Specific phobia is a medical term used to describe a persistent, irrational fear-based reaction to things or situations that have a minor or nonexistent potential to cause harm. Various people can develop this type of response to almost anything. However, some phobic reactions occur much more frequently than others. Women and girls develop specific phobias …
A number of scientific studies have revealed the complex workings of our brain’s motivation and reward center and how neurotransmitters, often referred to as the brain’s “feel-good chemicals,” are released when we desire something or experience pleasure. Our brains produce numerous natural neurotransmitters that play critical roles in our health and how we feel. The …
Addiction and Dopamine Neurotransmitters: How Addiction Works Read More »
Schizoaffective disorder is a psychiatric condition characterized by a set of symptoms that combines features of schizophrenia with features of depression, mania, or some other form of mood disorder. Compared to most other mental illnesses, doctors know relatively little about schizoaffective illness. This is true, in part, because of the complex combination of symptoms that …
Relapse is more the rule than the exception in addiction recovery. In fact, relapse is considered a component of addiction, according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), which says, “Addiction is a chronic, relapsing brain disease that is characterized by compulsive drug seeking and use, despite harmful consequences.” Instead of viewing relapse as …
Narcissistic personality disorder (NPD) is a mental health condition marked by deep-seated insecurity hidden behind such things as outsized displays of arrogance, self-importance, and self-adulation. This condition affects a small but significant percentage of American adults. Both women and men develop NPD. However, the condition’s impact on women differs from its impact on men in …
As we welcome in a new decade of promise and possibility, the Promises Behavioral Health marketing team has decided to toss out the old meaning of New Year’s Resolutions and focus on a one word theme to live and work towards this year. This one word promise will be accomplished through thoughtful actions and by …
One of the greatest challenges to getting sober is re-discovering your identity outside of drinking. Before you began rehab, going to the bars, hanging out at parties, drinking during the game, or unwinding with a glass of wine may have been your normal routine. One of the ways to disassociate with alcohol is to engage …
Dermatillomania, also known as skin picking disorder (SPD), is a serious problem in which an individual picks at their skin to the extent that it causes wounds. Many people don’t have an awareness of this condition but 2% to 3% of the population actually struggles with it. If you struggle with compulsive skin picking, you …
Compulsive Skin Picking – What Is Dermatillomania? Read More »
Bipolar disorder not otherwise specified (BP-NOS) is the diagnostic category that mental health professionals use when describing bipolar symptoms that don’t fit the criteria for an official form of bipolar illness. As such, the category acts as a generalized depository for bipolar-related characteristics. Despite its catchall nature, a BP-NOS diagnosis is medically serious. In many …
Histrionic personality disorder (HPD) is a psychiatric condition characterized by highly dramatic and/or emotional attention-seeking conduct that disrupts a person’s ability to participate fully in everyday life. It belongs to a larger group of conditions commonly referred to as Cluster B personality disorders. Women develop histrionic personality disorder roughly four times more frequently than men. …