Tag Archives: Mental Health

Reality vs Media

Schizophrenia defined by our psychology textbook is “a mental disorder characterized by disorganized thoughts, lack of contact with reality, and sometimes auditory hallucinations.” ( Comer and Gould G-11). The video that I was to watch for this prompt, explained to me that this is how a day in life would be of a person with schizophrenia. The video also warned me that if I felt uncomfortable to stop the video since it some of the material shown could be traumatizing. From here I started the video…

In this simulator representation of schizophrenia, it the beginning it looked as if the person was living in the home by themselves and they were having a fairly good day. The second that the schizophrenic part started, the video got darker and the voices in the persons head got very negative. I was surprised that the voices in the persons head were all negative, there was not a single good thing that any of those voices said and I feel that the voices are a big part in why this person was not able to do a lot of his daily activities that could have possibly made him feel better. Some of the things that I noticed was the person wanted to take his medication but the voices said not to, he wanted to drink some of the coffee but his disease made him think that the coffee was bubbling and was poison, he wanted to eat pizza but the voices made the pizza bubble and the voices also made him think that the pizza was poison.

Schizophrenia in the media is portrayed as this really crazy disease where people are not able to lead a normal life where they can not do daily activities and their every moment is affected. Generally in the media, the person acts in a crazy manner and is usually taken care by someone because they cannot take care of themselves. Yes, this is true that some cases of schizophrenia are more severe than others but there are many people out there that lead very normal lives even when they have this disease. In reality, the voices that the simulator showed are very true and do happen in real life but I’m sure that that they are not so many all at the same time. I also watched other videos on youtube of people with schizophrenia, I noticed that they go through phases why they hallucinate. For example, there was a boy who for sometime saw animals, then for sometime didn’t see anything, then went back to seeing animals and large numbers and letters.

I think that all in all, schizophrenia is a very tough disorder and it definitely affects the person with the disease and the the people around them. The media does over dramatize the daily life of a person having schizophrenia versus how they are in real life.

Work Cited:

Comer, R. J., & Gould, E. (2013). Psychology around us (Second ed.). Hoboken, NJ: Wiley.

 


schiz·o·phre·ni·a

Schizophrenia is a long-term mental disorder that can cause a breakdown in the relation between thought, emotion, and behavior, leading to faulty perception, inappropriate actions and feelings, withdrawal from reality and personal relationships into fantasy and delusion, and a sense of mental fragmentation. It is generally a mentality that is characterized by inconsistent and contradictory elements.

The simulation that I was required to watch really opened my eyes about schizophrenia. The video warned me about visual and auditory effects that were designed to demonstrate the multiple hallucinations and delusions that someone with the mental health issue experiences on a daily basis. It used a first person shot, so that the viewer could experience the video from the perspective of the patient. This helped the voice-overs to represent the “voices in his head” and the illusions portrayed to seem more realistic.

The video reminded me of a horror video game, which are programmed with certain features that are meant to thrill the player. The first person view was similar to video game design as well as the voices talking to me and telling me what to do. It was even more intense when the voices would contradict themselves and what the character was doing. Another effect commonly used in games is bizarre altercations like the bubbling pizza and the altered letters on the box that read “Poizzon”. My favorite part which really freaked me out the most, was when the weather man started talking through the tv to the main character, telling him that the weather was out to get him and mocking that he wasn’t going to do anything about it. The multiple voices arguing at once was very distracting and made it difficult for the character to perform actions that he wanted.

In the media schizophrenia is commonly seen as so out-of-control that the patient needs constant attention and a safe location such as a mental hospital. The hallucinations are thought to be so extreme that the person is unable to live in reality at all, when actually the person is situated in reality with a few additions that make it difficult to perform actions without fear.

The media has used movies like A Beautiful Mind, The Soloist, and Donnie Darko to portray schizophrenia in film. This has the effect of over-exaggerating and adding things that are “sexy for the screen”, and don’t accurately portray the realities of living in the mind of a schizophrenic. I have not seen any of these movies, nor any other movie (as I am aware) that demonstrates the mental disorder. This may or may not have effected my reaction to the video watched. I have never really learned in much detail about the mental disorder, schizophrenia, I just always knew it was a struggle for those who suffer from it.

 


Week 14 Blog Prompts: Mental Health

Hand writing on a notebook

Here are the three prompts for this week. Regardless of which prompt you choose, use the tag “Mental Health.”

Option 1

Schizophrenia is often depicted dramatically in the media, and has been the subject of many major films like A Beautiful Mind, The Soloist, and Donnie Darko. Less frequently, however, do people get the chance to think about the daily life of someone who experiences hallucinations and delusions. Watch this video which simulates the experience of a person with schizophrenia, share your reactions, and compare this to how you typically see schizophrenia in the media.

Option 2

People often associate schizophrenia with the homeless population or mental hospitals, but rarely do we think about people who are professionally very successful. One person who is thriving despite her schizophrenia is Elyn Saks, who received her law degree from Yale and is a professor at the University of Southern California. In her TED Talk, she describes how she struggled with her disorder and was eventually able to manage her condition and take control of her life. Share your reactions to the video, discuss how her story compares to the “typical narrative” of schizophrenia, and discuss why you think she turned out differently than other people with this disorder.

Option 3

Television shows like My Strange Addiction, Intervention, True Life, and others have turned some mental illnesses into entertainment. In particular, the shows Hoarders and Hoarding: Buried Alive showcase people with hoarding disorder trying to get their lives, homes, and relationships back in order. What do you think about this type of show? Is it ethical to do? Does it exploit people with mental illnesses? Answer these questions, then watch this clip from Hoarding: Buried Alive and share your reactions and if any of your perspectives changed. Then read the comments and again share your reactions and perspectives.

I look forward to seeing what you write!

Header image: CC by Flickr user Caitlinator

 

Week 14 Blog Prompt: Topic – Mental Health

Option 1:

Your textbook lists 4 major types of psychotherapy (psychodynamic, behavioral, cognitive-behavioral, and humanistic/existential). Rank these types of therapy according to how helpful you think they would be if you needed therapy and explain what it is about each one that you like/dislike. For your highest rated therapy, find additional information about it from a web source (include a link to the source and discuss its credibility).

Option 2:

There is a new campaign targeting increased awareness of mental health issues that has received a lot of support from First Lady Michelle Obama called Change Direction. Using the information provided on their website (http://www.changedirection.org) evaluate how effective you think the campaign will be in general. What are the strengths and weaknesses of the campaign? Will college students pay attention to this or not and why? If AC was going to do an awareness campaign to help students identify mental health issues in their friends and classmates, how should they go about doing it to give it the best chance of actually working?

Week 15 Blog Prompts

Here are the prompt options for 12/1-12/8

Option 1:

Your textbook lists 4 major types of psychotherapy (psychodynamic, behavioral, cognitive-behavioral, and humanistic/existential). Rank these types of therapy according to how helpful you think they would be if you needed therapy and explain what it is about each one that you like/dislike. For your highest rated therapy, find additional information about it from a web source (include a link to the source and discuss its credibility).

Option 2:

Some phobias are relatively well known (like arachnophobia) while others are less common (though can be equally debilitating). Choose one of the phobias listed below, find information about it (provide a link to your source and discuss its credibility), and discuss how you might treat it using one of the therapies discussed in class or in your textbook.

List of phobias
alektorophobia bibliophobia carnophobia chrometophobia>
coitophobia coprophobia eisoptrophobia ergasiophobia
gamophobia helminthophobia hematophobia hodophobia
hydrophobia hypnophobia musophobia nyctophobia
oclophobia ommatophobia ophidiophobia osmophobia
pediophobia peniaphobia phonophobia pogonophobia
satanophobia spheksophobia tachophobia traumatophobia

Thanksgiving Break Blog Prompts

Here are the options for 11/24-12/1:

Option 1:

TED talks by Ellen Saks and Eleanor Longden share many commonalities but also significant differences. Both speakers were diagnosed with schizophrenia as undergraduates and ended up being hospitalized. Each discusses her path to getting a handle on their mental health. Discuss the similarities and differences between the talks and the treatment each speaker received on her path to health. You also need to explore how we could identify students with mental health issues sooner and how we could get students to accept help.

Option 2:

Another set of TED talks conducted by Temple Grandin and Rosie King show two perspectives on living with autism. Both make a call for celebration of diversity, specifically neurological diversity and share their thoughts on how the world can benefit from being inclusive. Some people with disorders on the autism spectrum take offense to the idea they need to be “cured.” How do these two talks fit into the idea of trying to “cure” autism and how should we think about treatment with this population?