Alright, alright, let’s talk about this AP Psychology stuff, Unit 8, you know, the one with all them fancy words. I ain’t no scholar, mind you, but I’ll try to make sense of it like I’m tellin’ you ’bout the neighbor’s chickens gettin’ loose again.
So, first off, we got this “psychological disorder” thing. Sounds scary, right? Well, it just means somethin’ ain’t quite right in the head, like when old man Johnson forgets where he lives every Tuesday. It’s like a sickness, but in your brain. Doctors, they call it a “medical model”, treatin’ the mind like they treat a broken leg, I guess.
- Abnormal Psychology: Now, this here is just the study of all them head problems. Why folks act strange, you know? Why some folks see things that ain’t there, or why some are scared to leave the house. It’s like bein’ a detective, but for the brain.
- DSM-5: This here’s a big ol’ book. The “American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders”. Sounds like a mouthful, don’t it? Basically, it’s a list of all the ways a brain can go wonky, and how the doctors figure out what’s wrong. Like a cookbook, but for crazy, I reckon. They use it to give a name to what’s ailin’ ya, so they can try to fix it.
Then we got different kinds of problems, you see. Like, some folks are always worried, can’t sleep, always frettin’. That’s what they call “anxiety disorders”. It’s like havin’ a squirrel in your head, always jumpin’ around and never lettin’ you rest.
“Generalized anxiety disorder” is when you’re worried ’bout everything, all the time. Like, will it rain? Will the cow give milk? Will the kids be alright? It never stops. Then there’s “panic disorder”, where you get these sudden attacks of fear, like a hawk swoopin’ down outta nowhere. Heart racin’, can’t breathe, feelin’ like you’re gonna die. Scary stuff, let me tell ya. And if you’re scared of somethin’ specific, like spiders or heights or leavin’ the house, that’s a “phobia”. My niece, she’s scared of clowns. Can’t even look at a picture of one without screamin’. Poor thing.
And then there are the “mood disorders”. That’s when your feelin’s are all outta whack. “Major depressive disorder” is when you’re sad all the time, can’t get outta bed, don’t wanna eat, nothin’ feels good. Like a dark cloud followin’ you around everywhere you go. Then there’s “bipolar disorder”, where you go from bein’ super happy and energetic to super sad and hopeless. Like a rollercoaster, up and down, up and down. Tirin’, I bet.
We also gotta talk about “schizophrenia”. That’s a real serious one. Folks with this, they hear voices, see things that ain’t there, have trouble thinkin’ straight. It’s like their brain is playin’ tricks on ’em. They might think they’re someone else, or that people are out to get ’em. Sad, real sad.
And there’s “dissociative disorders”. That’s when your mind kinda separates itself, like it can’t handle what’s goin’ on. “Dissociative identity disorder”, that’s when it seems like you got different personalities livin’ inside you. Like in that movie, what’s it called? “Sybil”, I think. One minute you’re one person, the next you’re someone else entirely. Confusin’, that’s what it is.
Then there are the “personality disorders”. That’s when the way you think and act and feel is just… different. Like, some folks are always suspicious of others, can’t trust nobody. That’s “paranoid personality disorder”. Or some folks are super dramatic and need all the attention on ’em, that’s “histrionic personality disorder”. And some folks just don’t care about nothin’ or nobody, that’s “antisocial personality disorder”. Troublemakers, most of ’em.
And let’s not forget “obsessive-compulsive disorder”, or OCD. That’s when you gotta do things over and over again, like washin’ your hands a hundred times a day, or checkin’ the stove twenty times to make sure it’s off. You know it don’t make sense, but you can’t help it. Like a broken record, just keeps repeatin’ and repeatin’.
And last but not least, we got “therapy”. That’s how they try to help folks with these problems. Talkin’ it out, takin’ medicine, learnin’ new ways to cope. Like fixin’ a fence, gotta mend it piece by piece. There’s different kinds of therapy, you know, like “psychotherapy”, where you just talk to someone, and “biomedical therapy”, where they use medicine or other treatments to change the way your brain works.
So, there you have it. A little bit about AP Psychology Unit 8, in plain English, the way I see it. It ain’t easy stuff, this mind business, but it’s important. We gotta understand each other, help each other out when things go wrong. That’s what I always say, anyway. And if you’re studyin’ for that AP test, well, good luck to ya. You’ll need it, all them fancy words and all.
