Less Than Two Minutes
On February 14, 2008, Steven Kazmierczak took less than two minutes to open fire on a lecture hall at Northern Illinois University, killing five, injuring eighteen, and finally taking his own life. Although he had a history of mental illness, Kazmierczak had been given the Dean’s Award, the highest honor an undergraduate of NIU can receive, attended graduate school at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and sought counseling for his mental illness. From the outside, it appeared that he had taken control of his life, described as “being so nice he must be a mass murderer” by faculty members at NIU. To say the least, his killing spree and subsequent suicide came as a shock to those who knew him, and it is difficult
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According to DSM-5 and class notes, Dissociative Amnesia is confusion and failure to recall information or events related to a person’s own identity. Steven Kazmierczak always seemed to know who he was and what he was doing, depressed and anxious as he may be. He did not seem confused about his personal identity, and he did not struggle to recall any information at any time. He was a disturbed man, but he did not show any signs of Dissociative …show more content…
These medications made him gain excessive weight and contract serious acne, and they did not even prevent him from attempting suicide several more times. He was also placed in a group home when he was a young man but did not feel safe there. Group environments, medication, and the council he sought at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign were not working for Kazmierczak, so the treatment option of Electroconvulsive Shock Therapy (ECT) seems to be appropriate. According to the textbook, ECT is used as a last resort for patients who suffer from Major Depression and may be seriously considering suicide. As someone who did not benefit from other types of treatment, Kazmierczak would have been a good candidate for the procedure. After being given a muscle relaxer, an anaesthetic, and being properly protected from the convulsions that would go through his body, a doctor would administer an electric through the
"Revelations About Adam Lanza's Mental Health Still Don't Explain the Violence." The Wire. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 May 2014.
An analysis of the most famous murderers and serial killers in the Chicago area shows varying degrees of psychopathy or mental illnesses, which ultimately contribute to homicidal comportment. Analysis also shows that...
As typical human beings we all want to know why someone could randomly take the lives of several innocent people all at one time. It is frightening and scientists figure if they can figure out why, then it can be prevented in the future. The documentary, Mind of a Rampage Killer, tries to solve the mystery and really dive deep into the minds of people who could potentially create such a horrifying situation. Through the use of ethos, logos, and pathos, this documentary concludes that every killer had something in common; they all struggled with mental disorders, depression, or outbursts of violence, all stemming from early childhood or an internal battle throughout growing up, some could have even just been born with a violent rage.
Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is a treatment for severe mental illness in which the brain is stimulated with a strong electrical current which induces a seizure. The seizure rearranges the brain's neurochemistry and results in an elevation of mood. This essay asks: Is ECT any safer and more effective in treating mood disorders than drug therapies? This treatment has a controversial history ever since it was first introduced in 1938. I intend to argue that electroconvulsive therapy is indeed a safe treatment of mental disorders when other treatments have failed. Due to the development of safer and less traumatic ways of administering ECT, the treatment has made a comeback, is greatly used, and proves to be effective.
An absence of education on the treatment is one of the most major reasons why electroconvulsive therapy is so strongly detested. Furthermore, individuals are not typically informed by psychiatrists on a technique such as ECT unless they are experiencing it personally, or someone they know is going through it. Consequently, countless individuals end up getting exposed to ECT for the first time through movies and other media depictions where it is, more often than not, portrayed negatively. Kellner states, “There have also been frequent misrepresentations of ECT in the media, and individuals and groups with particular social and political agendas have continued to convey distorted information about ECT (2)” (p. 1238). Education on ECT is so desperately needed for the reason that the information the majority of people seem to be given is incorrect or not based on fact. Additionally, these representations of the procedure are most always made to attack the treatment and render it inhumane. Moreover, the populous needs to be receiving their information from actual practitioners of this procedure, as opposed to those who are not, as it can help eliminate any inconsistencies or fallacies. By removing these misconceptions, numerous electroconvulsive therapy debates can be resolved, and a large amount of negative stigma towards the procedure can be
“Dissociative Identity Disorder.” NAMI: National Alliance on Mental Illnesses. NAMI, 1996-2014. Web. 14 May 2014. http://www.nami.org
Dissociative amnesia is a mental illness that involves disruptions in memory, consciousness, or identity. Dissociative amnesia occurs when a person blocks out certain information, usually of a stressful or traumatic event; it may be localized or selective. Localized amnesia occurs when the individual is unable to recall information during a period of time. Selective amnesia takes place when a person is unable to recall some information about a period of time. To be diagnosed with dissociative amnesia, a person must have one or more episodes of severe memory loss that is not due to another disorder or a physical condition. There must also be distress and impairment in important areas of functioning of the individual.
Dissociative Identity, formerly known as multiple personality disorder, is a condition in which, an individual has a host personality along with at least two or more personalities with each identity having his/her own ideas, memories, thoughts and way of doing things (www.mental-health-matters.com). These identities alternate back and forth assuming control over the other identities behavior. The inability to remember pertinent personal information, such as: childhood history is also a clear indication of this disorder. The needs and behavior that the primary identity lacks is usually freely displayed by one or more of the altering identities (Butcher, Mineka, Hooley, 299).
The following case study is of a male client, Scout, suffering from localized dissociative amnesia without a fugue state. Dissociative amnesia is when a person cannot remember information about their life. This forgetting can be thematic like specific events, or general, which can be life history or identity. Some people can be affected by both types of forgetting. Dissociative amnesia is much greater memory life than normal forgetting. This often interferes with their professional and social life.
What is Dissociative Identity Disorder? A proper explanation of DID necessitates a dissection of the name itself. Dissociation is “a mental process, which produces a lack of connection in a person's thoughts, memories, feelings, actions, or sense of identity.”1 In other words, there is a disruption in the way in which these usually integrated functions communicate. Daydreaming, highway hypnosis, or “getting lost” in a book or movie are all examples of very mild dissociation.
These mental disorders lead to disconnection in thoughts, memories, identity and actions (American Psychiatric Association, 2013). The symptoms of a dissociative disorder depend on the specific disorder. Dissociative disorders have symptoms such as amnesia, which further make it challenging to conduct assessments. So staying patient when working with clients who suffer from these disorders are very important. The experiences scale in this case measures symptoms which lead to further analysis. It is necessary to use the scale as a social worker when symptoms of dissociative disorders are reported by an individual or by others after observation. This is in alignment with the provisions of
Dissociative identity disorder, once known as "multiple personality disorder", is exactly as it sounds; a disorder in which one individual has two or more complete personalities (Baron,Byrne,Kantowitz 1977). It is a form of dissociation disorder, which causes a lack of connection in one's thoughts, feelings, memories, and even actions (notes). This particular dissociation disorder is extremely rare, only .01% to .1% of the general population is diagnosed with it and 7% potentially have it without being diagnosed. It is also the most severe dissociation disorder (Johnson, Kimball, MD2012 ). Dissociative identity disorder is severe enough to cause people to experience fragmented...
Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is a widely practiced intervention used to treat psychiatric disorders in specific groups of mental health patients.(1-3) A small electrical current is applied via electrodes attached to the patients head to induce a generalised cerebral seizure whilst the patient is sedated under a general anaesthetic.(4) The induction of seizures to treat psychiatric disorders originated from the historical observation that schizophrenic patients improved temporarily after a spontaneous seizure.(5-7) The most common contemporary use of ECT is found in the treatment of mood disorders. The indications, risks and adverse effects of ECT and the evidence justifying its clinical use shall be briefly discussed.
A diagnosis for M.K was provided as Dissociative Identity Disorder. M.K showed many links to the diagnosis criteria for Dissociative Identity Disorder. According
Dissociation can be defined as the splitting of regular interconnected mechanisms of memory, consciousness, perception and identity which define a person (Waseem, 2016). Dissociative identity disorder is a type of dissociative disorder where 2 or more personalities exist together in an individual (Passer, Mitchell, Smith, Muir, & Akinson, 2014). There are several other possible physiological effects of dissociative identity disorder due to the unique personalities and skills set that each personality brings. These physiological changes can range from in the mind to physical activities based on each personality.