Like the term "sanity," the terms "nervous breakdown" and "mental breakdown" do not have any medical definition and are not used in a clinical sense. They therefore do not necessarily have a rigorous or static definition. They can be used colloquially to describe anything from a momentary fit of anger to the onset of a permanent psychological disorder. In almost all cases, however, the "breakdown" is the result of unmanageably high stress.
A similar, more rigorously defined phenomenon is Transmarginal Inhibition, which might be seen as a kind of mental breakdown in response to harsh conditioning. Note that a mental breakdown is not the same as a panic attack, though mental breakdowns can trigger panic.
Specific cases are usually described as a "breakdown" only after a person becomes unable to function in day-to-day life due to mental illness.[1] The person's condition is then advanced, and seeking professional aid is advisable.
Potential causes
- Causes of breakdown might include:
- a traumatic, violent, or near-death experience
- academic problems
- bullying
- career burnout or job dissatisfaction
- chronic and unresolved grief
- chronic insomnia and other sleep disorders
- chronic or newly discovered illness/disease
- death of a family member
- deception by a loved one
- divorce
- employment discrimination
- homelessness
- post-war trauma
- pregnancy
- relationship breakup
- serious or chronic illness of a family member
- stress e.g. caused by work-related problems or financial difficulties etc
- unemployment
- unrequited love
- involuntary celibacy
- unresolved sexual identity crisis
- use of certain drugs
The sudden, acute onset of the following mental illnesses might be classified as breakdowns:
- anxiety
- bipolar disorder
- clinical depression
- dissociation
- post-traumatic stress disorder
- psychosis
- schizoaffective disorder
- schizophrenia
- severe stress
I think I'm having one.
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