Types of Neurotic Behaviour

 

1. Anxiety Neurosis

An individual suffering from anxiety neurosis has exaggerated, uncontrollable anxiety and apprehension. Anxiety disorders are fairly common in our society, with roughly 2 to 4 per cent of the population diagnosed at one time or another.

• Signs and Symptoms: A constant state of tension, worry, and general uneasiness. Such individuals are often oversensitive in interpersonal relationships and frequently experience feelings of inadequacy and depression.

2. Emotional Tension

Emotional tension is a state of mental or emotional strain characterised by prolonged feelings of tightness, restlessness, and high psychological stress.

• Signs and Symptoms: Difficulty relaxing, irritability, sleep disturbances, fatigue, and physical manifestations such as muscle tightness or tension headaches.

3. Obsessive Compulsive Behaviour

Obsessive compulsive behavior involves persistent, unwanted thoughts, images, or urges (obsessions) that create intense anxiety, prompting repetitive behaviours or mental acts (compulsions) to relieve the distress.

• Signs and Symptoms: Irresistible urges to perform specific rituals (e.g., checking locks, hand-washing, ordering objects), persistent intrusive thoughts, and temporary anxiety relief only after executing the compulsion.

4. Hysterical Neurosis

Historically categorised as conversion or dissociative reactions, hysterical neurosis occurs when intense psychological conflict or emotional distress is converted into physical symptoms or alterations in consciousness without any physical or organic cause.

• Signs and Symptoms: Sudden loss of motor function, paralysis, blindness, numbness, or episodes of amnesia following a highly stressful or traumatic event.

5. Phobic Neurosis

Phobic neurosis is characterised by an excessive, irrational, and persistent fear of a specific object, activity, or situation that poses little to no actual threat or danger.

• Signs and Symptoms: Immediate overwhelming fear or panic upon encountering (or anticipating) the phobic stimulus, coupled with active and rigid avoidance behaviours that disrupt daily living.

6. Phobic Sufferers

Phobic sufferers are individuals living with phobic neurosis whose everyday routines are heavily restricted by their avoidance strategies.

• Key Characteristics: They fully recognise that their fear is irrational or exaggerated, yet they feel powerless to control their panic response when exposed to the feared object or situation.

7. Depressive Neurosis

Depressive neurosis (traditionally known as dysthymia or persistent depressive disorder) is a long-term, non-psychotic state of low mood, sadness, and discouragement.

• Signs and Symptoms: Chronic feelings of hopelessness, low self-esteem, fatigue, loss of interest in daily activities, and difficulty concentrating, while maintaining full contact with reality.