Symptoms are manifestations by the patient of a pathological state. There are different types of symptoms, among which we can find physiological symptoms (for example, rapid pulse or rapid breathing), physical (for example, headache or dizziness) or psychological symptoms, whether affective, cognitive or perceptual.
We will talk about the latter, the psychological symptoms, in this article.
Psychological symptoms may be different depending on the person’s type of disorder. But, What are the most common psychological signs or symptoms?
Below you can find a list of the 30 most common symptoms of this type, and their characteristics:
1. Apathy
Apathy is the lack of interest and motivation towards external stimuli, for example, towards interpersonal relationships or towards life in general. In extreme cases, This reluctance is typical of depressive states and causes the person to feel weak and powerless, as it affects their motivation.
2. Catastrophic thinking
Catastrophic thinking is associated with pessimistic people, and shows that something is happening inside the person. It is a distortion of reality in which everything is seen in a negative way and problems are anticipated even when they are going to occur. It can be a result of stress, anxiety and even depression.
3. Blame others and the situation
When someone does not have enough self-esteem, self-confidence or is too sad, they usually blame others and the situation. This makes the person lose the capacity for self-leadership and self-motivation and, as a consequence, she is paralyzed (in addition to harming others in some cases). It frequently occurs along with learned helplessness.
4. Concentration problems
Concentration problems appear in a multitude of disorders, since when motivation is low, sadness takes over a person or the individual is experiencing a stressful situation, attention is usually directed inwards and toward one’s recurring thoughts which seriously hinders your concentration.
On the other hand, it may also happen that the main symptoms of the disorder have to do with alterations in consciousness and attention focus, which can lead to inhibition deficiencies and low control over behavior.
5. Excessive resentment
Acceptance is one of the best ways to overcome painful situations and is necessary to find emotional stability. When the person is not able to accept the situation, resentment and constant criticism towards others usually arise.
6. Feeling of emptiness
The feeling of emptiness is common in mood disorders, in which the person seems to be experiencing an existential crisis. She feels frustrated at not finding her place in this world.
7. Blame yourself
A person may constantly blame themselves, which shows low self-confidence and self-esteem that needs to be worked on. It is a way to avoid facing problems that are presented.
8. Mental exhaustion
When a person suffers from emotional problems, stress or anxiety for long periods of time, your mind seems to reach a limit. This is what is known as psychological, mental or emotional exhaustion. The person needs a rest after so much suffering.
9. Feeling of failure
This symptom appears intense and painful at times when the person does not have high confidence or self-esteem. It refers to a maladaptive emotion.
10. Constant worry
Constant worry is a characteristic symptom of Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD). The person always has a worrying thought in mind, on one or several topics that are considered very relevant. For example, if you are going to be fired from your job.
Some physical and physiological consequences of this symptom may be: muscle tension, feeling of shortness of breath, accelerated heartbeat, dry mouth, etc.
11. Restlessness (anxiety)
Worry can cause a person to not feel calm, because anticipates dangers and has lost objectivity and the ability to think lucidly based on rational criteria.
12. Emotional distancing
Affective distancing manifests itself in different disorders (for example, mood disorders or schizoid personality disorder) and significantly affects interpersonal relationships.
13. Feeling of threat
In some disorders the person feels a constant threat. It is especially common in psychotic disorders, such as paranoid disorder, in which the person may think that everyone is against them and wants to harm them.
The feeling of inferiority appears when a person thinks that he is (and feels) less than others permanently. Is a clear indication that that person’s self-esteem is low.
15. Feelings of being out of control
When someone does not have the necessary emotional balance or is going through a bad time in their life, they can feel out of control. That is to say, that He doesn’t feel like he has his life under control.
16. Sadness
Although sadness is not a sufficient symptom to diagnose depression, it is a characteristic feature of this disorder. Temporary sadness is totally normal, The problem is when this symptom becomes chronic. and makes it impossible for the person’s life to function correctly.
17. Melancholy
Sadness is a current feeling that makes you feel bad, on the other hand, melancholy has to do with a sad event related to the past and that makes us feel bad in the present. It is also characteristic of depressive disorder.
18. Low frustration tolerance
This way of thinking is totally maladaptive. It has to do with low self-confidence and causes us not to face the different situations that arise throughout our lives successfully. Low frustration tolerance can cause avoidance of some situations for example, in social phobia.
19. Disorientation
It is characterized because the individual presents a confusion regarding the time and place in which one is. It can manifest itself in some psychopathologies such as Delirium Tremens.
20. Emotional lability
Emotional lability is inappropriate emotional expression that is, disproportionate laughter or inappropriate crying. The emotional expression, therefore, does not fit the situation and is exaggerated.
21. Drowsiness
Drowsiness is a feeling of tiredness, heaviness and sleep that usually appears when a person has a low mood. On the other hand, it is also common for drowsiness to be a side effect of psychotropic drugs taken to treat the disorder or pathology.
22. Insomnia
Insomnia is the inability to sleep and it can appear in different situations: when the person experiences anxiety, worry, stress or has problems to solve in their life. In addition, the problems derived from experiencing the disorder can cause problems when falling asleep, due to the added stress of having more worries.
Irritability is an exaggerated response to stimuli. The person tends to get irritated by anything and can show mood swings. Furthermore, the interpersonal conflicts that appear as a result of this state of mind and predisposition to anger accumulate even more reasons to experience stress.
24. Irrational fear
It generally appears when a person has a phobia. It is a type of learned fear, which is not real, but rather anticipatory. That is to say, that originates in imaginary, distorted and catastrophic thinking. For example, the fear of flying.
25. Feeling like the victim
It manifests itself in the presence of a weak self-esteem, so the person habitually plays the victim as a way of managing anger and annoyance. It is an avoidant response that serves as a short-term justification, but in the long run brings interpersonal conflicts and problems when evaluating the results of one’s own decisions.
26. Feeling alone
This is because loneliness is a negative mental state, which is linked to feelings of incomprehension, sadness and insecurity. This insecurity makes the person perceive that others do not understand him and they do not share their values and tastes.
This perceived lack of understanding on the part of others not only causes a subjective feeling of isolation to appear, but also makes us more likely to have health problems both due to the lack of hygiene and correct nutrition and the psychological consequences it generates.
27. Wanting to hurt others
Anger and frustration can manifest with a mental state of revenge or wanting to harm others. On many occasions it remains just that, in a mental state, in an idea. In others, however, an individual may behave violently.
28. Depersonalization
Some mentally ill people experience a psychological state characterized by they feel like strangers to themselves to their body and to the environment that surrounds them. This, in turn, makes them more likely to adopt a pattern of decisions and actions that leads to loneliness.
29. Lack of hope for the future
Lack of motivation and lack of life goals makes a person cannot visualize the future in a positive way. Something that, in turn, also causes serious problems for the individual.
30. Psychological blocks
Mental blockage is a psychological barrier that a person can impose on themselves and that prevents them from clearly understanding some aspects of their life. The individual has the ability to hinder your own advancement when it comes to achieving certain goals in your life.
