Cultural perceptions of mental disorders such as psychosis or schizophrenia are believed to be caused by jinn (spirits) in Muslim majority countries. Furthermore, those in Arab-Muslim societies perceive those who act differently than the social norm as “crazy” or as abnormal behaviour. This differs from the lived experience of individuals in India and how they attain their perspectives on mental health issues through a variety of spiritual and healing traditions. In Cambodia, hallucinations are linked with spirit visitation, a term they call “cultural kindling”. These examples of differences are attributed to culture and the way it shapes conceptions of mental disorders. These cultural differences can be useful in bridging the gap of cultural understanding and psychiatric signs and symptoms. Diagnosis
To make a diagnosis of a mental illness in someone with psychosis other potential causes must be excluded. An initial assessment includes a comprehensive history and physical examination by a health care provider. Tests may be done to exclude substance use, medication, toxins, surgical complications, or other medical illnesses. A person with psychosis is referred to as psychotic. Delirium should be ruled out, which can be distinguished by visual hallucinations, acute onset and fluctuating level of consciousness, indicating other underlying factors, including medical illnesses.
This can explain that conversion disorder may develop following a threatening situation, that there may be a group effect with many people simultaneously developing similar symptoms (as in mass psychogenic illness), and the gender difference in prevalence.The Lacanian model accepts conversion disorder as a common phenomenon inherent in specific psychical structures. The higher prevalence of it among women is based on somewhat different intrapsychic relations to the body from those of typical males, which allows the formation of conversion symptoms. See also
Body-centred countertransference
Hysterical contagion
Mass hysteria
Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and Complex posttraumatic stress disorder (C-PTSD)
Somatization disorder
Functional neurological symptom disorder

References


== External links ==