As Sigmund Freud, a famous neurologist who contributed vastly to the study of psychology puts it, "Out of your vulnerabilities will come your strength." Mental health awareness is required for many reasons; two overlooked ideas are to prevent gun violence and other crimes across the globe, and to also reduce the number of prisoners from coming out of captivity as more psychotic than they already were. Here are some common and rare mental health disorders that are hidden beneath the surface of people across the globe. Note: The first 7 are very common, whereas the last 7 are extremely rare and unique.
1. Major Depressive Disorder
This is having periods of at least two weeks or more at a time (many times for months) of feeling of sadness and the lost of interest in activities that one would normally enjoy. This can be endangering to the person by cooking up some suicidal thoughts. Make note that the National Suicide Prevention Hotline number is 1-800-273-8255 if you or anyone close to you are experiencing any suicidal thoughts that could potentially be acted on.
2. Anxiety Disorders
There are many categories of this disorder including Generalized, Social, and Obsessive Compulsive. Generalized is the most common type among people, which includes excessive worrying in numerous areas. Panic attacks can occur throughout any of these specific disorders and it can literally feeling like you are having a stroke or heart attack.
3. Bipolar Disorder
This sprouts from having manic, hypomanic, and depressive episodes. A person can be classified as having one of three types of the bipolar illness, and each can become complex.
4. Post Traumatic Stress Disorder
Commonly known as PTSD, this mental illness involves a person not being able to recover from past events, which are usually tragic. Soldiers are very prone to developing this after being over seas at war or battle.
5. Schizophrenia
Trying to think and behave normally is almost impossible when a person is hearing voices in their head, hallucinating, and having speech problems. Many times this type of patient is irrational and disorientated, which results in social isolation from other beings.
6. Eating Disorders
Did you know that "Between 4% and 20% of young women practice unhealthy patterns of dieting, purging, and binge-eating" and "Currently, about one in 20 young women in the community has an eating disorder" ? Eating disorders like anorexia nervosa (being too underweight by having restrictions on consumption) and bulimia nervosa (binge-eating and then either using excessive exercise or self-induced vomiting to reduce the consumed calories).
7. Substance Abuse
People are for and against substance abuse being a mental health illness, but I believe it truly is. As stated in one of my previous articles, "You can put a drug addict in a room for a couple of weeks and they will go through drug withdrawal. If they are not too far along, their body will be able to fight the drugs and take on a healing process. You CANNOT place someone with autoimmune hepatitis in a room and pray for them to get better. They need actual treatment." Whatever the abused substance may be, the person uses it either because it is their coping mechanism for a current mental illness or substance abuse IS their mental illness.
8. Trichotillomania
If you have ever seen someone pulling their hair from their head, eyebrows, or other parts of their body, then maybe they have this secret compulsive disorder.
9. Genital Retraction Syndrome
All I shall say is that this is a fear of your genitals shrinking in size. For males it is their penis, and for women it is usually their breasts.The above picture shows a tie retracting which is analogous to genitals retracting.
10. Boanthropy
This one is actually quite hilarious and if I ever meet someone like this, I definitely would not be able to hold a straight face. This is a mental health illness where a person thinks that they are a "cow" at times. For instance, they will get down on all fours, graze the grass, and start mooing. Though this seems entertaining, it still should not be made fun of.
11. Oniomania
This might affect more people than you think. Oniomania is the obsession with shopping and spending money.
12. Aboulomania
Ever have a difficult time making a decision? Well, this happens to a person with this disorder very often. Great distress and anxiety can flood this type of person over the simplest decision like picking out what they want to eat for breakfast. Hopefully, there are systems that people with this disorder can use in order to make decisions faster.
13. Alien Hand Syndrome
If you are like me, then you like having control over your body. Someone with this neurological syndrome does not have control over body parts (limbs) at times.
14. Hybristophilia
This mental illness will help end this article on a strong note. Ever been aroused by people who have commited harsh crimes, or are presently incarcerated? Someone with this disorder will say yes!
