Human Experience Of Illness And Disease

health is necessary to have when dealing with a life changing disease, most people cannot keep

When the human body falls ill will disease, sickness, or an injury a person’s automatic response is to seek out a professional to uncover the root of the problem to then treat the said illness. A sick body will show physical symptoms of distress when trying to restore its homeostasis, but what if the mind, not the body, is ill? Recovering from a broken bone would simply call for a cast and time to allow the body to heal itself. Now instead of a broken bone, imagine a person has traumatizing daily nightmares, physical weakness, the loss of appetite and even energy. To treat said problems one must first realize this is a mental illness. These symptoms will be diagnosed as Ghost Sickness, which is a type of mental illness called a culture bound syndrome. This illness is said to be culturally bound because, instead of like most mental illnesses that can be generalized to anyone around the world, it only affects individuals found in a specific culture and/or geographic location.

As technology continues to evolve, our understanding of sickness and disease grows as well. Modern day technology is able to tell doctors what caused the disease and in ideal situations how to cure it. Recent scientists have begun to look at the desire to kill as a disease. This theory poses an interesting concept that if it is a disease, then maybe there is a cure that prevents serial killers from killing. In Christer Claus and Lars Lidberg’s article they look at the desire to kill as a disease. The article states that while using Schahriar Syndrome as a model, they are able to explain even the most vicious human behaviours, such as planned and repeated homicide (Claus/Lidberg 428). This disease is broken down into five main characteristics: omnipotence, sadistic fantasies, ritualized performance, dehumanization, and symbiotic merger. These five traits are not only common among people with the disease, but among serial killers as well (428). The article states that after a successful killing, the killer is surprised. When the killer is able to get away with murder, a sense of amazement consumes them. Once the killer has repeatedly killed their victim and escaped the authorities, they begin to feel like they are omnipotent. As time goes on, over fifty percent of serial killers experience sadistic fantasies that make them want to keep committing the crimes. Each killer uses their success and sadistic fantasies to form a certain ritual. They begin to believe that if they are

Acknowledging how the patient perceives illness and health, helps in understanding the beliefs and how they relate with preventing

When someone is suffering or living with a chronic illness it can have a huge impact on them psychologically and socially. Chronic Illness is a condition that is prolonged in duration, usually more than 3 months and is rarely cured (DoH, 2012). Having to cope with a chronic condition might lead to life changes, such as dependency on others, loss of income, which can cause feelings of loss and reduced self-esteem. They can also report feelings of social rejection, poor healthcare and workplace termination due to their presenting condition (Earnshaw, Quinn, & Park, 2011).

Historically, Western Medicine has been divided into Eras. The first ERA, noted in the 1860’s, was referred to as the Mechanical Model. The medical world, as well as society, viewed illness as a purely physical entity. The mental and emotional components of illness were often considered as an afterthought. The second ERA, as described in the mid-twentieth century, is named the Mind/Body ERA. This was the time where attention was brought forth that there is a connection between the consciousness and the physical aspects of health and illness. Pscho-somatics was a coined phrase around this time. The third ERA is known as the Quantum Physics Paradigm (Dossey,1982). This era identifies transpersonal presence as its basis and accepts that the mind and the body, as well as non-local energies, affect health and illness.

When sick with an illness they feel that they must engage in positive actions. To prevent illness, they must be clear and relieved of negative imprints that the world may bring their way. Buddhism has a strong belief that anything that occurs to them now is a reflection of a previous action, not only in this current life but of previous lives too. The Buddhism religion believes that the start of all problems stems from selfishness; one must avoid greed, anger and thoughts of jealousy. When death occurs they feel that their consciousness that holds their karmic imprints separates from their body and travels into a new life. Meditation and visualization are used to heal by reciting mantras and use of visualizing holy images (Hawter, 1995).

Patient care is ultimately inadequate if the patient’s goals and preferences have not been assessed. Therefore, it is crucial that the attending physicians have insight into the thoughts of the patient as they go from diagnosis, to treatment and then the likelihood of death when the patient is confronted with a devastating illness. The physician’s task for their chronically ill patient discussed in a class lecture noted the importance of American Psychiatrist George Engel’s Biopsychosocial Model of Health and Illness’s, a view that psychological and social factors influence biological

Health care professional could use the strategy of creating the appropriate environment in order to overcome the barrier of environment because by providing an appropriate environment the health care professionals will be providing an environment where service users will be able to listen and also gain deeper understanding of what is being discussed. They will also feel more involved in the interaction because they will be in a private space where confidential things can be discussed.

When a person feels sick and takes action with the end goal of characterizing that sickness and looking for help from it this is known as illness behavior. An illustration of this is looking for therapeutic treatment versus overlooking or self-medicating. It is likewise monitoring substantial changes in your body, which is imperative. At the point when individuals have no experience and or know-how to continue, they seek medical care from specialists.

The book “The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down” is an interesting book that explores the distinctions in the perception of human conditions. An explanatory model of illness provides an opportunity to understand how people view their medical conditions (“Explanatory Illness,” n.d.). The explanatory model of illness provides a vantage point for healthcare professionals to understand an individual’s perception of his/her illness (“Explanatory Illness,” n.d.). The model seeks to explore the complex relationship between the physiological condition of an individual and the individual’s social and cultural background.

The Chapter, "The Mystery of Disease," starts off with questions about natural selection and the evolution theory. Asking questions that most people would not think of, like, " If we can live a 100 years, why not two hundred?" or " If evolution by natural selection can shape sophisticated mechanisms such as the eye, heart, and brain, why hasn't it shaped ways to prevent nearsightedness, heart attacks and Alzheimer’s disease?". These questions make the reader wonder, what is causing the human race to continue the pattern of diseases? The authors believe there is, "a deep evolutionary view reveals the bodies of all organisms as bundles of tradeoffs, compromises and limitations that ensure that perfection is impossible." which is controversial

Illness - is an event that manifests itself through observable/felt changes in the body. Illness is the state in which the physical, emotional, social,

Arthur Kelinman developed the explanatory model of illness which incorporates a series of questions that is unique to a patient’s illness to develop a treatment plan. This model assesses how patient illnesses are associated with the environment and the culture around them, while also “seeking the how, why, what, when, where, and what next of illness, disease, and health experience” (“Explanatory Model”). Asking the patient their opinion on what caused their illness and how they think it should be treated will help identify their beliefs and help when planning an intervention.

The seen environment present when reading The Death of Ivan Ilych story is the way Ivan’s family lived and the way Ivan treated everyone with coldness. The unseen was depicted by the atmosphere present in Ivan’s’ room, making friends and family members uncomfortable to be there. The storied environment is when Ivan realizes that his life has been a mistake and he converts religiously, he finds God and Ivan repents from all his sins, it is not until then that he found peace in his mind.