illness. Chlorpromazine improves disturbed thoughts, feelings and behaviour in various mental conditions, including schizophrenia, mania, and behavioural disorders that involve aggression or severe agitation or excitement. It produces a calming effect and controls aggression, delusions and hallucinations.

2) Antidepressants work by increasing levels of a group of chemicals in the brain called neurotransmitters. Certain neurotransmitters, such as serotonin and noradrenaline, can improve mood and emotion, although this process is not fully understood.
Increasing levels of neurotransmitters can also disrupt pain signals sent by nerves, which may explain why some antidepressants can help relieve long-term pain. While antidepressants can help treat the symptoms of depression, they do not always address its causes. This is why they are usually used in combination with therapy to treat more severe depression or other mental health conditions caused by emotional distress. Antidepressants are usually taken in tablet form. When they are prescribed, you will start on the lowest possible dose thought necessary to improve your symptoms.

3) Drug therapy is used in the treatment of depression to moderate or correct neurochemical imbalances that affect moods (a substance used to prevent or cure disease or to relieve pain). Medication is often used to mean the act of administering medicine. Other synonyms include pharmacotherapy, pharmacotherapeutics and clinical pharmacology. Most drugs for drug therapy are prescription drugs obtained from a prescribing practitioner. Some patients whose depression is particularly resistant to treatment may benefit from combination therapy. Combination therapy is when your doctor recommend you take more than one type of medication at one time. Therapy will be recommended to patients as well medication to help treat abnormality and help patients ‘function more adequately’ in their day to day life. Those suffering from severe depression can often be helped by medication for mental illness. Antidepressants can improve mood as well as increase energy, thus allowing patients to better cope with traumatic events as well as their daily life. When coupled with therapy, those suffering from severe depression can sometimes reach a point where medication is no longer needed. Antidepressants often provide patients with an increased ability to process the cause of their depression, thereby allowing them to learn how to deal with it. Most drug treatments are very effective in relieving frightening and distressing symptoms for many people, enabling them to manage day-to-day life more easily. Drug treatments do not work for everybody though, and individuals can respond differently to the same drug treatments. Unfortunately, most psychotherapeutic drugs have some unwanted side effects (these side effects vary between individuals and dosages taken).
4) Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is not commonly used to treat mental illness and can be considered as rather controversial. Its use has significantly decreased in recent years and it is used far less than medication and talking therapies. ECT involves an electrical current being passed through the brain, causing a fit/seizure. This is done under a general anaesthetic and the use of muscle relaxants. Some people may prefer the option of a short course of ECT to taking medication long term.
Show More

Related Documents: Psychopathology - abnormality Essay

Definition Of Psychopathology

AQA Style questions: Definitions of Psychopathology 1 The following are examples of different definitions of abnormality. A The behaviour is very different from the behaviour shown by most people in the population. B The behaviour prevents the person from achieving self-actualisation or personal autonomy. C The behaviour means that the person cannot cope with everyday activities. D The behaviour is very different from behaviour that is generally regarded as acceptable. (a) In the…

Words 864 - Pages 4

Essay about Abnormal Psychology.

Abnormal Psychology Abnormal psychology studies, analyzes, explains abnormal behavior, and looks at the nature of psychopathology. Normal and abnormal psychology is just different ways of looking at one’s mental state, and finding reasoning for one’s actions or behaviors. Understanding and explaining the context in which the abnormality occurs, and abnormal behavior is profoundly influenced by demographic context categories such as gender, age, class, and culture (Hansell & Damour, 2008). Abnormal…

Words 835 - Pages 4

Essay on Behavioural Approach

Describe and evaluate one behavioural treatment for psychopathology (12 marks) One behavioural treatment for psychopathology is the systematic de-sensitisation (DS). The systematic de-sensitisation was developed by Joseph Wolfe (1950) which enables individuals to overcome their anxieties by learning to relax in the presence of the stimuli. This is the process that gradually cures patient normally from phobias. This type of behaviour therapy is based on classical conditioning which involves the patient…

Words 461 - Pages 2

Definition Of Abnormality

Individual differences – Psychopathology Definitions of Abnormality- 1. DEVIATION FROM SOCIAL NORMS: Deviation refers to dominant behaviour – ‘Behaviour which is considered undesirable by the majority’ – For example; Talking to yourself in public LIMITATIONS: The definition is susceptible to abuse: Diagnosing someone with a mental illness could just be a way to exclude non conformists from society For example, homosexuality was considered a ‘mental disorder’ in the USA until 1970s also…

Words 2457 - Pages 10

Abnormal Psychology Essay

identifies of the essence of abnormality (Durand & Barlow, 2010). To identify that the person has psychological disorder, psychologist looks for some abnormalities in individual behavior. To be able to tell what is abnormal, you have to know the culture, environment, and the persona as an individual (Durand & Barlow, 2010). The cases of abnormality are complex and sometimes fascinating. The abnormality can be caused by biology or by psychosocial factors. Moreover, abnormality can be caused by the genetic…

Words 782 - Pages 4

Psychology and Western World Essay

symbolic-meaningful systems as factors in the shaping of human behaviour and the artefacts produced through behaviour” (Kroeber and Parsons, 1958, p583). Psychologists and other social scientists have long been interested in the influence of culture on psychopathology, or abnormal behaviours. We have been provided with the basic components and attributes of what constitutes a mentally healthy and ‘normal’ individual. Self-sufficiency, independence, competitiveness, confidence and an internal locus of control…

Words 1368 - Pages 6

Schizophrenia Schizophrenia

himself from others as he believes that he is being followed. STUDENT____Athena Flores_______________ Date _______June 25, 2015______________ Pertinent psychopathology Schizophrenia is known that the brain chemistry, structure and activity are different in a person with schizophrenia. It occurs when multiple inherited abnormalities combine with no genetic factors altering the structures of the brain affecting the brains neurotransmitter systems and or injuring the brain directly. There are…

Words 954 - Pages 4

Psychology: Schizophrenia and Cognitive Behavioural Therapy Essay

Rebecca Jones Abnormal Psychology What is abnormality and what do people define as abnormal? The word abnormal has changed its definition over many years.In the 1600’s it was not unusual for women would be burned at the stake, accused of being witches, which in other words meant that they simply did not conform to the norms and values of traditional society. Today, the word abnormal is defined as a difference in a person’s behaviour, being seen as unusual or unnatural from an outsider’s…

Words 2055 - Pages 9

Psych220 Lecture22 Chp15 Essays

Chapter 15: Mood Disorders and Schizophrenia 4/23/2015 Lecture Outline Announcements  Course evaluations Today   Affective Disorders Schizophrenia Mood Disorders Unipolar Mood Disorders  Major Depressive Disorder (MDD)  Dysthymic Disorder – not as severe Bipolar Mood Disorders  Bipolar I  Bipolar II  Cyclothymic Disorder Major Depressive Disorder DSM-IV-TR criteria  Presence of at least one major depressive episode  No manic (or hypomanic) episodes Five or more during a…

Words 1304 - Pages 6

Research Paper On Schizophrenia

RUNNING HEAD: SCHIZOPHRENIA Abnormal Psychology Abstract Schizophrenia creates new challenges every day and continues to be a complicated mental illness for many people. Although many believe developing the disorder is rare, it in fact is not rare at all and almost anyone is at risk of developing it throughout their lives. To understand the importance of why schizophrenia needs to be treated will be presented in this paper below. In addition to the treatments available…

Words 2373 - Pages 10