19.1 – Introduction to Mental Health
Learning Objectives
- Define mental health and mental illness
- Analyze, translate, and define medical terms and common abbreviations used with mental health
- Practice the spelling and pronunciation of mental health terminology
- Identify the medical specialties associated with the mental health and explore common diseases, disorders, pharmacology, diagnostic tests and procedures
Introduction to Mental Health
The World Health Organization (WHO) defines mental health as a state of well-being in which an individual realizes their abilities can cope with everyday stresses of ones’ life, work productively, and contribute to their community (WHO, 2022), whereas a mental illness/disorder/condition impacts the inability to cope with the everyday stressors.
A mental disorder is an abnormal condition of the brain or the mind that affects how a person feels, behaves, or relates to others or their surroundings. In most cases, the exact cause of a mental condition is unknown. There are various possible contributing factors, including genetics, environmental and chemical changes in the brain, use of certain drugs and psychological, social, and cultural conditions. Our role in mental health is to be nonjudgmental, not to judge the patient, but to seek to understand what is happening with the patient. Their behaviours may be out of control and require medical attention or treatment.
The ICD, the international classification of disease, and the DSM, the diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders, work together to look at socially accepted conditions and treatment options for conditions. A newer ailment added is gaming addiction. Manuals will change based on what is socially acceptable and what is happening culturally at that time, which impacts a person’s ability to function with their activities of daily living (ADL) (Grant & Chamberlain, 2016).
Watch Emotion, Stress, and Health: Crash Course Psychology #26 (10 min) on YouTube
Media 19.1: CrashCourse. (2014, August 11). Emotion, stress, and health: Crash Course psychology #26. [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/4KbSRXP0wik
Psychology is the study of human behaviour and thought processes of the mind; it studies understanding how humans interact with their physical environment and each other. A psychologist is a person who specializes in the study of the mind (WHO, 2022).
Psychiatry deals with the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of mental disorders. A psychiatrist is one who specializes in the treatment of the mind.
Watch Intro to Psychology: Crash Course Psychology #1 (10 min) on YouTube
Media 19.2: CrashCourse. (2014, February 3). Intro to psychology: Crash Course psychology #1 [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/vo4pMVb0R6M
Mental Health Word Parts
Prefix
- acro- (heights, extremes, extremities)
- an- (no, not, without)
- bi- (two)
- dis- (apart)
- dys- (bad, difficult, painful, abnormal)
- eu- (good)
- ex- (outward)
- para- (near, beside, abnormal)
Combining Form
- affect– (emotional reaction)
- agor/a- (marketplace)
- ambul/o- (to move)
- amnes/o- (forgetful)
- anxi/o– (fear, worry)
- aut/o– (self)
- centr/o- (centre)
- compuls/o– (drive, compel)
- cycl/o– (cycle)
- delus/o– (false belief, to cheat)
- ech/o- (sound)
- fab/o- (story)
- hallucinat/o– (to wander in mind)
- hedon/o- (pleasure)
- Iatr/o- (treatment)
- klept/o – (to steal, stealing)
- ment/o- (mind , do not confuse with chin)
- narc/o– (sleep, stupor)
- neur/o- (nerve)
- obsess/o– (besieged by thought)
- path/o- (disease)
- phil/o– (attraction)
- phor/o- (carry, bear, state)
- psych/o, thym/o, phren/o – (mind)
- pyr/o- (fire)
- schiz/o– (divide, split)
- soci/o- (society)
- somat/o– (body)
- somn/o- (sleep)
Suffix
- -ia, -ism (condition)
- -iatrist (one who specializes in the treatment)
- -lepsy (seizure)
- -mania (condition of madness; frenzy; excessive excitement)
- -phobia (condition of fear)
- -thymia (condition of the mind)
- -orexia (appetite)
Activity source: Mental Health Word Parts by Connie Stevens, licensed under CC BY- 4.0. / Text version.
Mental Health Medical Terms
Mental Health Abbreviations
- ADL (Activities of Daily living)
- BD or BP (Bipolar disorder)
- BDD (Body dysmorphic disorder)
- CBT (Cognitive-behavioural therapy)
- DSM-5 (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Health Disorders)
- DTs (Delirium tremens)
- ECT (Electroconvulsive therapy)
- GAD (generalized anxiety disorder)
- ICD (International Classification of Diseases)
- ID (intellectual disability)
- OCD (obsessive-compulsive disorder)
- ODD (oppositional defiant disorder)
- PD (panic disorder *also personality disorder)
- PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder)
- SAD (seasonal affective disorder)
Activity source: Mental Health Abbreviations by Connie Stevens, licensed under CC BY 4.0. / Text version.
Attribution
This page “Introduction to Mental Health” by Connie Stevens and Marie Rutherford is licensed under CC BY 4.0.