what happens to people when they have a nervous breakdown - how would you know?

Answer 1

A nervous breakdown is not a clinical term, but can apply to many different situations in which someone begins to exhibit symptoms of different mental illnesses, or heavy emotional stress. This may show up in the form of an attempted suicide, or extreme behavior that requires hospitalization.

Since many different illnesses can cause what many term a “nervous breakdown,” it is difficult to describe symptoms. Those undergoing high levels of stress, for example after the death of a parent, spouse, or child, or who have been through a messy divorce are more likely to have a “nervous breakdown”.
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The Symptoms

# Disinterest in work or family life
# Disinterest in social life or alienation from previously close friends and family
# Sleep disruption or much longer periods of sleep
# Significant changes in appetite, such as eating too little or too much
# Paranoid thoughts, such as the thought people are trying to harm you
# Thoughts of grandeur or invincibility
# Feelings of persistent anxiety or panic attacks

Answer 2

I don't KNOW but I think an inability to cope with everyday life is what is meant. The individual is out of control. I have a neighbour like that. : <

Maybe one is screaming, has very erratic behavior--beating one someone perhaps, or maybe is severely depressed. If symptoms are severe enough and the person has the misfortune to be examined by a practitioner of modern medicine, they quite certainly will be offered drugs--which do nothing but mask symptoms and further compromise immunity and they can be hospitalized.

I believe the most likely cause is poor diet or environmental factors. Stress isn't 'out there' as much as it is our reaction to our environment. Coping is difficult when one's immunity is compromised. Theron Randolph, pioneering environmental allergist in the 30s was the first to find the link between food and psychosis.

Reactions can be to anything and can be corrected by removing the aggravating factors or others believe by strengthening the immune system.

Randolph did extensive research in a mental hospital and concluded 80% or so of mental patients could be helped through diet. He was NOT thanked but told to leave. Of course. His discoveries were not good for profits.

Sorry, but I really don't know how the degree of psychois is determined. I'd say it's largely a subjective determination. Means depends who's judging and how. Even if a practioner has a list of questions, there is a subjective element.

Marshall Manell, a successor of Randolph is most enlightening about symptoms that can be caused by allergy, among them manic depressive disorder, depression, mental confusion, various pains. Everyone should have this book and if nothing else look at the index for various aliments that can be caused.

Japan, where health and diet practices are superior, insisted for years there was no such thing as mental illness. Randolph and Mandell these are 'mental' manifestations of physical problems. Mind and body are one.

Why is it called nervous breakdown? I think as it's reaching a point where one just cannot TOLERATE anything as if things were on their nerves though nerves may be just one of the body's systems involved.

Answer 3

My own experience of a breakdown was when a shock to the system completely knocked me off my feet. I'd only just solved a long-term problem so didn't want/need any more. Friends noticed a change of character in me and advised me to get help so I ended up having several months of counselling. The link below gives a better explanation.

Answer 4

Imagine you're really tired and it's finals week and your really scared that you might get caught by your parents for something and your pretty sure you're gonna fail a REALLY important class but you could pass if only you do this thing, but you don't really know what that thing is and your best friend and your b/g friend keep getting mad at you and you just can't understand why but it's really important that you fix it and your whole life is riding on about 15 different things and you for some reason can't even finish one of them and its about 2 minutes till it's all due. Now imagine feeling all that but it's just a perfectly normal day. That's KIND OF like a breakdown... at least one kind of breakdown anyway.

Answer 5

For the accusative second part of your question, I'm guessing you're on the verge. I've never suffered a nervous break down but I'm guessing, if you can avoid it, don't.

Seek help in one form or another. The proper form would be advisors, counselors and friends. Less proper would be drugs, alcohol and going out just to get into a fight.

Please look in the telephone book for public services in your area and call someone appropriate to your problem. The hardest part of all is picking up that receiver and dialing that number.

Answer 6

The first answer is a pretty good representation. I have unfond memories of a Thanksgiving dinner between two families in which one daughter in the other family had lost touch with reality and answered any request or question ("Would you like the salt?") with a continuous babble of stream of conciousness ("Would I like the salt? Or the salt and pepper and what about sugar? No, just salt and maybe more salt ..." ) which might last a minute or two for each episode. For other people, it might be done internally so they can't be reached verbally or might be an explosive reaction all out of proportion to what was said or done.

Answer 7

please remember that "nervous breakdown" is only a term. It can mean a variety of different things that can happen to a person who is unable to cope anymore and needs more specialized treatment for (any) type of mental problem. This would include suicide attempts, self injury, loss of contact with reality, out of control behavior, and a danger to others.

Answer 8

A nervous breakdown is an inability to cope with life or a psychosis (break from reality). It could involve uncontrollable crying, severe anxiety where you can't move, acting bizarre and irrational, hallucinations, delusions, inability to care for oneself or those that depend on you - quite literally breaking down in mind and unable to function, etc.

Info on breakdowns here:
http://www.mind.org.uk/Information/Booklets/How+to/How+to+rebuild+your+life+after+breakdown.htm

Info on pyschotic experiences here:
http://www.mind.org.uk/Information/Booklets/Understanding/Understanding+Psychotic+Experiences.htm

Answer 9

It can be a succession of things, leading from severe stress, depression, and many other factors, you don't know it yourself necessarily until it's happening. I would say that the first thing to do is see a doctor for assessment, and treatment, the early diagnosis is best for the person to be on the road to a full recovery.

Answer 10

The first nervous breakdown is not realized by the patient. The spinal fluid has overloaded with depression chemicals and it goes to the medulla and the medulla begins rerouting messages that it is not allowed to. Language also starts to decay as well as logic because we think to ourselves . It is called a psychotic event today.