Unless you're schizophrenic, you need at least two people to communicate.

Today I was dumbfounded when looking for a reason, other than biological, for schizophrenia. I was really upset and for the most part felt uneasy as to the only reason you have it is because of your genetics/biology. I did a little research and got two other perspectives as to why a person might have schizophrenia. I am not saying that the biology perspective is wrong, no, I just would rather know other reasons as to why it happens as well!

The behavioral view
Behaviorist usually cite operant conditioning and principles of reinforcement as the cause of schizophrenia. People who respond to such cues in a socially acceptable way are better able to satisfy their own emotional needs and achieve their goals. Some people are not reinforced for their attention to social cues, either because of unusual circumstances or because important figured in their lives are socially inadequate. As a result, they stop attending to such cues and focus instead on irrelevant cues – the brightness of light in a room, a bird flying above, or the sound of a word rather than its meaning. As they attend more and more to irrelevant cues, their responses become increasingly bizarre. Because the bizarre responses are rewarded with attention or other types of reinforcement, they are likely to be repeated again and again.
The cognitive view
According to the cognitive explanation further features of the disorder emerge when the individuals attempt to understand their unusual experiences. When first confronted by voiced or other troubling sensations, these people turn to friends and relatives. Naturally, the friends and relatives deny the reality of the sensations, and eventually the sufferers conclude that the others are trying to hide the truth. They begin to refect feedback, and some develop beliefs (delusions) that they are being persecuted.
In short, according to this theory, people with schizophrenia take a “rational path to madness”

Social labeling
Society assigns the label “schizophrenic” to people who fail to conform to certain norms of behavior. Once the label is assigned, justified or not, it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy that promotes the development of many schizophrenic symtoms.

And just for viewing pleasure a meme to lighten your day!

Manic

You meet a man in the fruit aisle and he captures your attention you go there with your glitter top, hugging yoga and your confidence smile. You smile and started a conversation which ended in a date that Saturday, you go home trying on different outfits to see what looks best and just full of energy – until it hits you like a rock – your happy go lucky attitude no longer showing, all you see is this frail being. Not right now you plead. You know what is happening but your date doesn’t. You go back to bed and stay there until you have to.

Saturday is here and your date picks you up and what he thought would be this vibrant confident colorful woman is in fact this woman that walked into a funeral. He is confused, and you have no energy what do you do?

What is describe there is the typical life of a person with Bipolar I disorder. Bipolar I disorder, according to the DSM-IV-TR, is condition in which the patient has significant mood changes that last from weeks to months at a time. Patients will experience at least one manic episode where the mood is an elevated one; followed by a period of normalcy or balance for at least two months before an onset of a major depressive episode. Manic being a state or episode of euphoria or frenzied activity in which people may have an exaggerated belief that the world is theirs for the taking, and a depressive episode being a low, sad state marked by significant levels of sadness, lack of energy, low self-worth, guilt or related symptoms.

Symptoms vary but here are some key components of Bipolar I (depressive episode)

• Emotional symptoms: most people who are depressed feel sad and dejected. They describe themselves as feeling “miserable,” “empty,” and “humiliated.” They tend to lose their sense of humor, report getting little pleasure from anything, and in some cases display anhedonia, an inability to experience any pleasure at all a number also experience anxiety, anger, or agitation.
• Cognitive symptoms of depression: depressed people hold extremely negative views of themselves. They consider themselves inadequate, undesirable, inferior, and perhaps evil. They also blame themselves for nearly every unfortunate event, event things that have nothing to do with them, and they rarely credit themselves for positive achievements.
• Pessimism
• People with depression frequently complain that their intellectual ability is poor. They feel confused, unable to remember things, easily distracted, and unable to solve even the smallest problem
• Motivational symptoms of depression:depressed people typically lose the desire to pursue their usual activities. Almost all report a lack of drive, initiative, and spontaneity. They may have to force themselves to go to work, talk with friends, eat meals, or have sex. This state has been described as a “paralysis of will”
• Behavioral symptoms of depression: depressed people are usually less active and less productive. They spend more time alone and may stay in bed for long period.

No Smile for You

Imagine being born already to be destined for not smiling? A birthday party at the age of 7? No smile. A new puppy? No smile. That toy you always wanted? No smile. People will think you are always unsatisfied with your life, and you have no control over it. You want to act happy – you want to smile – but you can’t. No matter what you did, or try, you won’t be able to show expression. We take it for granted, the smile means a lot if you think about it. A smile means "contagious happiness".
Positive action attracts positive reaction and a smile IS contagious. A mile will always make someone happy even when you do not know the person. However, this isn’t the case if you have Möbius syndrome.

Möbius syndrome is a rare congenital neurological disorder characterized by face paralysis and the inability to move their eyes from side to side. People with Möbius syndrome have normal intelligence, although their lack of facial expression is sometimes incorrectly taken to be due to dullness or unfriendliness. Which could effect your social life or job. I mean the importance of facial expression and smiling in a social environment can perceive you to be rude or uninterested in conversation or any other social interactions. Yes your close friends and family may understand your body language, but what about the work place? People with Möbius syndrome can compensate can compensate for a lack of expression by using body language, posture, and vocal tone to convey emotion.

The causes of Möbius syndrome are poorly understood. Möbius syndrome is thought to result from a vascular disruption (temporary loss of bloodflow) in the brain during prenatal development. There could be many reasons that a vascular disruption leading to Möbius syndrome might occur. Most cases do not appear to be genetic. However, genetic links have been found in a few families.

There is a youtube channel that is just dedicated to  Möbius syndrome and is ran by  Möbius syndrome Foundation. There is a video up ofa mother's experience with her son with  Möbius syndrome. It is just educating about why it happens, and what to expect. Click here to view that certain video!

Sexsomia

Linda has always been a modest woman. Never did anything wrong, and would be considered “frigid” when it came to sex. She is conservative and doesn’t like to try anything new, but this didn’t bother her fiancé, Ted. He would wish to do new things, but puts it on the back burner and tries to forget about it. Then one night, she wondered to his side of the bed, rolled him over and took charge. He was surprised by what possessed his frigid fiancé to be an animal, but he didn’t want to question her. They made love. The next morning while making their morning coffee and Ted hugged Linda from behind. He told her that she was amazing last night. She looked puzzled. He worried if he was somehow having a wet dream, but he was coherent enough to know that was his wife he was having sex with. She looked confused, and scared. He felt like he somehow betrayed his wife with someone else. What’s wrong?

Sleep sex or sexsomnia is a form of non-rapid eye movement (NREM) similar to sleepwalking that causes people to commit sexual acts while they are asleep. While people may think this type of behavior is humorous, in reality it can be disturbing, annoying, embarrassing and a potentially serious problem for some individuals and couples. The incidence of sexsomnia appears to be on the rise. Most experts attribute this to growing public awareness of the problem rather that an upsurge in actual incidence. There have been several widely reported incidents of sexual assault conducted while the perpetrator was allegedly asleep. This means that people are partially aroused from deep sleep, resulting in a "twilight sleep-wake state" where they unconsciously act, with seriously impaired judgment.

Sexsomnia isn’t just about intercourse though. It can be masturbation, oral, fondling. It can co-occur with other sleep disorder such as sleepwalking, sleep apnea, night terrors, and bedwetting.

It was hard to get a video to elaborate more about Sexsomnia, but it is hard to find without hitting the porn site of youtube. So I found this little webisode about a guy that is on a date and his date tells him that he was amazing, and he doesn't remember. Thinking it is a cop out so he can sleep with other girls… well you just have to see it.

Born a Boy, Raised a Girl

When growing up my playmates were boys. Whether it would be at the ranch I grew up in, or the neighborhood I lived. They were boys. I was around 7 and I still didn’t want to pick up a Barbie to save my life. It was not my norm. I remember asking why was I not a boy, and praying that I would be one (What would Freud say about this?) But as I grew older my inner femme goddess showed and I gave birth to myself as a lady. 

Now let’s think of those little girls that want to be little boys and when they matured into teen girls, they STILL want to be boys? Are they “in a phase” or is it something else? What if they are trapped in the wrong body but due to the social stigma that we have, they can’t say anything? It is one thing to be physically a male or female but it is another to identify a gender. 

For a person to be diagnosed with gender identity disorder they have to meet the criteria of the DSM 5 reads as so:

For females

A. Strongly and persistently stated desire to be a boy, or insistence that she is a boy (not merely a desire for any perceived cultural advantages from being a boy)

B. Persistent repudiation of female anatomic structures, as manifested by at least one of the following repeated assertions

(1) that she will grow up to become a man (not merely in role)

(2) that she is biologically unable to become pregnant

(3) that she will not develop breasts

(4) that she has no vagina

(5) that she has, or will grow, a penis

C. Onset of the disturbance before puberty (For adults and adolescents, see Atypical Gender Identity Disorder.)

For males

A. Strongly and persistently stated desire to be a girl, or insistence that heis a girl

B. Either (1) or (2)

(1) persistent repudiation of male anatomic structures, as manifested by at least one of the following repeated assertions

(a) that he will grow up to become a woman (not merely in role)

(b) that his penis and testes are disgusting or will disappear

(c) that it would be better not to have a penis or testes

(2) preoccupation with female stereotypical activities as manifested by a preference for either cross-dressing or simulating female attire, or by a compelling desire to participate in the games and pastimes of girls

C. Onset of the disturbance before puberty. (For adults and adolescents, see Atypical Gender Identity Disorder.)

Let’s talk about David Reimer. If you are a psychology major you will know his famous story of having gender identity disorder. His parents went to take him to get a circumcision but they ended up cutting more than they should so they decided to make him a girl and rear her to be like one. She grew up confused until she found out she is really a he. Eventually he married but soon after committed suicide in 2004. This video will go more in depth with him and his disorder

Seeing Sounds

Synesthesia is a disorder resulting in the sufferer experiencing an alternate sense as a result of the first sense. And speaking of sense, that sentence might not have made any to you. Let's break it down someone with Synesthesia might say:

“Your shirt is too loud, put down the volume”
“I see the letter 5 as green with striped”
“Dude the chick’s number taste like strawberries”

Synesthesia is (as you probably guessed) basically results from your neural "wires" getting crossed. You can see it as your worlds are colliding, and it isn’t necessarily a bad thing, you can see it as having a deeper understanding of art and having a different perception that no one else may have. As of now, the greatest evidence we have of this “union of senses” is that of genetic predisposition. Although very little is known about this disorder, it is prevalent as every 1 in 23 persons can have some trait of it. However you don’t have to be born with it to experience it you can be under the influence of the psychedelic drugs, have a stroke, have an epilepsy to experience this!

Some of the famous entertainers have synesthesia (is it cheating?!) such as: Marilyn Monroe, John Mayer, Marina Diamandis, Vladimir Nabokov, and so much more!

There are various forms of Synethesia like:
Grapheme to color synesthesia: this is when individual letters of the alphabet and/or number are a different colors.

Spatial sequence Synesthesia: this is when people tend to see all numerical sequences they come across as points in space. As in 1 can be further away from 2 than 3 is.

Sound to color synesthesia: what you hear has a color; like a dog’s barking can have a shade of green)

This video is about a guy with synesthesia and how he views his world, it is interesting to see and hear how his world is and absolutely fascinating 

Lost or found???

Imagine waking up and not knowing who you are, what you have done, or what you stand for. Imagine knowing you were now a blank slate, so you run off to make something of yourself, but the life you had before is forever haunting you – the unknowing. Or better yet you don’t know you don’t remember. If you don’t know what is the harm, right?

Amnesia is a condition in which one’s memory is lost. It could be all your memory or just partial lost due to an extent of damage that was caused, or intense stress. We all know amnesia as forgetting all memories, right? Well that form is actually rare. Some factors that causes amnesia is mental disorder, post-traumatic stress, or defense mechanism. Here is a list of different types of amnesia:

• Physical causes:
• Anterograde amnesia: can’t remember new memories after brain damage
• Retrograde amnesia: can’t remember old memories before brain damage
• Post-traumatic amnesia: generally due to a head injury after trauma and can vary what you can or can’t remember (i.e. anterograde, retrograde, etc.)
• Dissociative amnesia: is caused by a psychological factor as opposed to a physical trauma this includes: 
• Repressed memory
• Dissociative fugue: usually happens after a stressful event in time. A person will forget who they are and will run off and make a new life and after some time they will remember their former life. (usually spontaneous)
• Korsakoff’s syndrome: usually caused by long-term alcoholism or malnutrition. It is brain damage due to a lack of vitamin B1, and will progress if your diet is not modified.

That is just a few from an extensive list that I could think of on the top of my head. Honestly, I can go on about this. It fascinates me how it can just happen with no cause. We literally become a prisoner of our own mind. Here is a video from CBS where a well educated man forgets even his own name. This man spoke many different languages, and clearly was influential and forgot everything. It is absolutely terrifying to wake up one morning, or just blink, and forget who you are. The video also has a doctor and goes into details about how and why this can happen. Enjoy!

Here is an article of a woman who forgets twenty years of her life, and even forget her child she gave birth to!

Shaken not stirred

I would be lying if I said I would know what to do if someone had an epileptic attack. If anything I would panic, and I think most of us would also do that. I decided to bring it upon myself to show my viewers what this is something to be informed about, and with knowledge we won't be as scared. Enjoy the post! 

What is epilepsy?
Over time a person with this disorder will have repeated seizures, or convulsions. Why do these people have seizures, you may ask? Their central nervous system is probably doing something abnormal. To me, however, that is not the scary part. It is the fact there is a period of loss of consciousness with those convulsions. That’s terrifying.

What causes epilepsy?
When there is permanent changes in the brain tissues the brain will be too excited or “jumpy” hence the brain send out abnormal brain signals and the results are the unpredictable seizures.

What are the symptoms?
They are unpredictable so you don’t know when one is coming, however here are some steps as to what you can do when someone is having a seizure.
• Call for emergency medical services
• Be familiar with different kinds of seizures
• May sure the person doesn't fall, if possible roll them to their side. So they won’t vomit; choke on or inhale it
• Make sure the person is breathing. If difficult check that the air ways are not blocked by food.
• Help them prevent from hurting themselves.
• Check for their IDs or medical jewelry to see if they have information that may help you.
• Monitor the person until they are conscious
• Make sure they are in a safe position
• Write down details of what happened to them or what might be affected when you can
• After they are conscious stay with them for 20 minutes for after effects
Here is a video for visual effects on what to do when you see someone with a seizure. I found it very formative, and I hope you will too!

Think Don't Drink

Unpopular Opinion: I cannot fathom the idea of drinking wine or anything alcohol base when and if I get pregnant. If you are expecting and a glass of wine sounds appealing remember your child is always growing. You are hurting your child for your selfish act, and I feel like if you chose a sip of alcohol over your baby then you are an unfit mother. I am seriously in rage to know some people are living with this syndrome, something that can be completely prevented due to a selfish mother.

Ok, now on to the actual post that I meant to write.

What is Fetal Alcohol Syndrome? Fetal Alcohol Syndrome is caused when high level of alcohols was consumed by the mother during pregnancy. This causes the fetus to develop in odd patterns of mental and physical ways -  affecting his or her entire life. In the United States alone 1 in every 750 infants is born with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS).

What are the symptoms? Before I go any further, some of these physical attributes doesn’t necessary mean they have it, other things could’ve happened. DON’T POINT FINGERS AND SCOWL THE MOTHER. Just to name a few here are some:

Physical:

• smaller eye openings
• flattened cheekbones
• short nose
• thin upper lip
• undeveloped jaw

Mental:

• poor coordination
• poor socialization skills
• lack of imagination or curiosity
• behavioral problems 

When they are born they tend to be low birth weight as well as have a small head not to mention have organ dysfunction. Here is a picture of things to look at.

not much of an educational video, but I commend this woman for adopting a child with FAS.

Drugs Are the Religion of the People — The Only Hope is Dope

I have always been fascinated with LSD, the way people react differently to it. Those “trips” aren’t hallucinations, but a different perception of reality. You hear color, and look at music. Your IQ skyrockets, and you see things that aren’t there you see everything differently. These “trips” can last an hour even up to 12 hours but to some people they last a life time. This drug absolutely fascinates me. If you put one drop of it in the Rio Grande River you will see the effects of the people and other living things. Some people claim you aren’t living until you use LSD.

Some of the physiological changes that happen to the body are: dilated pupils, increase in blood pressure, high body temperature. Some people experience sweaty palms, dizziness, blurred vision, tingling of the limbs – but over all they feel happy and at peace in this euphoric stage of life.

LSD stimulates the hormone Serotonin. LSD doesn't block serotonin from filling the receptors, it mimics and enhances the effects of serotonin within the body. Since serotonin is responsible for sensory and emotional processing, creating these psychedelic experience.

LSD doesn’t kill people, it is the poor judgment, skewed perception, and lose inhibition is what physically harms them, if not, kills them. You hear it all the time on the news of people killing themselves over what their mind is on. I knew of this one girl that saw her own vain on her wrist and decided to cut her arm to see how “pretty” her veins were. She died.

Although people say they are addicted to the drug, they are actually talking about the feeling of it. LSD isn’t an addictive drug by any means, there isn’t a rehab center for it. If people regularly use it are the people that only do it once a week, as it is if you use it twice a week you are consider a “heavy user.” Every trip is different, and you are gambling to see if you will have a “good” trip or a “bad” one. Other drug users need that stable and consistent trip, hence why they become addicted to their respective drug of choice.

This is a documentary that I saw, super amazing. I warn you it is about an hour long. But if you want to experience a "trip" look at the bottom picture for a minute and then look at the wall.

YOU'RE WELCOME.

Korsakoffs Syndrome; What is it?

As I was reading the other day something interested me right away – Korsakoff’s syndrome. I kept reading but my mind was now wondering what is it? Is it contagious? Is it named after the person it was discovered by? These are the thoughts that haunt me (and get me distracted).

 So what is Korsakoff’s syndrome? It is (from further research) a neurological disorder associated from lack of thiamine, Vitamin B1, in the brain. From further inspection the syndrome really is named after the person who discovered it; his name is Sergei Korsakoff a neuropsychiatrist of Russian descant during the 19th century.

What are the symptoms? The symptoms are vague and can be for anything else (DON’T JUMP THE GUN THINKING YOU HAVE THIS!) it includes confusion, drowsiness, and difficulty with your balance.  Before you go running to your doctor, please read further to see if you really have something to worry about.

What causes it? I already mentioned that Korsakoff’s syndrome is caused by lack of thiamine, there is a correlation with the extreme amount of alcohol. It isn’t just the extreme amount of alcohol some people take in; it is the poor diets that go with it. Little to no nutrition ergo lack of B1. But this isn’t just a syndrome for the alcoholic, it is for anyone with a poor diet. It can be eating disorders, or extreme dieting. Basically anything “extreme” with your dieting.

Is it treatable? In a more perfect world we would say “yes, if it is caught early” but most of the time people are diagnosed with it already ‘fully developed.’ The treatment is just as life changing as the syndrome itself. Some people need to go cold turkey from the alcohol. This means that from one day to the next you change your alcohol intake from your usual 5+ to completely 0. From then they have to adopt a healthier lifestyle/diet. This doesn’t meant hat this can completely disregard your syndrome but it can prevent further damage and that is always better than nothing!

This syndrome really intrigued me, maybe because of the name? But you never lose anything with a little research, oh and thank you for reading. Remember...

Video for your viewing (educational) pleasure. It is really interesting to see people with the syndrome and how they are. Note: this video is a little old.

Animal research, how ethical are you?

What is your stance on animal research? Do you believe they should be used primarily for medical reasons? Or do you believe it should be used for everything else (i.e. cosmetics, cosmetic surgery, etc). One of the things that caught my attention in the readings was that of Animal research. First thing that popped into mind, was People Ethical Treatment of Animals, or PETA for short. I was surprised that their name did not come about in this module. My stance for Animal research is in a grey area, and I am sure most people’s it is too. I do believe in it for medical research, but for cosmetics surgery? Not too sure on it. You hear of these cruelty free cosmetics everywhere, and it sounds too good to be true, but how do we know if it is good for us to wear without extensive tests? I am no stranger to buying cruelty free makeup, and I will be the first to tell you it is gambling. Sometimes you will get a reaction with the foundation, or a sty in your eye due to the mascara, so there are some things that is better to let it be tested than messed with.

My opinion is just that, an opinion. With animal research it is better to be safe than sorry. If it can either be replaced, refined, or reduced as much as possible it would be best; I guess, I can consider myself a minimalist? I hear it on the news all the time about extremist using violence to get their message across that they hate what researchers are doing, but aren’t they the ones hurting living beings too? Taunting kids because of their parent’s occupation, disturbing the peace, bombing houses? If they get their message across what will happen then? Our science will not progress as fast as it does with animal research. Do these people really love animals or do they just really hate people? Maybe one day our science will be advance enough to eliminate our usage of animals, but for now we have to make do with what we got. For more pro’s on animal testing click here.

The short list of a few examples of medical advancements found through animal testing: 

• VACCINES- Anthrax, chicken pox, cholera, diphtheria, flu, influenza B, hepatitis A and B, measles, mumps, polio, rabies, rubella, smallpox, tetanus, whooping cough, yellow fever
• MEDICATIONS- Insulin, penicillin, streptomycin, anti-inflammatory drugs, painkillers, anticoagulants, chemotherapy, cyclosporine
• DEVICES- Pacemakers, artificial heart, artificial hip, artificial knee

Another amazing video can be found here (they disabled embedded sharing)