Glossary

Author: Glossary

  • Psychedelic

    A term applied to any of several drugs that may induce hallucinations and altered mental states, including the production of distortions of time, sound, color, and so forth. Among the more commonly used psychedelics are LSD (lysergic acid diethylamide), marijuana, mescaline, and psilocybin. A chemical that is purported to expand the consciousness. Referring to drugs…

  • Psyche

    The realm of the mind, as distinguished from the realm of the body, or soma. Mind, including conscious and unconscious processes; in psychoanalysis the total of the id, ego, superego, and all conscious and unconscious processes. The conscious and unconscious aspects of the mind, including thought, judgment, and emotion. The mind or the soul; the…

  • Pseudoseizure

    An attack that resembles an epileptic seizure but has psychological causes and lacks electroencephalographic dysrhythmia.  

  • Pseudologia fantastica

    One of several terms applied to the behavior of habitual or compulsive lying. The stories are not entirely improbable and often have some element of truth. They are not a manifestation of delusions or some wider form of psychosis: upon confrontation, the person can acknowledge them to be untrue, even if unwillingly. The telling of…

  • Pseudodementia

    A syndrome in which dementia is mimicked or caricatured by a psychiatric disorder such as depression. Symptoms and response to mental status examination questions are similar to those found in verified cases of dementia. In pseudodementia, the chief diagnosis to be considered in the differential is depression in an older person versus cognitive deterioration on…

  • Pseudocyesis

    Pseudocyesis

    Included in dsm-iv-tr as a somatoform disorder not otherwise specified. Pseudocyesis is characterized by a false belief of being pregnant and by the occurrence of signs of being pregnant, such as abdominal enlargement, breast engorgement, and labor pains. False pregnancy; a condition in which a woman experiences symptoms of pregnancy, including cessation of menstruation, enlargement…

  • Prozac

    Brand name for the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) antidepressant drug fluoxetine. A trade name for fluoxetine.  

  • Provigil

    Brand name for the atypical stimulant drug modafinil.  

  • Protriptyline

    An older tricyclic antidepressant medication seldom prescribed today. Marketed under the brand name vivactil. A heterocyclic antidepressant. Antidepressant used to treat depression. Adverse effects include dry mouth, gastrointestinal and cardiovascular disturbances, and the possibility of interaction with many other drugs. A tricyclic antidepressant drug used to treat moderate or severe depression, especially in apathetic and…

  • Prosopagnosia

    A neurological condition that renders a person incapable of recognizing faces. It arises when the part of the brain dedicated to face recognition is damaged or unable to perform its function. An inability to recognize faces, even one’s own face.