A Brief Selection of Disorders Found in the DSM 5
HSP3U1
Neurodevelopmental Disorders
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Intellectual Disabilities
Communication Disorders
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Autism Spectrum Disorder
ADD / ADHD
Schizophrenia Spectrum and Other Psychotic Disorders
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A complex brain disorder characterized by disruptions to thinking and emotions, and a distorted perception of reality.
Symptoms of schizophrenia vary widely but may include hallucinations, delusions, thought disorder, social withdrawal,
lack of motivation and impaired thinking and memory. People with schizophrenia have a high risk of suicide.
Schizophrenia is not a split personality.
Symptoms
 Hallucinations
 ‘Blunted’ emotions
 Delusions
 Inappropriate responses
 Thought disorder
 Impaired thinking and memory
 Social withdrawal
 Lack of insight.
 Lack of motivation
Contains
 Schizophrenia
 Delusional disorder
 Schizoaffective disorder (schizophrenia + mood disorder)
 Catatonia
Bipolar and Related Disorders
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Bipolar I - (manic depression) - manic episodes (period of persistently elevated mood), usually interspersed with
depressed periods.
Bipolar II – hypomania (not full mania) is experienced, usually interspersed with depressed periods.
Cyclothymia - characterized by numerous extreme mood disturbances, with periods of hypomanic symptoms
alternating with periods of mild or moderate depression.
Depressive Disorders
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Major depression - A period of a depressed or irritable mood or a noticeable decrease in interest or pleasure in usual
activities, along with other signs, lasting at least two weeks. No more ‘bereavement exclusion.’
 Persistent Depressive Disorder (dysthymia) - A chronic, low-grade, depressed or irritable mood for at least one year.
 Mood disorder due to a general medical condition - Many medical illnesses (including cancer, injuries, infections and
chronic medical illnesses) can trigger symptoms of depression.
 Seasonal Affective Disorder - A kind of depression that occurs at a certain time of the year, usually in the winter.
Symptoms
 Persistent feelings of sadness.
 Decreased energy.
 Feeling hopeless or helpless.
 Difficulty concentrating.
 Having low self-esteem.
 A decrease in the ability to make decisions.
 Feeling inadequate.
 Suicidal thoughts or attempts.
 Excessive guilt.
 Frequent physical complaints (i.e., headache,
stomach ache, fatigue).
 Feelings of wanting to die.
 Running away or threats of running away from
 Loss of interest in usual activities or activities once
home.
enjoyed.
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Hypersensitivity to failure or rejection.
 Difficulty with relationships.
 Irritability, hostility, aggression.
 Sleep disturbances (i.e., insomnia, hypersomnia).
 Changes in appetite or weight.
Anxiety Disorders
 Agoraphobia - Characterized by anxiety in situations where the sufferer perceives certain environments as dangerous
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or uncomfortable, often due to the environment's vast openness or crowdedness. Often it is considered fear of open
spaces.
Panic disorder - People with this disorder have feelings of terror that strike suddenly and repeatedly with no warning.
Other symptoms of a panic attack include sweating, chest pain, palpitations (unpleasant sensations of irregular
heartbeats) and a feeling of choking, which might make the person feel like he or she is having a heart attack or "going
crazy."
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Social anxiety disorder - Also called social phobia, social anxiety disorder involves overwhelming worry and selfconsciousness about everyday social situations. The worry often centers on a fear of being judged by others, or
behaving in a way that might cause embarrassment or lead to ridicule.
 Specific phobias - A specific phobia is an intense fear of a specific object or situation, such as snakes, heights or flying.
The level of fear usually is inappropriate to the situation and might cause the person to avoid common, everyday
situations.
 Generalized anxiety disorder - This disorder involves excessive, unrealistic worry and tension, even if there is little or
nothing to provoke the anxiety.
Symptoms vary depending on the type of anxiety disorder, but general symptoms of anxiety include:
 Feelings of panic, fear and uneasiness
 An inability to be still and calm
 Problems sleeping
 Dry mouth
 Cold or sweaty hands
 Numbness or tingling in the hands or feet
 Shortness of breath
 Nausea
 Palpitations
 Muscle tension
Obsessive Compulsive and Related Disorders
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Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) - People with OCD are plagued by constant thoughts or fears that cause them to
perform certain rituals or routines. The disturbing thoughts are called obsessions, and the rituals are called
compulsions. An example is a person with an unreasonable fear of germs who constantly washes his or her hands.
 Excoriation – Uncontrollable picking of the skin.
 Trichotillomania – Uncontrollable hair pulling.
 Hoarding Disorder – Excessive collection of items, along with the inability to discard them.
 Body Dysmorphic Disorder – Preoccupations with perceived flaws and defects in physical appearance.
Symptoms of OCD
 Uncontrollable, obsessive thoughts
 Ritualistic behaviors, such as repeated hand washing
Trauma and Stressor Related Disorders
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Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) - PTSD is a condition that can develop following a traumatic and/or terrifying
event, such as a sexual or physical assault, the unexpected death of a loved one, or a natural disaster. People with PTSD
often have lasting and frightening thoughts and memories of the event, and tend to be emotionally numb.
Acute Stress Disorder – Very similar to PTSD, but person also experiences dissociative symptoms such as extreme
emotional disconnection, difficulty experiencing pleasure, dissociative amnesia and depersonalization.
Adjustment Disorders - Individual is unable to adjust to or cope with a particular stressor, like a major life event. Since
people with this disorder normally have symptoms that depressed people do, such as general loss of interest, feelings
of hopelessness and crying, this disorder is also sometimes known as situational depression.
Dissociative Disorders
 Dissociative Identity Disorder - Also known as multiple personality disorder, is an extremely rare mental disorder
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characterized by at least two distinct and relatively enduring identities or dissociated personality states that alternately
control a person's behavior, and is accompanied by memory impairment for important information not explained by
ordinary forgetfulness.
Dissociative Amnesia - Occurs when a person blocks out certain information, usually associated with a stressful or
traumatic event, leaving him or her unable to remember important personal information. With this disorder, the
degree of memory loss goes beyond normal forgetfulness and includes gaps in memory for long periods of time or of
memories involving the traumatic event.
Somatic Symptom and Related Disorders
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Somatic symptom disorder (SSD) - Is characterized by somatic symptoms that are either very distressing or result in
significant disruption of functioning, as well as excessive and disproportionate thoughts, feelings and behaviors
regarding those symptoms. To be diagnosed with SSD, the individual must be persistently symptomatic (typically at
least for 6 months).
Conversion Disorder - Individuals with this disorder have symptoms or difficulties with their senses (e.g. blindness,
deafness) or their motor functioning (e.g. difficulties swallowing, weakness in a specific area).
Pain Disorder - As the name suggests, pain is the primary complaint with this disorder. There is no physical explanation
for the pain.
Illness Anxiety Disorder (Hypochondriasis) - Individuals with this disorder (often called “hypochondriacs” by those who
know them) are preoccupied with the belief or fear that they have a serious medical condition. Their belief or fear is
triggered by their own misinterpretation of their physical symptoms or bodily functions (e.g. they have occasional
headaches and fear they have a brain tumor).
Feeding and Eating Disorders
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Pica – Appetite for non-nutritive substances such as ice, chalk, clay, dirt and sand.
Anorexia Nervosa – Characterized by immoderate food restriction, irrational fear of gaining weight, as well as distorted
body self-perception.
Bulimia Nervosa – Characterized by binge eating and purging, because of an extensive concern for body weight.
Binge Eating Disorder - Characterized by compulsive overeating in which people consume huge amounts of food while
feeling out of control and powerless to stop. The symptoms of binge eating disorder usually begin in late adolescence
or early adulthood, often after a major diet.
Disruptive, Impulse Control and Conduct Disorders
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Oppositional Defiant Disorder - An ongoing pattern of anger-guided disobedience, hostility, and defiant behavior
toward authority figures which goes beyond the bounds of normal behavior. There are 3 subgroups: angry / irritable;
argumentative / defiant; and vindictive.
Conduct Disorder - A repetitive and persistent pattern of behavior in which the basic rights of others or major ageappropriate norms are violated. These behaviors are often referred to as antisocial behaviors. The disorder is often
seen as the precursor to antisocial personality disorder.
Intermittent Explosive Disorder - Characterized by extreme expressions of anger, often to the point of uncontrollable
rage, that are disproportionate to the situation at hand. Impulsive aggression is unpremeditated, and is defined by a
disproportionate reaction to any provocation, real or perceived .
Personality Disorders
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Long-term, pervasive, inflexible patterns of thoughts and behaviors that are not well adapted or do not fit within the
range of behaviour considered normal.
Cluster A – Odd and Eccentric
 Paranoid Personality Disorder – Characterized by paranoia and a pervasive, long-standing suspiciousness and
generalized mistrust of others.
 Schizoid Personality Disorder – Characterized by a lack of interest in social relationships, a tendency towards a solitary
lifestyle, secretiveness, emotional coldness, and apathy. Affected individuals may simultaneously demonstrate a rich,
elaborate and exclusively internal fantasy world.
 Schizotypal Personality Disorder – Characterized by a need for social isolation, anxiety in social situations, odd behavior
and thinking, and often unconventional beliefs. People with this disorder feel extreme discomfort with maintaining
close relationships with people, and therefore they often do not. People who have this disorder may display peculiar
manners of talking and dressing and often have difficulty in forming.
Cluster B – Dramatic and Emotional
 Antisocial Personality Disorder – Characterized by a pervasive pattern of disregard for, or violation of, the rights of
others that begins in childhood or early adolescence and continues into adulthood. There may be an impoverished
moral sense or conscience and a history of crime, legal problems, impulsive and aggressive behavior.
 Borderline Personality Disorder – Characterized by a generalized pattern of instability in interpersonal relationships,
self-image, and observable emotions, and significant impulsiveness.
 Histrionic Personality Disorder - Characterized by a pattern of excessive emotions and attention-seeking, including
inappropriately seductive behavior and an excessive need for approval, usually beginning in early adulthood. People
affected by HPD are lively, dramatic, vivacious, enthusiastic, and flirtatious.
 Narcissistic Personality Disorder – Characterized by individual being excessively preoccupied with issues of personal
adequacy, power, prestige and vanity. They have a grandiose view of themselves, a need for admiration, and a lack of
empathy that begins by early adulthood and is present in various situations. These individuals are very demanding in
their relationships.
Cluster C – Anxious
 Avoidant Personality Disorder – Characterized by a pervasive pattern of social inhibition, feelings of
inadequacy, extreme sensitivity to negative evaluation, and avoidance of social interaction.
 Dependent Personality Disorder – Characterized by a pervasive psychological dependence on other people. This
personality disorder is a long-term (chronic) condition in which people depend on others to meet their emotional and
physical needs, with only a minority achieving normal levels of independence.
 Obsessive-Compulsive Personality Disorder – Characterized by a pervasive pattern of preoccupation with
orderliness, perfectionism, mental and interpersonal control at the expense of flexibility, openness, and efficiency. In
contrast to people with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), behaviors are rational and desirable to people with
OCPD.