Amy, age 38, is a worrier. She is restless, irritable and has difficulty concentrating. She worries that she worries so much and isn’t always sure what it is that she is worried about. She can’t let her husband or children leave the house without making them call her regularly to reassure her that they are ok. Her husband is growing weary of her fretting. Her children can’t understand what all the fuss is about. Their impatience with her only makes her worry more.
Amy seems to have Generalized Anxiety Disorder. She has 3 of the 6 symptoms: having irritability, feeling on the edge, and having difficulty concentrating. Also, it doesn't seem as if her condition is caused by psychological responses of a substance, or a medical condition. She may need to take a stress test. The results will tell the seriousness of the problem (minor or major) and can help the psychiatrist determine which medicine to prescribe. A cognitive behavioral psychologist may be right for her, since the psychologist would work with her.
Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) may run in families, and it sometimes increases with stress. It may begin at a young age.
Saturday, January 10, 2009
Friday, January 9, 2009
A Great Semester :-)
This has been a great semester! I was so excited to take this course and now that it's almost over, it's been everything that i've wanted it to be.
I liked how the assignments weren't boring or monotonous. The Stranger Paper, Play-doh activity, poster (extrinsic/intrinsic motivation), S/P science fair, and of course the blog were fun and helped learn the chapter. Other assignments, such as the vocabulary note cards and the Chapter at a Glances, helped study for the quizzes and tests. The IQ test was also an experience, since i had never taken one before.
My favorite activity was the plah-doh project. Looking at the terms of the Brain Chapter seemed so complex and stressful, but this activity made things easier. I also liked the Sensation &Perception science fair. It was great to work in a group because it was so easy to distribute the work among the three of us.
I didn't like the long chapters, because it was too hard to read the whole unit the night before! But when leaving out procrastination, one should read some of the unit every day and use the night before the quiz/test to review.
Hmm... What is there to leave out... If i had to pick something, it might be the Stranger Paper. But when i think about it, that paper taught us APA style, which you said would be useful in College. So i suppose that the Stranger paper should be included next year.
Maybe for your future AP Psych classes, you could incorporate more of the free-response prompts. But they don't have to be on the tests. You could maybe give students the free-response question before the test and have them turn it on the test day for extra points or something. Or maye you could just give a bunch of free-response questions at the end of the semester so that they can practice on their own.
Well i dont know much about Economics and i wont be taking it for another year. It seems like it would be a hard subject with a lot of studying and unfamiliar terms, but i'm sure that it wont be a boring or a tedious subject.
Thanks for a great semester Mrs. Halfen! Good luck with teaching AP Econ :-)
I liked how the assignments weren't boring or monotonous. The Stranger Paper, Play-doh activity, poster (extrinsic/intrinsic motivation), S/P science fair, and of course the blog were fun and helped learn the chapter. Other assignments, such as the vocabulary note cards and the Chapter at a Glances, helped study for the quizzes and tests. The IQ test was also an experience, since i had never taken one before.
My favorite activity was the plah-doh project. Looking at the terms of the Brain Chapter seemed so complex and stressful, but this activity made things easier. I also liked the Sensation &Perception science fair. It was great to work in a group because it was so easy to distribute the work among the three of us.
I didn't like the long chapters, because it was too hard to read the whole unit the night before! But when leaving out procrastination, one should read some of the unit every day and use the night before the quiz/test to review.
Hmm... What is there to leave out... If i had to pick something, it might be the Stranger Paper. But when i think about it, that paper taught us APA style, which you said would be useful in College. So i suppose that the Stranger paper should be included next year.
Maybe for your future AP Psych classes, you could incorporate more of the free-response prompts. But they don't have to be on the tests. You could maybe give students the free-response question before the test and have them turn it on the test day for extra points or something. Or maye you could just give a bunch of free-response questions at the end of the semester so that they can practice on their own.
Well i dont know much about Economics and i wont be taking it for another year. It seems like it would be a hard subject with a lot of studying and unfamiliar terms, but i'm sure that it wont be a boring or a tedious subject.
Thanks for a great semester Mrs. Halfen! Good luck with teaching AP Econ :-)
Friday, December 19, 2008
Mental Health year in review: Child Bipolar Disorder
One thing that I came across while reading the Mental Health Year in Review 2008, was child bipolar disorder. This interested me because I didnt really know much about it. Also, i always pictured bipolar disorder to be associated with a guilty adult, rather than an innocent child.
Nevertheless, some scientists are reluctant to diagnose children in general to this disorder. In spite of this, there are symptoms of pediatric bipolar disorder that include irritable mood, extreme silence, rapidly changing moods, explosive rages, separation anxiety, defiance of activity, lack of sleep, hyperactivity, and more. This criteria is similar to the adult disorder, but children and teens only need to have four of these symptoms in order to be diagnosed. Adults usually have distinct cycles, while children have fluctuating periods of irritability. In addition, these symptoms may lead to a great deal of stress in children or teens. In fact, the condition may go to an extreme that children will be at risk for school failure, substance abuse, and/or suicide.
It's important for one to not get confused with these symptoms. Feeling separation anxiety, for example, is completely normal such as on the first day of school. However, because the diagnostic manual doesn't recognize pediatric disorder or the symptoms listen above, there is quite a bit of controversy over the validity of the diagnosis.
Nevertheless, some scientists are reluctant to diagnose children in general to this disorder. In spite of this, there are symptoms of pediatric bipolar disorder that include irritable mood, extreme silence, rapidly changing moods, explosive rages, separation anxiety, defiance of activity, lack of sleep, hyperactivity, and more. This criteria is similar to the adult disorder, but children and teens only need to have four of these symptoms in order to be diagnosed. Adults usually have distinct cycles, while children have fluctuating periods of irritability. In addition, these symptoms may lead to a great deal of stress in children or teens. In fact, the condition may go to an extreme that children will be at risk for school failure, substance abuse, and/or suicide.
It's important for one to not get confused with these symptoms. Feeling separation anxiety, for example, is completely normal such as on the first day of school. However, because the diagnostic manual doesn't recognize pediatric disorder or the symptoms listen above, there is quite a bit of controversy over the validity of the diagnosis.
Friday, December 12, 2008
Personality Test Results Summary
I wasn't to surprised with my test results. A couple reiterated things I already knew about my self, while a couple others gave a label that I would not have previously thought of. The Jung Typology Test said I am ISFJ and:
moderately expressed introvert
moderately expressed sensing personality
moderately expressed feeling personality
slightly expressed judging personality
I think this test is the most reliable. Some of the questions were repetitive, but I think that it was necessary in clarifying the test-taker's personality.
The Big 5 was quite detailed. I found it to be moderately accurate, however i didnt prefer it because of it's length. My results seem as though i can improve some things about myself. I had a low Expressive style of 2.10, a high interpersonal style of 4.10, a high work style of 3.5, a high emotional style of 2.4, and a medium intellectual style of 3.00
The Big 7, was of course, similar to the Big 5. I thought it was slightly inaccurate, however, not useful since most of my scores turned out to be "medium." I had a medium Ambition of 2.90, a medium Sociability of 2.80, a medium Likeability of 3.00, a high Prudence of 4.3, a medium Adjustment of 3.40, a medium School Success of 2.90, and also a medium intelligence of 2.90. I thought that the questions were not well-rounded.
I didn't like the Deviant Personality Test. It asked strange questions like "do you find yourself attractive" or vicious vain. The scores were confusing and weren't worded correctly. There wasn't even a total overall score. the test said i was ethical, honest, and not arrogant.
moderately expressed introvert
moderately expressed sensing personality
moderately expressed feeling personality
slightly expressed judging personality
I think this test is the most reliable. Some of the questions were repetitive, but I think that it was necessary in clarifying the test-taker's personality.
The Big 5 was quite detailed. I found it to be moderately accurate, however i didnt prefer it because of it's length. My results seem as though i can improve some things about myself. I had a low Expressive style of 2.10, a high interpersonal style of 4.10, a high work style of 3.5, a high emotional style of 2.4, and a medium intellectual style of 3.00
The Big 7, was of course, similar to the Big 5. I thought it was slightly inaccurate, however, not useful since most of my scores turned out to be "medium." I had a medium Ambition of 2.90, a medium Sociability of 2.80, a medium Likeability of 3.00, a high Prudence of 4.3, a medium Adjustment of 3.40, a medium School Success of 2.90, and also a medium intelligence of 2.90. I thought that the questions were not well-rounded.
I didn't like the Deviant Personality Test. It asked strange questions like "do you find yourself attractive" or vicious vain. The scores were confusing and weren't worded correctly. There wasn't even a total overall score. the test said i was ethical, honest, and not arrogant.
Friday, December 5, 2008
Why haven't you sent me a letter yet?
Dear Mom,
Freshman year at Yale hasn't started out to great. It seems as though my teachers don't care at all about the stress I'm having. They know of my high school backround and should therefore speak to me with more respect and generosity, right?
Zack doesn't seem very emphatic about being blessed with such a spectacular roomate like me. He claims that he is too busy studying to hang out with me during the week. How selfish is that? I don't know why he is being such a loser. I guess it's because he's jealous of me since I'm two-and-a-half inches taller.
Mom, it's been a while since you last told me that you're proud of me for getting into Yale. I bet that when i come back to vist next month, y'all are going to throw a surprise party and have gifts for me and everything!
I know it's just the beginning, but I can see it now-- I'll be such a successful person by the time i graduate. I'd have so much experience, have so many friends, and I'd be the role model for hundreds of high school students.
Oh I almost forgot! I dyed my hair jet-black! I know you got a little paranoid the last time I dyed it, but this time, it's fifty times better! I'll be so annoyed when i come back home and everybody asks me about my new hair.
See you soon!
Love your favorite son,
Hussain
PS: Don't forget that you can never love me too much.
Freshman year at Yale hasn't started out to great. It seems as though my teachers don't care at all about the stress I'm having. They know of my high school backround and should therefore speak to me with more respect and generosity, right?
Zack doesn't seem very emphatic about being blessed with such a spectacular roomate like me. He claims that he is too busy studying to hang out with me during the week. How selfish is that? I don't know why he is being such a loser. I guess it's because he's jealous of me since I'm two-and-a-half inches taller.
Mom, it's been a while since you last told me that you're proud of me for getting into Yale. I bet that when i come back to vist next month, y'all are going to throw a surprise party and have gifts for me and everything!
I know it's just the beginning, but I can see it now-- I'll be such a successful person by the time i graduate. I'd have so much experience, have so many friends, and I'd be the role model for hundreds of high school students.
Oh I almost forgot! I dyed my hair jet-black! I know you got a little paranoid the last time I dyed it, but this time, it's fifty times better! I'll be so annoyed when i come back home and everybody asks me about my new hair.
See you soon!
Love your favorite son,
Hussain
PS: Don't forget that you can never love me too much.
Friday, November 7, 2008
Cher's Noneffective Dyslexia
Cher, born in California in 1946, is a woman of many talents-- an actress, a pop singer, a director, and a record producer. Her legacy comprises of many things, including her memoir The First Time and singles like "Strong Enough," "With or Without You," "Still," and more. However, her childhood was full of sadness; she was poor, had no father, and her mother married eight times and could not support the family. 
Surprisingly, Cher had the psychological disorder Dyslexia. By the time she was sixteen, Cher dropped out of school and started to act in Los Angeles. She did not regret her decision of leaving school because her life once again changed. At the age of sixteen, she met Sonny, and started a pop/rock duo with him titled "Sonny &Cher." Dyslexia seldom affected her life, aside from her education, as she became quite successful. For example, 100 million of her records have been sold worldwide.
Dyslexia, in my opinion, is a disorder which should not be frowned upon as much. This disorder does indeed affect people's lives, however, they should learn to cope with this disorder. Like Cher, one should have goals in life that are not affected by this issue. For example, someone who has dyslexia should not have ambitions that require extensive English or writing skills.
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