Author: Glossary

Endogenous opioid peptide found in the brain that may serve as a neurotransmitter. Substance produced in the brain that acts opiate-like and produces analgesia. Drugs which cause the activities of the central nervous system to slow down. A naturally occurring protein that has a morphinelike activity. A class of hormones produced in the brain that…

A memory trace; a neurophysiological process that accounts for persistence of memory. A pattern or trace that is theoretically left in the brain after a mental process takes place. The physiological basis of a memory in the central nervous system.  

The various forms of schizophrenia and mood disorders and primary degenerative disorders of the central nervous system (CNS) that, so far as it is known, arise within the organism itself. This term is becoming increasingly obsolete as the neurobiological basis of many psychiatric disorders is being established. Hence, most psychiatric disorders will be found to…

Disturbances of the function of the ductless glands, which may be metabolic in origin and may be associated with, or aggravated by, emotional factors, producing mental and behavioral disturbances in addition to physical signs. Of particular significance in psychiatry is the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis (HPA axis), consisting of a self-regulating cycle of neurohormones released from the…

Brand name (now discontinued) for the tricyclic antidepressant drug amitriptyline.  

Confidential help provided by companies and other employers to their employees for personal problems that might influence their ability to work effectively. These programs were started in the early 1900s as employee counseling, became focused in the 1960s on helping employees who were having problems with alcohol, and expanded subsequently to include other personal problems.…

Insightful awareness of the meaning and significance of the feelings, emotions, and behavior of another person. Contrast with sympathy. The capacity to imagine oneself in the place of another person. The ability to understand the problems and feelings of another person. Ability to recognize and relate to, and to some extent share in, the emotions…

As conceptualized by Heinz Kohut (1913–1981), lack of responsivity to a child’s phase-appropriate needs. In a treatment setting, the term refers to a therapist’s lack of responsivity to the patient.  

A condition characterized by excessive emotional reactions and frequent mood changes. It is often seen in patients with Alzheimer’s disease, stroke, brain injury, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), or borderline personality disorder. Emotional lability refers to a pattern of emotional changes from normal mood to states characterized by irritability, depression, anxiety, or aggression (also referred to in…