Quick And Dirty Guide to Mental Disorders [WIP]
Nov 5, 2014 22:17:59 GMT -6
Post by ♕BEFERA on Nov 5, 2014 22:17:59 GMT -6
All characters have weaknesses, some with physical shortcomings or little quirks, but some of the most interesting characters have mental disorders. If played correctly, these characters can be very exciting to read and RP with. Below is a guide to some of the more notable mental disorders. Anyone is welcome to utilize this guide in choosing a mental disorder you might want a character to have. If you do choose one of these mental disorders, please ensure your are playing them correctly.
Former member Ranjit provided me with most of this information personally.
My other source for this information is the text book: Psychology in Everyday Life (2nd Edition) by David G. Myers.
This guide is NOT to be reposted ANYWHERE EVER.
If I ever see this anywhere else on the internet the person who reposted it will get an entire pineapple up their ass.
i. SCHIZOPHRENIA
There are 5 different types of schizophrenia, but the most notable and most common is Paranoid Schizophrenia. Paranoid Schizophrenia entails having delusions (false beliefs and thoughts) and hallucinations (seeing/hearing/feeling things that are not there).
Symptoms:
- Disturbed or disorganized thought or language (including loose associations, like saying a word that has no relevance to the conversation).
- "Word salad" or basically saying random words, getting very upset when others do not understand them.
- Distorted thinking including: delusions (false beliefs, delusions of grandeur), thought broadcasting (saying everything they're thinking out loud), thought withdrawal (belief that thoughts have been "taken" out of their mind), and thought insertion (belief that thoughts have been put into their mind without their consent).
- Disorders of perception and attention, including: trouble paying attention, stimulus overwhelm, hallucinations (can be of some or all senses), very flat or very exaggerated emotions.
- Disorders of movement including: agitation (wild, sudden, abrupt, or repeated movements) catatonia (not moving at all for hours).
- Loss of pleasure in things normally enjoyed.
- Ill grooming.
RP Perspective:
- Characters with schizophrenia will tend to not have very normal lives, and most of them will not live as long as normal equine.
- Schizophrenia has about a 50/50 chance of being passed down to offspring if one parent has it.
/ / /
ii. SOCIOPATHY (and Antisocial Personality Disorder)
Sociopathy and APD are very similar in that the person is very antisocial, lacks a moral conscience, and has no real sense of empathy or remorse. ASP is usually caused by growing up in a broken home, poor discipline from parents/authority figures, and a lack of good role models.
Symptoms:
- Charming
- Intelligent
- Fast-talker
- Does not feel guilt
- Very good at manipulation
- Irresponsible
- Impulsive
- Do not get attached to things or people
RP Perspective:
- Typically more prevalent in males.
- Does NOT mean that they are a mopey teenager who hides from everyone.
/ / /
iii. DISSOCIATIVE IDENTITY DISORDER (aka Multiple Personality Disorder)
DID is a condition in which a person will have 2 or more alternating personalities that are distinctly different. This disorder is caused by a dissociation from painful memories, normally something traumatic that happened in childhood (usually sexual abuse). DID is only present when there is a massive dissociation from ordinary consciousness, causing a distinct identity to emerge, or for the person to suddenly lose their memory.
An important thing to note is that the alters are usually not aware of one another, though they can be. That, and the host of the alters is almost never aware of them. They normally only know they exist due to blacking out and waking up not knowing where they are or what happened (see Symptoms) and what witnesses might tell them of how they acted.
As you can probably imagine, this is a disorder that is faked by hundreds if not thousands of people.
Symptoms:
- Drastic personality changes seemingly out of nowhere
- Dissociative Amnesia (details of life events and of oneself are lost)
- Blackouts and missing periods of time
RP Perspective:
- This is normally NOT an inherited condition.
- DID is NOT a "there's a voice in my head that talks to me" disorder.
/ / /
iv. ANXIETY DISORDERS
There are 4 main anxiety disorders that are common, some more severe than others. These are phobias, Generalized Anxiety Disorder, Panic Disorder, and Obsessive Compulsive Disorder.
Phobias:
- Intense irrational fears of things not usually dangerous.
- Person will grossly go out of their way to avoid said things.
GAD:
- Characterized by continual worry.
- Often jittery, on edge, and sleep deprived.
- Have difficulty concentrating and their attention shifts from worry to worry.
- They may exhibit outward tension (furrowed brows, twitching eyelids, trembling, sweating, or fidgeting).
- The person cannot identify the tension's cause, making it impossible to deal with it or avoid it.
- This disorder normally goes hand-in-hand with depression, but can exist on its own.
Panic Disorder:
- The fear of having a panic attack, not the actual attack.
(this one needs more work but will add more later)
OCD:
- Consists of an obsession and a compulsion.
- The obsession is an unwanted anxiety producing thought which is reoccurring.
- The compulsion is the behavior that rids oneself of the obsession.
RP Perspective:
- i have no idea i'll have to add to this later
-
/ / /
This will be continually in the works, and if anyone has one that they think should be added, feel free to PM me and I'll add as much information as I can!
Former member Ranjit provided me with most of this information personally.
My other source for this information is the text book: Psychology in Everyday Life (2nd Edition) by David G. Myers.
This guide is NOT to be reposted ANYWHERE EVER.
If I ever see this anywhere else on the internet the person who reposted it will get an entire pineapple up their ass.
i. SCHIZOPHRENIA
There are 5 different types of schizophrenia, but the most notable and most common is Paranoid Schizophrenia. Paranoid Schizophrenia entails having delusions (false beliefs and thoughts) and hallucinations (seeing/hearing/feeling things that are not there).
Symptoms:
- Disturbed or disorganized thought or language (including loose associations, like saying a word that has no relevance to the conversation).
- "Word salad" or basically saying random words, getting very upset when others do not understand them.
- Distorted thinking including: delusions (false beliefs, delusions of grandeur), thought broadcasting (saying everything they're thinking out loud), thought withdrawal (belief that thoughts have been "taken" out of their mind), and thought insertion (belief that thoughts have been put into their mind without their consent).
- Disorders of perception and attention, including: trouble paying attention, stimulus overwhelm, hallucinations (can be of some or all senses), very flat or very exaggerated emotions.
- Disorders of movement including: agitation (wild, sudden, abrupt, or repeated movements) catatonia (not moving at all for hours).
- Loss of pleasure in things normally enjoyed.
- Ill grooming.
RP Perspective:
- Characters with schizophrenia will tend to not have very normal lives, and most of them will not live as long as normal equine.
- Schizophrenia has about a 50/50 chance of being passed down to offspring if one parent has it.
/ / /
ii. SOCIOPATHY (and Antisocial Personality Disorder)
Sociopathy and APD are very similar in that the person is very antisocial, lacks a moral conscience, and has no real sense of empathy or remorse. ASP is usually caused by growing up in a broken home, poor discipline from parents/authority figures, and a lack of good role models.
Symptoms:
- Charming
- Intelligent
- Fast-talker
- Does not feel guilt
- Very good at manipulation
- Irresponsible
- Impulsive
- Do not get attached to things or people
RP Perspective:
- Typically more prevalent in males.
- Does NOT mean that they are a mopey teenager who hides from everyone.
/ / /
iii. DISSOCIATIVE IDENTITY DISORDER (aka Multiple Personality Disorder)
DID is a condition in which a person will have 2 or more alternating personalities that are distinctly different. This disorder is caused by a dissociation from painful memories, normally something traumatic that happened in childhood (usually sexual abuse). DID is only present when there is a massive dissociation from ordinary consciousness, causing a distinct identity to emerge, or for the person to suddenly lose their memory.
An important thing to note is that the alters are usually not aware of one another, though they can be. That, and the host of the alters is almost never aware of them. They normally only know they exist due to blacking out and waking up not knowing where they are or what happened (see Symptoms) and what witnesses might tell them of how they acted.
As you can probably imagine, this is a disorder that is faked by hundreds if not thousands of people.
Symptoms:
- Drastic personality changes seemingly out of nowhere
- Dissociative Amnesia (details of life events and of oneself are lost)
- Blackouts and missing periods of time
RP Perspective:
- This is normally NOT an inherited condition.
- DID is NOT a "there's a voice in my head that talks to me" disorder.
/ / /
iv. ANXIETY DISORDERS
There are 4 main anxiety disorders that are common, some more severe than others. These are phobias, Generalized Anxiety Disorder, Panic Disorder, and Obsessive Compulsive Disorder.
Phobias:
- Intense irrational fears of things not usually dangerous.
- Person will grossly go out of their way to avoid said things.
GAD:
- Characterized by continual worry.
- Often jittery, on edge, and sleep deprived.
- Have difficulty concentrating and their attention shifts from worry to worry.
- They may exhibit outward tension (furrowed brows, twitching eyelids, trembling, sweating, or fidgeting).
- The person cannot identify the tension's cause, making it impossible to deal with it or avoid it.
- This disorder normally goes hand-in-hand with depression, but can exist on its own.
Panic Disorder:
- The fear of having a panic attack, not the actual attack.
(this one needs more work but will add more later)
OCD:
- Consists of an obsession and a compulsion.
- The obsession is an unwanted anxiety producing thought which is reoccurring.
- The compulsion is the behavior that rids oneself of the obsession.
RP Perspective:
- i have no idea i'll have to add to this later
-
/ / /
This will be continually in the works, and if anyone has one that they think should be added, feel free to PM me and I'll add as much information as I can!
