The Chemical Balance In Mental Health Problems Summary

The resulting high dopamine levels are responsible for the hallucination, dissociation and psychosis within reactions to PCP.

Schizophrenia is classified as a mental disorder that shows profound disruption of cognition and emotion which affects a person’s language, perception, thought and sense of self. The dopamine hypothesis states that schizophrenic’s neurones transmitting dopamine release the neurotransmitter too easily, leading to the characteristic symptoms of schizophrenia. This hypothesis claims that schizophrenics have abnormally high amounts of D2 receptors; receptors that receive dopamine, therefore resulting in a higher amount of D2 receptors binding to the receptors causing more impulses. Dopamine neurotransmitters play a

Auditory hallucination is a fundamental presentation observed in patients suffering from schizophrenia. It is one of the frequently occurring symptoms considered to be disabling in schizophrenia, but despite vast and numerous organized studies undertaken in this area in order to comprehend the pathophysiology of auditory hallucination, little success has been realized, and it remains to be complex in research, understanding, and expressing the knowledge accrued (Kaprinis, 2008.) The auditory processing in schizophrenia seems to be different from that of normal individuals because patients inflicted with this mental illness complain of voices deep inside their heads. The voices are described as coming

The major support and refutation of the dopamine hypothesis has come from the examination of dopamine receptors in these regions of the brain. There are two main types of dopamine receptors, D1 and D2. However, within the category of D2 receptors, there are three subtypes, D2, D3, and D4. (5) Through PET scan analysis of dopamine usage in the brain and post-mordum molecular analysis of brain tissue, researcher were able to determine relative levels of dopamine receptors in patients with schizophrenia compared to non-schizophrenics. Overall analysis of dopamine

Dopamine is a neurotransmitter associated with attention. Schizophrenics seem to have an increased number of D2 dopamine receptors on receiving neurons. This theory is support by the fact that Phenothiazines bind with D2 receptors and reduce positive symptoms. Another piece of supporting evidence is that Parkinson’s disease drug L-dopa, increase the level of dopamine and causes schizophrenic like symptoms in some people. However excess dopamine can only explain some types of schizophrenia, usually positive rather than negative.

Paranoid Schizophrenia can come on quick suddenly and disrupt a person’s normal daily functions. People suffering from paranoid schizophrenia prominently experience delusions and hallucinations. Some individuals can be predisposed to schizophrenia due to cortical atrophy hypothesis or the dopamine hypothesis. Cortical atrophy hypothesis believes that the patient’s brain size can cause schizophrenia, while the dopamine hypothesis argues that levels of dopamine in the brain are directly related to the onset of schizophrenia.

Over the years, experiments have produced evidence to suggest that dopamine plays a role in the development of Schizophrenia (Howes, McCutcheon, & Stone, 2015). Dopamine is a neurotransmitter that is produced in the substantia nigra and ventral tegmental regions of the brain. The belief that dopamine was involved in Schizophrenia arose after multiple studies performed with compounds produced an increase in extracellular concentrations of dopamine (Lieberman, Kane, & Alvir, 1987). The patients that were administered these compounds had similar symptoms to those observed from patients who were diagnosed with Schizophrenia (Lieberman et al., 1987).

In the research presented by Howes and Kapur (2009), they have pointed out a possible concern to invalidate the dopamine hypothesis in schizophrenia as current PET studies did not holding a firm position in measure the dopamine level, they were more to a postulation of a generated estimation from the data. Furthermore, Howes and Kapur (2009) also stressed that the role of dopamine could be circumvented by using the antipsychotic drugs which effectively to the psychotic symptoms but neutral to the dopamine system, thus the role of dopamine will be less critical in schizophrenia. This is because most of the recent antipsychotic researches only prove that dopamine merely contributed in providing a solution in alleviating the psychosis-liked-symptoms but those symptoms are not the symptoms only existed in schizophrenia.

In 2014, Kalayasiri, R., Verachai, V., Gelernter, J., Mutirangura, A., & Malison, R. conducted a study of the relationship between methamphetamine use and paranoia. Methamphetamine is one of the drugs that can cause addiction very easily. "Among methamphetamine-dependent individuals, paranoia appears to occur increasingly rapidly in a course of a session of methamphetamine use" (Kalayasiri et al., 2014, p. 965). Kalayasiri et al., (2014) calls this type of paranoia "methamphetamine-induced paranoia (Kalayasiri et al., p. 965). Methamphetamine is a stimulant that changes the functions of some neurotransmitters, such as dopamine, making it more available in the body; this leads to symptoms of paranoia (Kalayasari, et al., 2014, p.965).

Hallucinations can be auditory. The types of auditory hallucinations that people experience vary. Some people can hear mean voices one telling them to do something wrong and the other telling them not too. Auditory hallucination can be like a radio talk show so you are hearing the voice, but not an actual participant in what you are hearing. Another auditory hallucination that is very common is hearing music and it can be any kind of music. People that experience these types of hallucinations are normal people like you and me. There are many theories as to why people experience auditory hallucinations such as a greater activation in the primary auditory cortex, or some think it because we can’t recognize the auditory hallucination as our own.

Psychologically, people who suffered from mental illness are more likely to have being traumatised, being neglected, too emotional and sexually abuse. There are so many things that triggers mental illness which are low self-esteem, poverty, loss of job, anger, anxiety, death of loved ones like parents, friend or someone important, loneliness, adverse childhood experience, relationships and divorce.

The Dopamine Hypothesis theorizes that the symptoms portrayed in Schizophrenia is can be explained by abnormal function of dopamine in the brain. There have been three versions of the Dopamine Hypothesis. The first version of the hypothesis focuses on the dopamine receptors. Antipsychotic drugs that impact the metabolization and reabsorption of dopamine where found to be effective in treating the symptoms. It was theorized that if the symptoms of a Schizophrenic episode can be treated by the use of dopamine

The biological paradigm has dominated the psychiatric profession since the last century. The assumption of the paradigm is that physical conditions in mental illness are caused by, disease-producing germs, genetic factors, imbalances of brain chemistry, and disordered developments of brain structures (Double, D., 2015). Hippocrate was the first to introduce that all illnesses including mental illnesses are caused by physiology in 460 B.C. Suggesting that physiological disturbances or body chemistry play a role in the development of mental illness (Plante, T., 2005). Hippocrate believed that individuals who are suffering from mental illnesses are suffering similarly to those suffering from other medical disorders, and that they should get the same treatments (McRae, 1890). The main advantage of this biological assumption is that if the cause of mental illness is from physical malfunction, then a biological treatment such as drugs will solve the problem. This essay will be discussing the extent in which mental illnesses are shaped by the possible combination of genetics, biochemical, hormonal, and neurological factors.

Drugs increase activity in the sensory areas of the brain and make people see the world unusual. But like any drug, there are side-effects, like the hallucinations that disrupt the senses. Some believe that the distortions are realities

Neurotransmitters in the brain can give researchers insight as to why people feel the way they do. Dopamine, for example, is the neurotransmitter associated with satisfaction. Activities such as watching your favorite TV show or eating your favorite food can cause the release of dopamine in the brain. Moreover, dopamine can act as a stimulant to increase communication between neurons and widen the brain’s range of effects. (Hillman). A study by Dr. Fredrik Ullen, of the Karolinska Institute, examined the dopamine receptors in “highly creative types” and found that their dopamine systems highly resemble those of people who suffer from schizophrenia. In both cases, there is a low density of dopamine receptors in the thalamus, which acts as a