Human Behavior Problems
and Diseases
Copyright 2010. PEER.tamu.edu
Topics to be Covered:
– Common brain problems
– Specific nervous system
diseases
– Alcoholism and drug abuse
What Can Happen to the Brain:
• Chemical messengers (transmitters) in the
brain can be enhanced or suppressed.
Change the anatomy and modify neural
pathways
• Cells and/or fiber tracts may die
Damage to brain can make us behave badly,
cripple us, or even destroy our personality
and sense of self.
Major Brain Problems:
• Addiction – compulsive behavior or cravings
• Alzheimer's disease - causes death of nerve cells, first in the outer
parts of brain (cerebral cortex) that gives us our personality and our
ability to think
• Depression - severe state of feeling bad that is continuous most of
the day, every day
• Stroke - interruption of blood supply to brain, due either to
hemorrhage or to blocked arteries
• Epilepsy - random episodes of convulsions
• Trauma - concussion, ruptures of nerve tracts due to mechanical
forces (such as sports injuries, car crashes, etc.)
• Schizophrenia - complex, abnormal behaviors and thought
disorders
• Parkinson's disease - continuous trembling that progresses to poor
ability to move
People Affected
by Brain Disorders Are:
– from all regions
– all countries
– all societies
– women and men at all
stages of life
– among the rich and poor
– among people living in
urban and rural areas
Many People Have Brain &
Behavior Problems
• Recent analyses done by World
Health Organization show that
about 10% of people in the world
suffer from a
mental disorders attributable
to diseases of the nervous
system.
– This calculates to be about
450 million people
Some Nervous System Diseases
Are Common in Children
Children
1. Clinical Depression
2. Post Traumatic Stress Disorder
3. Autism
Depression is a serious
medical illness that
can lead to suicide!
Clinical Depression is feeling
"down" and "low" and
“hopeless" for weeks at a time.
Feeling "down in the dumps" or
"blue" for a few days is NOT
depression.
You Can Do Things to Prevent
Depression!
• People can change how they respond to
bad events
• Two basic “explanatory styles” for dealing
with bad happenings:
– Optimism: belief that the problem is
temporary, an isolated case, and not caused
by an inevitable personal deficiency
– Pessimism: belief that the problem is
permanent, a generalizable problem, and is
caused by an inevitable personal deficiency
Forms of Depression:
Most Common:
Major Depressive Disorder
Dysthymic Disorder -low grade
depression
Less Common:
Psychotic Depression
Postpartum Depression
Seasonal Affective Disorder
No Single Known Cause of
Depression :
• Most likely, it comes from a
combination of
–
–
–
–
Genetic
Biochemical
Environmental
Psychological factors
Signs and Symptoms of
Depression:
• Persistent sad, anxious, or "empty" mood
• Feelings of hopelessness, pessimism
• Feelings of guilt, worthlessness,
helplessness
• Loss of interest or pleasure in hobbies and
activities that were once enjoyed
Depression and Other Illnesses
Often Co-exist:
• Other illnesses may
– precede the depression
– cause it
– and/or be a consequence of it
• Mechanisms behind depression and other
illnesses differ for every person and situation.
• Research has indicated that the co–existence
of mood disorders and substance abuse
(alcohol, drugs) is common among the U.S.
population.
Research Indicates that Depressive
Illnesses are Disorders of the Brain
• It has been shown that the brains
of people who have depression
look different than those of people
without depression.
• Parts of the brain function
abnormally, like those responsible
for regulating mood, thinking,
sleep, appetite and behavior.
• Also, important neurotransmitters
appear to be out of balance.
Discuss the differences in
these two pictures.
Post Traumatic Stress
Disorder (PTSD):
• PTSD develops after exposure to a terrifying
event or ordeal in which grave physical harm
occurred or was threatened.
• Traumatic events that may trigger PTSD
include:
– violent personal assaults
– natural or human-caused disasters
– accidents
Firefighters at the site of
The World Trade Center
– military combat
attacks.
PTSD Symptoms:
Symptoms can include but are
not limited to:
• Persistent frightening
thoughts and memories of
their ordeal
• Feel emotionally numb,
especially with people they
were once close to
• Sleep problems
• Feeling detached or numb
• Easily startled
PTSD Symptoms in Children:
Symptoms in children may include:
• Bedwetting, when they’d learned
how to use the toilet before.
• Forgetting how or being unable
to talk.
• Acting out the scary event during
playtime.
• Being unusually clingy with a
parent or other adult.
Lasting Affects of PTSD:
• In PTSD, the natural “fight-or-flight” response
is changed or damaged.
• People who have PTSD may feel stressed or
frightened even when they’re no longer in
danger.
The brain is like a
machine, all the
parts need to
work properly!
Triggering PTSD:
“PTSD often smolders at a sort
of sub-threshold level,” said
Barry Fisher, MD, medical
director of the behavioral
medicine clinic at Highland
Drive VA Hospital in Pittsburgh.
“A current life stressor—losing
a job, getting divorced—can tip
the balance, because it brings
anxiety and triggers thoughts
about the last time the person
felt he was in a life-threatening
situation.”
Autism Occurs Early in Chldhood
• Autism is a neurological disorder that
impacts the normal development of the
brain in the areas of social interaction
and communication skills.
• Experts estimate autism occurs in one of
every one-hundred births and 1 to 1.5
million Americans are living with autism.
• It is the 2nd most common
developmental disorder. Ranges in
severity.
Autism Has Serious Consequences
• Causes severe and pervasive
impairment in thinking, feeling,
language, and the ability to relate to
others.
• Can be diagnosed as early as 18
months of age.
Autism Symptoms
Are Easy to Spot:
Possible Indicators:
• Does not babble, point, or make meaningful
gestures by 1 year of age
• Does not speak one word by 16 months
• Does not combine two words by 2 years
• Does not respond to name
• Loses language or social skills
Others:
•
•
•
•
•
•
Poor eye contact
Doesn't seem to know how to play with toys
Excessively lines up toys or other objects
Is attached to one particular toy or object
Doesn't smile
At times seems to be hearing impaired
Autism
Involves Most
of the Brain:
Psychology Is the
Study of the Mind
• Psychology is an
academic and applied
discipline which
involves the scientific
study of human or
animal mental
functions and
behaviors.
Many Mental Functions Are
Studied by Psychologists
• Psychologists study such phenomena as
– Perception
– Cognition
– Attention
– Emotion
– Motivation
– Personality
– Behavior
– Interpersonal relationships
Psychology Includes Treatment
• Two approaches:
medicines, “cognitive”
therapy, often in
combination
• Medications: adjust levels
of neurotransmitters
• Cognitive therapy aims to
identify troubling
emotions, their causes,
and how to think through
a solution.
Alcoholism Is Not
Rare:
• Signs:
– Drinking excessive amounts frequently
– Inability to curb drinking despite medical,
psychological, or social complications
– Increased tolerance to alcohol
– Occurrence of withdrawal symptoms when the
person stops drinking
• People Affected:
– 7.4% of U.S. population, mostly young people
Addiction is a Compulsive
Behavior:
Two basic kinds:
– Psychological - you do it because you
like how it feels = positive reinforcement
– Physical - you do it because your body
now requires it for normal function
• Degree of physical addictiveness scale
(worst to least): nicotine, cocaine,
amphetamines, narcotics, alcohol)
Most addictions begin as
psychological
Questions?