Neurosis Characteristics and Types

By Christina Sponias

The different types of neurosis are defined by the different psychological types that characterize human beings. There are four psychological types, but they become eight because we have four introverted types and four extroverted types that use the same psychological functions in different ways.

The four psychological functions that define the four basic psychological types are based on:

1- Thoughts
2- Feelings
3- Sensations
4- Intuition

Depending on which of these four psychological functions is the basic one in your psyche, your behavior will adopt a series of pre-determined attitudes in life. This means that what you choose to do or what you do without controlling yourself is already pre-programmed.

You may believe that you are unique and your characteristics can be found only within you, but the truth is that besides your undoubted uniqueness (only because your particular combination of characteristics is unique even if the characteristics of your personality are found in all personalities) your behavior is determined by your psychological type. In other words, the details of your life may differ from the details of someone else's life that belongs to the same psychological type as you, but in the end both of you will do exactly the same things.

Why? Because you follow exactly the same path to find solutions for your problems. This path is pre-established by the psychological function that is the most active in your psyche.

So, when you become neurotic, your personality acquires different characteristics, that don't belong to your psychological type. If you are a rational psychological type, you suddenly become a slave to your feelings when you meet a person that has the characteristics that most attract your psychological type. Your rationalism cannot help you.

However, it can bother you, and this is exactly what it does. If you are an introverted psychological type based on thoughts, your rationalism is going to impede your feelings to have the chance to appear on the surface of your conscience.

A real war will begin inside you. Your wild feelings that never had the chance to appear in your behaviour, want to invade your human conscience and provoke an explosion.

On the other hand, your cruel rationalism wants to kill your feelings and this is why it starts sending you various absurd ideas. It tells you for example, that the person you love is too poor, that you have better plans in life, that you must be proud of yourself and never let the other person understand that you are in love with them and other ideas like these, which can only discourage and mislead you.

If you follow the suggestions of your basic psychological function, you become neurotic because you don't let your feelings live and give you what you need from them.

If you follow the impulsive desires imposed by your wild feelings, you become neurotic when you realize that you cannot control your behavior, since you start doing things that are totally opposite to what you usually do and you cannot stop doing them. Your thoughts lose their power.

If you are an extroverted psychological type based on intuitions, you are going to spend all your energy pursuing new opportunities, instead of developing the ones you have already found. You may end up without money, simply because when you find the best opportunities, you never make them grow.

If you are an introverted psychological type based on sensations, your world will be comprehensible only to you. You are always distant from the objective reality, creating your own world over the existing one, which you never examine for what it actually is.

What happens when you become neurotic? The psychological function that is opposite to the basic psychological function of your psyche invades your human conscience, even though it is wild, because it never had the chance to be examined by the human conscience and tamed by its consciousness.

This is why the different types and characteristics of neurosis depend on the different psychological types and the characteristics of the psychological functions that don't belong to the known conscience.

If you want to stay far away from neurosis and worse mental illnesses, you must prevent craziness while you still can, because once the process of destruction of your human conscience by the wild side of your conscience is too advanced, it cannot be interrupted.

Prevent Depression and Craziness through the scientific method of Dream Interpretation discovered by Carl Jung and simplified by Christina Sponias, a writer who continued Jung's research in the unknown region of the human psychic sphere. Learn more at: http://www.scientificdreaminterpretation.com and http://www.booksirecommend.com
Click here and download your copy of the Free ebook

Beating Depression and Craziness

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Alzheimer's Disease The Early Warning Signs

By David McEvoy

Alzheimer's disease has been hitting the headlines quite a bit recently, partly due to the fact that well known and best selling author Terry Pratchett OBE has a form of the disease and partly because recent research has highlighted that the number of people developing Alzheimer's disease is on the increase. However, many people are still unaware of what Alzheimer's disease actually is, what to expect if you or someone close to you is diagnosed with it, and how to spot the early warning signs.

What is Alzheimer's disease?

Alzheimer's disease was first described in 1906 by German neurologist Alois Alzheimer. It is a progressive disease affecting the brain that ultimately ends in death. Over time, plaques and tangles develop and the brain deteriorates and atrophies due to a loss of neurons and synapses in the cerebral cortex and some sub-cortical regions of the brain. As the disease and the subsequent brain damage progresses, the symptoms become more and more severe. How long the process takes from onset to death can vary considerably from person to person.

How common is it?

It is in fact the most common form of dementia affecting as many as 5 million Americans and just over 400,000 people in the UK and approximately 24 million people worldwide.

What causes it and who gets it?

Alzheimer's disease is generally associated with elderly people as it often begins over the age of 65, and the greater the age, the greater the risk, however, there is also an early form of Alzheimer's disease that is relatively rare but which progresses more rapidly.

Both men and women can develop Alzheimer's but women seem to be slightly more at risk than men. Other risk factors include medical conditions affecting the heart and arteries, environmental factors such as smoking, and diet. There isn't a definitive cause; nether is there an established genetic link, although research is currently being done in this area as some families do seem to show a genetic tendency, particularly if two direct relatives have the disease. Other environmental causes that have been suggested in the past include exposure to magnetic fields, or to aluminium, but these have never been scientifically validated.

What are the early signs and symptoms?

The most common early symptom reported is memory lapses. Although some memory loss is perfectly normal as we age, in people with Alzheimer's disease there is a much faster decline as well as other cognitive problems that become increasingly evident.

It is usually the sufferer's family and friends that will first notice that someone isn't behaving in the way that they used to. For example, short term memory lapses become more common and the individual finds it difficult to concentrate on tasks that they once found easy. Personality changes may become evident as well as problems with communication.

Early signs and symptoms of Alzheimer's disease can include any or all of the following:

• Confusion
• Apathy
• Avoiding social contact
• Irritability and anxiousness
• Forgetting names and places on a regular basis
• Repeating oneself often in a short space of time
• An inability to get organised, plan and think coherently
• Difficulty with daily routine tasks and making decisions
• Difficulty with arithmetic, reading, writing and other cognitive tasks
• May become disorientated in familiar places
• Indulging in strange behaviour

It is important to note that these symptoms do not necessarily indicate that someone is in the early stages of Alzheimer's disease as these same symptoms can occur as a result of other completely unconnected factors.

In the early stages, an individual may be able to compensate quite well for these problems and will continue to live and work independently for some time. However, the nature of Alzheimer's is that the symptoms will always get progressively worse, severe dementia is inevitable.
What is the prognosis?

There is no cure for Alzheimer's disease so treatment is of a palliative nature. As the disease progresses, an individual's ability to function independently will decline until eventually they lose control of their mental faculties and all bodily functions. If the disease is diagnosed early, then there is some evidence that with a good diet and the right kind of support and care, it may be possible to delay the progression of the disease; however, this is not conclusive.

One of the most devastating aspects of this disease is the effect it can have on family and friends who are forced to watch their loved one deteriorate to the point that they no longer recognise them. Indeed, there is a higher rate of depression amongst carers of people with Alzheimer's disease than those with Alzheimer's themselves.

Many people with Alzheimer's stay at home, particularly in the early stages, and are cared for by family. There is a great deal that can be done on a practical basis to ensure that the individual suffering from Alzheimer's remains as independent as possible for as long as possible, as well as help and support available for those who care for them. There are a number of organisations that have been set up with the primary aim of doing just that. You can find out more information about what is available in your area by speaking to your doctor or other health care professional.

Depression and anxiety are serious mental health conditions that can strike anyone at anytime. For more information about depression and selp help come and visit our site.

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How We Can Live More Harmoniously With Our Multiple Selves?

By Janis Mccann, Ph.d. and David Mccann, Phd.

Our psyche has a multiplicity of psychological parts; these parts serve to fulfill our psycho-social and spiritual requirements for health and wholeness. The psychological theory that addresses and understands the psyche and their parts, and the resulting inter- and intra-relationship conflicts, is called the "Psychology of the Aware Ego", and the process is know as "The Aware Ego Process" or "Voice Dialogue". Voice Dialogue introduces you to parts of your psyche which are called Inner Selves. Inner Selves are composed of Primary Selves and Disowned Selves. Primary Selves are a selection of those inner selves with which we are most identified, as when we make the statement, "this is who I am." The Primary Selves make up our conscious personality and initially are mostly determined by our familial and social conditioning. In fact, so much of what runs our Primary Selves Systems are ethical stances or codes that are reinforced and embedded in our culture.

Disowned Selves are the inner selves that we learned to repress and deny early in our childhood as a result of familial and social conditioning. Although they are disowned, they still operate below the level of our conscious intention. Although disowned, they are as much a part of us as our primary selves. We perceive them positively or negatively in others through a process called "projection." We also experience the disowned parts as characters in our dreams and fantasies, and will even sense them as physical sensations or manifestations. The more fixed or rigid are our primary selves, the more extreme are our projections and somaticized experiences.

Developed by Drs. Hal and Sidra Stone in the early 1970's, The Psychology of the Aware Ego is a theoretical way of looking at the process of developing awareness of the multiplicity of selves. The theory presents a view of the human psyche consisting of three dimensions of consciousness: a witness or state of awareness, the ego, and the many sub-personalities (or 'inner selves") from which a personal identity is constructed.

As a rule, a person develops his/her character or ego from a subset of an array of possible parts or sub-personalities. Generally, a person will identify with one quality to the exclusion of its opposite. For example, although it is possible to be a responsible, dependable person, it's also possible to be a playful, spirited being. Although we can present as a person who feels most secure when there are structures and rules, it's also possible to be an individual who loves novelty and adventure. A person may be identified with a particular style of being within his or her family, the very opposite with peers, and even different with colleagues.

We are born vulnerable and totally dependent, with basic physiological and psycho-social needs, desires, even spiritual values that must be fulfilled. Certain basic needs must be met in order to be and feel safe, to feel that we belong, to have personal integrity, to experience a sense of purpose. If our needs are successfully met, these vulnerable selves feel contentment and satisfaction; unmet needs create pain and suffering to the inner selves. Although born vulnerable, our native intelligence and instinctual drives provide potential for meeting our needs. Emotionally, intellectually and sensually, we learn ways of being to induce our caregivers to support our life. As we integrate what we learn from our caregivers, these learnings add to one's growing power to protect and fulfill our own needs.

Power based selves as opposed to the vulnerable ones are one's response to life's conditions and are shaped by beliefs we form from our perception and experience, learned patterns of holding or expressing our physical and emotional energies, and on our instinctual drives for survival. These inner selves are manifested in our habits, ideas, body language and bodily experience. The purpose of our primary selves is to act in a way that will fulfill our survival and hopefully our eventual potential to reach deep joy and fulfillment. Again, directly related to each of these inner selves are vulnerable selves who feel the status of our needs.

From childhood, one's personality or ego-self is developed in such a way that it generally becomes identified with meeting certain needs and values over others. A child may find that by aligning himself with those values and behaviors, he is rewarded with praise and acceptance. He learns first to not act on his needs and then to not even feel these needs. Those aligned sub-personalities become his primary selves, his primary ego identifications. Alternately, that very same child, in the same context could look at those same prevailing values and energetically assess the level of contentment or suffering the family (including himself) is experiencing. Our primary selves are our psychic solution for surviving and existing in the world into which we were born. If there is more suffering than contentment, this same child could abandon the prevailing familial values in favor of those the family disowns. This child may become identified with the polar opposite of the family values, even choosing to take a divergent path in life.

Finally we ask, "whatever happened to all the potential selves- and needs - that we have disowned?" They can be judgmentally projected out onto others and either positively or negatively expressed. They can also be displaced into neurotic behavior or transformed into bodily phenomena. Frustrated needs can easily be recognized in headaches, intestinal distress, addictions and even accident proneness, etc. These disowned inner selves often appear in our dreams and fantasies and are often expressed under the influence of drugs, alcohol and severe stress.

It is normal for individuals to reach adulthood with an array of primary and disowned selves. Our primary selves were our psychic solution for surviving and existing in the world into which we were born. As we grow and move beyond our family of origin, we eventually are confronted with the need to redefine and stretch ourselves. We may discover that while expressing a particular style is admired -and even required - in our family of origin, it is dysfunctional in the business world. In other words, those disowned selves, judged and extinguished within childhood, become necessary for continued survival and, even for more than survival in the adult world.

In Conclusion

We have been describing a normal developmental process in which our Ego is identified with a certain selection of inner selves, to the exclusion of others, resulting from social and familial conditioning. The Voice Dialogue Work provides a process which gradually brings to our awareness, the reality that we have been identified with one self , having had limited or no access to it's opposite. An individual gradually comes to realize that s/he is missing half of her human capacity or potential. Once we have the awareness that "It's not that "I am" for instance, reliable and dependable, but rather, "I have" a dependable and reliable part of myself which both supports me and yet limits me," we experience an "Aware Ego Process." It is in that moment that we consciously recognize and honor a self without identifying with it as "who and what I fundamentally am." That self is a possible way of being, no longer the only one.

By learning how to enter into an Aware Ego state, these parts of us can be perceived with the neutrality of the Awareness or Witness State. Temporarily, then, one has access to an Awareness State which perceives with neutrality, that is without judgment. In this state the Aware Ego, the executive function of the psyche, can exercise true free will.

The Psychology of the Aware Ego and The Voice Dialogue Process, is a journey in consciousness, enhancing one's capacity to stand between their opposites, thus allowing one to experience a true sense of choice. It is a journey in consciousness which brings to one's personal and professional life a greater capacity for true balance, inner harmony and transformation.

Please visit our website for more information regarding the Aware Ego/Voice Dialogue process.Drs. Janis and David McCanninfo@relationship-coaches.comhttp://www.relationship-coaches.com

Drs. Janis and David Mccann 805/646-4455info@relationship-coaches.com ; http://www.relationship-coaches.com323 E. Matilija Street Ojai, CA 93023
Workshops, Seminars, and Individual Retreats for Couples are offered in Ojai, Santa Barbara, Northern California, San Diego and San Luis Obispo, California as well as Sedona, Arizona, Santa Fe, New Mexico, and Cancun, Mexico. Telephone coaching and Teleconferencing are available.

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Your Schizophrenia Questions Answered

By Mike Selvon

Imagine how hard it would be if your version of reality did not seem to coincide with what the general public believed to be reality. Living each day with hallucinations and hearing voices inside your head that are really not there.

For millions of people around the world this is a normal day. They live, or try to live, their lives in the best way possible while suffering from schizophrenia. There are jokes made but the ugly reality is far from joking.

It can devastate a person, his or her job, family and personal interactions with other people. Sometimes it can mean prolonged time in an institution. In the past this disease was not understood and as a result the individuals afflicted with schizophrenia were often locked away in an insane asylum for most of their lives.

The treatment methods were barbaric and did not have a positive outcome for the patients. In this article we will cover the basics of schizophrenia and what it could mean to you as either a patient or a family/friend of someone diagnosed with this illness.

What is schizophrenia?

Schizophrenia is a mental diagnosis of a disorder of the brain and personality. It is very serious and can cause great difficulties for the person diagnosed and living with the disease. It has only been coined since 1908 but great strides have been made in recent years to further understand how this disease affects the personal and occupational functions of patients.

What are the types of schizophrenia?

There are five different classifications of schizophrenia. These classifications are: residual, undifferentiated, catatonic, paranoid and disorganized. Each of these classifications differs on the symptoms and how the person interacts with other people as well as their state of living with their own personality and mental disorder.

The classification helps doctors and psychiatrists help treat the patient and prescribe the right medication for the disease. This is important for helping the person lead as normal of a life as possible.

What is the prognosis for schizophrenia?

With the right treatment and medications a person can live with schizophrenia. It may never be easy but at least they can begin to function in a way that allows them to interact with others, work and have a functioning home life with real relationships. Some people may never get better or see improvement but those cases are rare.

How is it prevented?

Like other mental diseases there is no prevention. There is merely observation for the signs by both the patient and the patient's family or friends. Researchers do not know yet if the disease is truly genetically passed down but there have been studies that do support this hypothesis.

How does substance abuse affect schizophrenia?

Alcohol and illegal drugs can make the symptoms of schizophrenia much, much worse and are why doctors highly advocate that patients do not engage in risky behaviors such as those. It can make the hallucinations and social withdrawal even worse. It may seem to mellow out the symptoms at first but it is only a mask for the bigger issues and can becomes a crutch that leads to great detriment to the sufferer.

A free audio gift awaits you at our portal site, where you can enrich your knowledge further about schizophrenia. Your comment is much appreciated at our mental illness blog.

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