Unit 1

Introducing Mental Health as an Essential Component of Holistic Wellbeing

This unit will seek to deliver a basic but clear understanding of what holistic health and wellbeing is and what mental health consists of. It will describe the bio-psycho-social approach to mental health and intervention, and explain its importance to holistic wellbeing, and its implications to everyday life and to the practice of the caring professions. The unit will also provide a brief overview of the history and evolution of the notion of mental health. Finally, it will also define stigma, explain how it develops and how it can be unlearnt and counteracted.

Unit 2

Psychological Wellbeing Framed Within the Nature-Nurture Debate: Understanding Various Psychological Perspectives on Wellbeing

This unit seeks to describe and explain briefly but clearly the various perspectives on mental disorders that exist, namely the: psychodynamic, behavioural, cognitive and socio-cultural, humanistic-existential and neuroscientific perspectives. It will also delve into the nature-nurture debate as it applies to mental health and psychopathology (including a short history), and into the research methods applied in abnormal psychology.

Unit 3

Introducing the DSM-V-TR: Understanding Different Groups of Mental Disorders from Various Perspectives

This unit seeks to deliver a basic but clear understanding of what  the DSM-V-TR, and its importance to the diagnosis of mental disorders. A short history of its development will also be provided. The unit will then define and describe the main characteristics, prevalence, roots and causes, symptoms and treatments/therapies for four categories of disorders, namely anxiety disorders, mood disorders, schizophrenia, and personality disorders. How mental disorders are understood from the various perspectives will also be discussed. Finally, the unit will describe the stress reaction and how high levels of stress can result in mental health challenges, and possibly symptoms of clinical disorders;

Unit 4

Promoting and Nurturing Holistic Wellbeing Through Everyday Life Practices and Therapies

This unit seeks to deliver a basic but clear understanding of the distinction and learning about the importance of prevention and of cure of mental disorders. It describes various ways through which holistic wellbeing is promoted and nurtured, and of different kinds of therapies that stem out the various psychological perspectives discussed. CBT, i.e. Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, will be particularly looked at as one of the most common and effective therapies. Finally, the importance of positive attitudes towards mental health and holistic wellbeing and towards life in general, will be discussed. This will include the ways through which such attitudes could be nurtured.