Disabilities
Psychiatric or Mental Health
This disability category describes a broad range of mental and emotional conditions. These are different from other mental disabilities, such as organic brain damage and specific learning disabilities. The term 鈥榩sychiatric disability鈥� is used when mental illness significantly interferes with the performance of major life activities like learning, thinking, communicating and sleeping. The type, duration and symptoms vary from person to person. They do not always follow a regular pattern, making it difficult to predict when symptoms and functioning will worsen, even if treatment is followed. Although the symptoms of psychiatric illnesses often can be controlled effectively through medication and/or psychotherapy, or go into remission, for some people the illness continues to cause periodic episodes that require treatment.
Anxiety disorders are the most common group of psychiatric disabilities, characterized by severe fear or anxiety associated with particular objects and situations. Most people with anxiety disorders try to avoid exposure to the situation that causes anxiety. These conditions include:
- Panic Disorder
- Phobias
- Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder
- Acute Stress Disorder
- Generalized Anxiety Disorder
- Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
Mood disorders are illnesses that share disturbances or changes in mood, usually involving either depression or mania (elation). Symptoms vary but they usually involve a pronounced change in the person鈥檚 emotional state. These conditions include:
- Major Depressive Disorder (Depression)
- Dysthymic Disorder
- Bipolar Disorder
Schizophrenia and orther psychotic disorders are psychiatric disabilities with symptoms characterized by thoughts that seem fragmented and difficulty processing information, sometimes resulting in delusions, preoccupations, hallucinations, peculiarities of mood and loss of contact with reality.
Other forms of psychiatric disability include, but are not limited to:
- Eating disorders (anorexia, bulimia, binge eating)
- Substance abuse
Documentation Requirements
All students seeking to register with CAL must submit the as well as supporting documentation. Please refer to the Disability Documentation Page for information on documentation required.