Types of Mental Illnesses: List of Mental Disorders

There are several types of mental disorders with symptoms that could be related to behavior and thoughts. The symptoms may be mild to severe as per the underlying cause and the severity of the condition. Some types of mental disorders can interrupt daily activities and make life quite difficult. It is a common misconception that mental illnesses are uncommon. In fact, almost one-third of the population develop such conditions at least once in their lifetime. In the U.S. itself, around 54 million people are found to come up with some sort of mental illness, every year. For some people, this happens all of a sudden, as a result of a particular situation or event. For others, it could be a cumulative one, (as in case of a series of events). The causes for development of mental illnesses could be physical or psychological or a combination of both. Whatever may be the type of mental illness, early detection and treatment is always preferable, so as to improve the quality of life. The treatment for each mental disorder varies. For some, counseling and therapy are found to be enough, but, for others, medication is needed, along with counseling. Some of the severe psychological disorders require either short-term or long-term hospitalization as a part of the treatment. The following is a list of mental disorders that will provide you with information about some of the common types of mental illnesses.

Different Mental Illnesses

As mentioned above, there are various types of mental disorders with different symptoms. These disorders have been classified by various organizations, including the World Health Organization (WHO) and American Psychiatric Association (APA). Though, there is no universally accepted list, those made by the WHO and APA are widely used. While the WHO list of mental illnesses is given in Chapter V of the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-10), APA has Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. Even though, efforts were taken to come up with a standardized system, both these lists differ in many ways. The following are some of the common mental disorders.

Organic Brain Disorders

These types of disorders are the direct result of physical changes that affect the brain. In other words, there are various diseases and disorders that can affect or damage the brain, leading to an impaired mental function. The term is used to denote physical disorders than can lead to mental illnesses and not the psychiatric ones. However, the demarcation between the two is almost impossible in many cases. So, this term is not widely used nowadays. The following are some of the mental illnesses that come under the term organic brain disorder/organic brain disease/organic brain syndrome.

• Huntington disease - an inherited disease that affects the brain. It causes progressive breakdown of the nerve cells in the brain, leading to functional, cognitive and psychiatric problems.
• Multiple sclerosis - another degenerative disease, multiple sclerosis affects the myelin sheath covering of the nerve cells, thereby slowing down or stopping the nerve impulses. This disorder affects the central nervous system (brain & spinal cord), causing a wide range of physical as well as mental symptoms.
• Alzheimer's disease - one of the common causes of dementia (loss of brain function caused by certain diseases), Alzheimer's disease is characterized by degeneration and death of brain cells, thereby affecting the mental function.
• Parkinson's Disease - a degenerative disorder of the central nervous system. This condition affects the nerve cells' ability to send messages and cause tremors that may even lead to paralysis.
• There are various cardiovascular diseases that may affect the functioning of the brain and lead to certain mental illnesses. These include stroke, cardiac arrhythmias, infections of the heart, etc.
• Sometimes mental disorders can be trauma-induced. For example, a head injury can affect the brain and cause damage to the organ, causing mental disorders.
• There are various other conditions that can affect brain functioning. They include medical conditions like cancer, thyroid problems, liver and kidney diseases, infections (like septicemia), certain vitamin deficiencies (like B12), drug and alcohol related - intoxication, drug and alcohol withdrawal symptoms, etc.

Mood and Anxiety Disorders

Some of the common mental illnesses come under this category. Mood disorders (otherwise called affective disorders) include conditions that are caused by persistent and extreme mood swings, like excessive happiness or sadness. Examples include depression, bipolar disorder, seasonal affective disorder (SAD), dysthymia, etc. Mood disorders can be substance-induced (like, alcohol and drugs) too. Anxiety disorders are conditions characterized by excessive and abnormal fear and anxiety. Various types of mental disorders come under this category. They include generalized anxiety disorder, phobias and panic disorder. The symptoms of these conditions can be so mild that others might not even suspect that the patient has any mental disorder. But, in some cases, the symptoms can affect the day-to-day activities, leading to a total disability. While some people develop such disorders after going through traumatic events, they can also be genetic or congenital.

Personality Disorders

Personality or character disorders are among some of the common types of mental illnesses. Those affected with such disorders have abnormal personality and behavioral patterns that clash with the social norms and expectations. They find it difficult to deal with people and to form healthy relationships. Such people are rigid in their thinking pattern and behavior, thereby leading to problems whenever they interact with people. Some of the common types of personality disorders are antisocial personality disorder, schizoid personality disorder, obsessive-compulsive personality disorder, narcissistic personality disorder and paranoid personality disorder.

There are 3 categories of personality disorder: Odd and unusual behavior - includes paranoid personality (a person who feels that everyone and everything is against them when in reality this is not true) and schizoid personality (apathetic to others and no desire to socialize). Another type is schizotypal personality disorder, which makes people extremely anxious in social situations. They may find it difficult to form relationships.

Next is dramatic, emotional or erratic behavior, which is seen in an antisocial personality (who has no respect for rules and regulations and often violates them, causing harm to others). This category includes borderline personality (erratic emotions and stress) too. Those with histrionic personality are attention seekers and manipulators. People with narcissistic personality are self-centered to the core.

The third category of personality disorders deals with those having an anxious and fearful nature. This group includes: avoidant personality disorder (fear of taking risks, gullible, hypersensitive, avoids all things that include social interaction), dependent personality disorder (dependent and submissive nature, allow others to take personal decisions, uncomfortable while lonely, need constant assurance) and obsessive-compulsive personality disorder (repetitive, compelling thoughts and obsessions concerning things that are not real - for instance, cleaning things that are already clean).

Psychotic Disorders

This group includes certain types of mental illnesses that severely affect the brain and thinking process. These people have difficulty thinking rationally and their judgments are impaired. Living their daily life becomes very, very difficult. However, for even the worst of these disorders, treatment is available. The most prevalent symptoms of these mental disorders are delusions and hallucinations. Those affected with these disorders develop false beliefs (delusions) and perceptions (hallucinations - false sensations, like hearing or smelling something that is not there). Some other symptoms are strange behavior (may be dangerous to themselves or others), lack of personal hygiene, decreased interest in doing things, strange speech patterns that are not understandable, mood swings, relationship difficulties and slow or strange movements.

The major psychotic disorders are:

1. Schizophrenia - the affected people have symptoms that last longer than six months. Delusions and hallucinations are common in this disorder.
2. Schizophreniform - people suffering from this disorder also have symptoms of schizophrenia, but the condition doesn't last longer than six months and is milder.
3. Schizoaffective disorder - those affected have both schizophrenia and other mood or affective disorders such as bipolar disorder.

This list of mental disorders is not an exhaustive one. There are many other types of mental illnesses like eating disorder (like anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa); dissociative disorders (like split personality); Tic disorders (repeated body movements that are uncontrollable); sleep disorders, somatoform disorders; factitious disorders, sexual and gender disorders, etc. Whatever may be the type, early identification and treatment is always advisable.

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and should not be used as a replacement for expert medical advice. Visiting your physician is the safest way to diagnose and treat any health condition.