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3. Biofeedback

Is a technique in which people learn voluntarily control of stress –related physiological responses, such as skin temperature, muscle tension, blood pressure and heart rate.

4. Relaxation

Is a good way of coping with stress. One method of relaxation is progressive muscular relaxation which involves systematic tensing and then relaxing different groups of skeletal (voluntary) muscles, while directing attention towards the contrasting sensations produced by the two procedures.

5. Aerobic Exercises

Is helpful in releasing stress. It increases the endurance of the heart and lungs, thus an aerobically fit individual has lower heart rate and lower blood pressure, less reactivity to stress and can quickly recover from stress. Moreover, studies show that people who exercises regularly have higher self-esteem and suffer less anxiety and depression.

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When the frustrations seem overwhelming and the person’s coping and defense mechanisms become futile and inadequate, it may result to abnormal reactions, neurosis and psychosis. Neurosis is a mild mental disorder while psychosis is a severe mental disorder that needs hospitalization.

1. Anxiety Neurosis

This is characterized by excessive feelings of apprehension, helplessness, and indecision without apparent reasons.

2. Phobia

This is an irrational fear of a specific object, situations, or even person. Though the person knows that his reaction is irrational he finds it hard to overcome.

3. Obsessive-compulsive

This is characterized by persistent unreasonable ideas and reactions. Obsession is a condition in which useless and irrational ideas seem to persist, in a person’s consciousness./ It is impulse to carry out a compulsion. Compulsion is a useless and irrational act which the person is compelled to perform a stereotyped action a ritual such as too frequent washing of hand.

An extreme obsessive-compulsive reaction is known as mania such as kleptomania, a compulsive to steal though he does not need it, or sex mania, overindulgence to sexual activity.

4. Conversion Reactions\salso known conversion hysteria./ This is a condition wherein psychological conflicts are converted into physical symptoms example; hysterical paralysis, inability to move his voluntary muscles; hysterical mutism, inability to speak; hysterical deafness, inability to hear; and hysterical anesthesia, which is loss of sensitivity.

Neurasthenia is a less severe conversion reaction whereby the person feels tired all the time. A person who already experiencing burn-out in his job may experience palpitation of the heart and feels pain in his body.

5. Hypochondria

A condition whereby a person has an unusual preoccupation of his health. A hypochondriac individual is always worried about his health and physical condition.

6. Dissociative reactions

These reactions are neurotic reactions in which important episodes in the life of an individual are repressed in response to extreme stress.

A.) Amnesia which refers to temporary loss of memory that would remind him of a threatening situation, but he can still recall episodic part of his memory such as eating, speaking and walking; \sB.) Fugue is another form characterized by loss of memory that continues for a long period of time and accompanied by physical flight.

C.) Multiple personality, this an extreme dissociative reaction whereby a person may develop two or more distinct personalities in which personality developed is completely unaware of each other

Other Maladaptive Reactions to Stressful Situations or Frustrations

1. Alcoholism

It is a personality disorder characterized by excessive and compulsive drinking and eventually increases his intake until it becomes severe and already accompanied by hallucinations, disorientation, disturbed intellectual function, and deteriorated personality.

2.Drug Addiction

People who are confronted with stress and frustrations sometimes resort to drugs if not alcohol. Drugs, whether natural or synthetic when taken repeatedly may cause detrimental effect to the psychological and physical well-being of an individual. It becomes chronic as the person increases his intake and eventually becomes fatal.

3. Sexual Deviations

This is brought by underlying conflict and needs at the unconscious level, early exposure to sex and other causes.

3.1 Voyeurism - is a sexual disorder in which a person finds satisfaction by watching erotic behaviors of other people or watching pornographic films.

3.2 Exhibitionism – is a behavior in which the person finds satisfaction from exhibiting his body particularly his sex organ to other people. Usually, he finds it enjoyable doing it in public places and creates fear among girls.

3.3 Sadism - refers to sexual disorder in which the person finds gratification when he conflicts pain to other people usually while having sexual activity with his partner.

3.4 Masochism - is a condition whereby the person gained satisfaction when being hurt by others or his partner.

3.5 Frotteurism – is the recurrent urge to slap oneself or touching or rubbing against a non- consenting person.

3.6 Pedophilia – is the sexual attraction to young children.

3.7 Fetishism – is the use of inanimate objects to gain sexual excitement.

3.8Transvestic Fetishism – is a sexual attraction towards the clothing of the opposite gender.

Psychotic Reactions

This is a severe reaction manifested by a person when he can no longer overcome or cope with stressful situations. The person in this condition already loses contact with reality.

Schizophrenia\sIs characterized by withdrawal from reality and a severe disturbance of his intellectual and emotional functioning and continues for six months coupled with deterioration of social and occupational functioning.

Manic-depressive psychosis

Is also known as bipolar disorder – is characterized by emotional distortion consisting of recurrent episodes of depression and elation occurring simultaneously.

Schizoaffective Disorder

Has both psychotic and mood disturbances.

Schizophreniform Disorder

Has the same symptoms which schizophrenia but the episode lasts from 1-6 months and there is no deterioration of status.

Brief Psychotic Disorder\shas psychotic symptoms that last between 1 and 30 days.

Delusions & Hallucinations

Delusions are described as false, inaccurate beliefs that the person holds into himself although he is given already accurate information.

1. Grandiose delusion

Which occurs when a person’s belief about his importance or status in life is grossly out of proportion to what is really true like for example a person believes that he is a Messiah.

2. Persecutory delusion

Occurs when a person believes that somebody will attack him or there is a conspiracy to harass or punish him.

Hallucinations are internal sensory perceptions such as sight or sound that are not actually present; it includes:

1. Visual hallucinations

In which a person who suffers from this condition claims that he sees the image of something that is not real such as seeing the Virgin Mary.

2. Auditory hallucinations

In which a person may hear voices that are not really present.

Mental health is a psychological state of well-being, characterized by continuing personal growth, a sense of purpose in life, self acceptance, and positive relations with others.

1. Self-acceptance or self esteem

2. Positive evaluation of oneself and one’s past experiences; \s3. Personal growth reflected in one’s sense of continued psychological growth and development;

4. Has sense of purpose and meaning in life;

5. Good interpersonal relationship with others;

6. Environmental mastery; the capacity to manage effectively the surrounding world;

7. Has sense of autonomy; \s8. Has sense of self- determination;

9. Has the ability to balance between positive and negative emotions; \s10. Has the ability to control one’s own life.

Psychological and Medical Treatment of Abnormal Behaviors

There are two categories of treating mental and behavior disorders; psychological and medical treatment.

Psychological treatment is known as psychotherapy which is a treatment of individuals with emotional problems, behavioral problems, or mental illness primarily through verbal communication.

In individual therapy

A patient or client meets regularly with a therapist; typically over a period of weeks or months.

In group therapy

A small group of people meet regularly to discuss individual issues and help each other with problems with the guidance of a trained therapist Psychodrama is one group therapy where individuals in the group will act out various life situations. In family therapy or couples therapy.

1. Art therapy or creative therapy

Which uses creative process to help people who might difficulty expressing thoughts and feelings.

2. Behavior therapy

Refers also to behavior modification, sets up rewards and punishments to change thinking patterns and shapes behavior.

3. Cognitive therapy

Is also a therapy designed to help a person identify and change distorted thought patterns that can lead to feelings and behaviors that are troublesome self-defeating or self-destructive.

4. Cognitive-behavior therapy

Known as CBT helps a person to recognize his negative thought patterns and behaviors and to replace them with positive ones.

5. Dialectical behavior therapy

DBT is a type of cognitive-behavior therapy in which the primary objective is to teach behavioral skills to help a person tolerate stress, regulate emotions, improve relationship with others.

6. Existential therapy

Is a therapy that deals with the important life themes, includes living and dying, freedom, responsibility to self and others meaning in life, and dealing with a sense of meaninglessness.

7. Exposure therapy

It is a form of therapy that deliberately exposes a person to the thing or situation that he finds upsetting or disturbing.

8. Gestalt

This therapy is based on the here and now of living . The other idea is that we are caught in a web of relationship with all things. It is only possible to truly know ourselves as we exist in relation to other things. A well-known Gestalt technique is an empty- chair technique,- in which an empty chair represents another person or another part of the client’s self.

9. Interpersonal therapy – IPT

It is a short term therapy often used to treat depression. This treatment focuses on an individual’s social relationships and how to improve social support.

10. Person-Centered therapy

This is originally called client-centered therapy which emphasizes understanding and caring rather than diagnosis, advice, and persuasion. A genuine therapist true interest in the client and is open and honest. An accepting therapist cares for the client unconditionally, even if the therapist does not always agree with him.

11. Phototherapy or light therapy

Is used to treat people who suffer from seasonal affective disorder (SAD) a form of depression brought by change of season within the geographic location.

12. Play therapy

Is geared manly for young children at specific developmental levels. It makes use of variety techniques, including playing with dolls or toys, painting or other activities.

13. Psychoanalysis

In this therapy a person has to examine memories, events, and feelings from the past to understand current feelings and behavior. It is based on the theory that childhood events and biological urges create an unconscious mind that drives a person to think, feel, and behave . In the course of the therapy, the patient may develop transference, in which the patient may identify the therapist with other person who has been the center of his emotional conflict.

14. Psychodynamic psychotherapy

This therapy focuses on increasing a person’s awareness of his consciousness thoughts and behaviors, developing new insights, and resolving conflicts to live a happier life. It is less intense and less frequent as compared with psychoanalysis, usually a year or less.

15. Therapy based on Rational-Emotive and Behavioral Reasoning

This treatment is based on the idea of Albert Ellis, who contends that the majority of a person's emotional problems stem from their erroneous interpretation of a particular incident or circumstance.

Reality treatment is number 16.

William Glasser, a therapist who established this approach in the 1960s and thinks that all human conduct is driven by underlying needs and particular desires, is credited with developing this approach.

17. An Examination of Transactions

Eric Berne is the one who established this treatment, and he holds the belief that whenever two people engage with one another, they take on the role of either a parent, an adult, or a kid. For instance, depending on the circumstances, he would classify social relations between the two persons as parent-adult, parent-child, adult-child, adult-adult, and so forth.

18. Electrical treatment

This refers to the practice of the therapist using more than one therapeutic approach in order to meet the requirements of the client.

Treatment by Medicine or Biological Intervention

A person who is emotionally disturbed or mentally sick may benefit from pharmacotherapy, which is a kind of treatment that involves the use of medications like tranquilizers and energizers. It has been shown that there are three groups of medications that may alleviate significant symptoms:

Anti-psychotic medications

It was discovered that people with mental illness responded well to a powerful tranquilizer's relaxing effect. Reserpine was the first of these, although it has some undesirable side effects, including low blood pressure and, in certain people, the potential to induce severe depression. Other psychotic medicines have been shown to be successful in reducing main symptoms, with chlorpromazine (thorazine) being the most extensively utilized of these treatments, followed by other anti-psychotic drugs.

Antidepressant drugs

There are two primary categories, which are the monoamine oxidase inhibitors (often known as MAO inhibitors), and the trycyclics. Both have the potential to alleviate symptoms of depression as a result of their ability to raise levels of certain neurotransmitters, namely serotonin and norepinephrine, in the synaptic gap. Constipation, a stuttering pulse, and hazy eyesight are some of the undesirable symptoms that might be brought on by using antidepressant medication.

Medications that treat anxiety

These substances include barbiturates and benzodiazepines like diazepam (Valium), chlodiazepoxide (Librium), and alprazolam as few examples (Xanax). People who use benzodiazepines for a prolonged length of time run the risk of developing a psychological dependence on the drugs. As a result, they may find it difficult to fall or stay asleep when they are not taking the medication. Benzodiazepines are quite effective for reducing anxiety.

Lithium

Lithium carbonate is useful in the treatment of manic-depressive or bipolar mood disorders; nevertheless, ingestion of lithium carbonate at levels that are excessive may be lethal.

Electroconvulsive treatment is also known as ECT.

individuals suffering from depression undergo this therapy, which consists of administering strong electric shocks to the patient's head. It includes attaching electrodes to the patient's temples and applying a shock of more than one hundred volts for just a few seconds at a time throughout short intervals (less than one second at a time). These are administered until the patient has an episode of convulsions that lasts for at least thirty seconds (Baron,1992), According to Bustos et al. (1999), insulin shock occurs when a patient receives insulin and experiences a condition similar to coma that lasts for an extended period of time.

Psychosurgery

A Portuguese psychiatrist named Moniz (1935) sought to lessen violent behavior in psychotic patients by destroying neural connections between the prefrontal lobes and the rest of the brain. This was done in the hope that it would diminish aggressive behavior.

This procedure is referred to as a lobotomy.