Causes of Mental illness:
Introduction:
In this report I will be looking at the general factors that cause development of mental
disorders. I will also be looking in depth at Dissociative identity Disorder (DID) and
the causes and treatments of the disorder.
Prenatal factors:
There are many reasons for mental health problems and nobody can give exact
reasons for the causes of them. Problems developed while pregnant or after giving
birth are known as ‘prenatal’ mental health problems. Some mental health problems
developed have clearer explanations, for example if you had problems during birth it
could result in postnatal PTSD. During pregnancy the only way the foetus can obtain
the nutrients it needs is through their mother. This means if the mother is not eating
well or lives an unhealthy lifestyle it can have negative impacts on the foetus.
One example would be drug addiction in the mother and continued substance abuse
throughout the pregnancy, resulting in the possibility of the baby being born with a
drug addiction too, therefore the baby could also experience withdrawal symptoms
from birth. In addition to the addiction and withdrawals the baby could also become
more susceptible to mental health problems. Another example would be when the
mother has an alcohol addiction and continues to heavily drink while pregnant which
could lead to the child being born with foetal alcohol syndrome; which has been
known to cause forms of mood disorders, short attention spans, hyperactivity, social
behaviour problems, as well as many other physical problems. As well as several
pieces of evidence of connection between maternal stress and depression could
lead to the child later in life experiencing schizophrenia or depression.
Some people may state that mental health is hereditary, which means it is passed
down from parents to children, which can be proven by the study which looked at
schizophrenia in twins. 1 in 100 people develop schizophrenia and found that you're
more susceptible to developing it if a parent or close relative has the disorder.
According to biological approach, genetics would cause schizophrenia. People with
no relatives have a 1 in 100 chance, people with parents have a 1 in 10 chance,
people who are identical twins have a 1 in 2 chance and the non-identical twins have
a 1 in 8 chance.
Biological and health factors:
Many believe that mental health is developed due to pre-existing health conditions.
Individuals who have long-term medical conditions that are manageable but not
curable often become more susceptible to mental health problems, especially things
such as depression and anxiety. This is mostly due to long-term illnesses needing
the person to change their lifestyle to fit the requirements of the illness. When a
person has two or more illnesses that are long-term their quality of life can
deteriorate. Some people suffering with diabetes are also commonly known to have
, anxiety or depression. In other cases mental health disorders have been linked to
physical health conditions; stress can affect your immune system and cause more
susceptibility to illnesses. Physical disabilities can cause mental illness most
commonly depression as well as suicidal thoughts. The most common mental illness
is PTSD linked to accidents which cause disabilities. Painful illnesses have been
seen to cause depression as well as people with learning difficulties are likely to
develop mental illness.
Family system factors:
The learning approach accounts for the type of environment a person grows up in
can affect their susceptibility to mental disorders. The attachment theory suggests
that if the parental figure is unreliable or insensitive, the child will not be as resilient
against stressful situations in his future life therefore they’d be more susceptible to
getting a personality or mental disorder. If there is a lot of conflict in the family
between the child and parent or conflict in the household, the child could be more
susceptible to developing anxiety or depression or even aggressive behaviour or low
self-esteem. The opposite would be if a parent was to do positive parenting it could
cause things such as mood disorders or depression.
Different parenting techniques can impact children differently, the ideal parenting
technique would be Authoritative which would require the parent to be supportive
and accepting as well as demanding and expect much from their child. This
relationship is solely about gaining mutual trust and respect and ensuring
communication flows both ways and both views are honoured, this allows for the
child to develop their own independence and key life skills and hinders their child's
susceptibility to developing a mental disorder. Another parenting technique used is
the authoritarian technique which is when the parent is unsupportive and rejecting
and only cares about themselves and expects much from their child, this relationship
is about control and different perspectives are not allowed as well as meaning
communication only flows in one direction. The next parenting technique is the
permissive technique, this is when the parent expects very little from their child but is
accepting and child-centred, the relationship indulges the child's entitlement and the
parent doesn't show control and use minimal punishment. The most uninvolved
parent technique shows the parent has low responsibility, low expectations and they
have very little involvement in the child's life, there is no communication and it is
basically a non-existent relationship.
Abuse experienced in childhood can cause many problems and lead to many mental
illnesses. Sometimes witnessing abuse can cause more problems to the child such
as PTSD (an anxiety disorder which occurs in stressful life-changing events). It has
been proven many times by many psychologists that anxiety disorders and abuse
used to link the explanation of an abuse survivor trying to regain control where they
haven’t had it previously. This need to be in control can lead to them restricting their
food intake as they feel if they can’t control the situation they can control themselves.
Introduction:
In this report I will be looking at the general factors that cause development of mental
disorders. I will also be looking in depth at Dissociative identity Disorder (DID) and
the causes and treatments of the disorder.
Prenatal factors:
There are many reasons for mental health problems and nobody can give exact
reasons for the causes of them. Problems developed while pregnant or after giving
birth are known as ‘prenatal’ mental health problems. Some mental health problems
developed have clearer explanations, for example if you had problems during birth it
could result in postnatal PTSD. During pregnancy the only way the foetus can obtain
the nutrients it needs is through their mother. This means if the mother is not eating
well or lives an unhealthy lifestyle it can have negative impacts on the foetus.
One example would be drug addiction in the mother and continued substance abuse
throughout the pregnancy, resulting in the possibility of the baby being born with a
drug addiction too, therefore the baby could also experience withdrawal symptoms
from birth. In addition to the addiction and withdrawals the baby could also become
more susceptible to mental health problems. Another example would be when the
mother has an alcohol addiction and continues to heavily drink while pregnant which
could lead to the child being born with foetal alcohol syndrome; which has been
known to cause forms of mood disorders, short attention spans, hyperactivity, social
behaviour problems, as well as many other physical problems. As well as several
pieces of evidence of connection between maternal stress and depression could
lead to the child later in life experiencing schizophrenia or depression.
Some people may state that mental health is hereditary, which means it is passed
down from parents to children, which can be proven by the study which looked at
schizophrenia in twins. 1 in 100 people develop schizophrenia and found that you're
more susceptible to developing it if a parent or close relative has the disorder.
According to biological approach, genetics would cause schizophrenia. People with
no relatives have a 1 in 100 chance, people with parents have a 1 in 10 chance,
people who are identical twins have a 1 in 2 chance and the non-identical twins have
a 1 in 8 chance.
Biological and health factors:
Many believe that mental health is developed due to pre-existing health conditions.
Individuals who have long-term medical conditions that are manageable but not
curable often become more susceptible to mental health problems, especially things
such as depression and anxiety. This is mostly due to long-term illnesses needing
the person to change their lifestyle to fit the requirements of the illness. When a
person has two or more illnesses that are long-term their quality of life can
deteriorate. Some people suffering with diabetes are also commonly known to have
, anxiety or depression. In other cases mental health disorders have been linked to
physical health conditions; stress can affect your immune system and cause more
susceptibility to illnesses. Physical disabilities can cause mental illness most
commonly depression as well as suicidal thoughts. The most common mental illness
is PTSD linked to accidents which cause disabilities. Painful illnesses have been
seen to cause depression as well as people with learning difficulties are likely to
develop mental illness.
Family system factors:
The learning approach accounts for the type of environment a person grows up in
can affect their susceptibility to mental disorders. The attachment theory suggests
that if the parental figure is unreliable or insensitive, the child will not be as resilient
against stressful situations in his future life therefore they’d be more susceptible to
getting a personality or mental disorder. If there is a lot of conflict in the family
between the child and parent or conflict in the household, the child could be more
susceptible to developing anxiety or depression or even aggressive behaviour or low
self-esteem. The opposite would be if a parent was to do positive parenting it could
cause things such as mood disorders or depression.
Different parenting techniques can impact children differently, the ideal parenting
technique would be Authoritative which would require the parent to be supportive
and accepting as well as demanding and expect much from their child. This
relationship is solely about gaining mutual trust and respect and ensuring
communication flows both ways and both views are honoured, this allows for the
child to develop their own independence and key life skills and hinders their child's
susceptibility to developing a mental disorder. Another parenting technique used is
the authoritarian technique which is when the parent is unsupportive and rejecting
and only cares about themselves and expects much from their child, this relationship
is about control and different perspectives are not allowed as well as meaning
communication only flows in one direction. The next parenting technique is the
permissive technique, this is when the parent expects very little from their child but is
accepting and child-centred, the relationship indulges the child's entitlement and the
parent doesn't show control and use minimal punishment. The most uninvolved
parent technique shows the parent has low responsibility, low expectations and they
have very little involvement in the child's life, there is no communication and it is
basically a non-existent relationship.
Abuse experienced in childhood can cause many problems and lead to many mental
illnesses. Sometimes witnessing abuse can cause more problems to the child such
as PTSD (an anxiety disorder which occurs in stressful life-changing events). It has
been proven many times by many psychologists that anxiety disorders and abuse
used to link the explanation of an abuse survivor trying to regain control where they
haven’t had it previously. This need to be in control can lead to them restricting their
food intake as they feel if they can’t control the situation they can control themselves.
