Lesson 2 Risk Factors

• Loneliness causes mental and physical stress.
• Poor sleep also leads to less resilience.
• People without social contacts take less care of themselves. Lonely people are also more likely to suffer from depression, social anxiety and dementia.
• Several studies have shown that loneliness increases the likelihood of numerous diseases

In psychology, critical life events are incisive and stressful situations in people’s lives.

These critical life events are often associated with strong negative feelings such as fear, grief, loss, and despair, and these events can significantly change the life situation of the person affected.

Critical life events can trigger mental illnesses (e.g., depression, Post traumatic stress disorder – PTSD).

Psychological and genetic interactions

• Experts call this the psychobiological pre-disposition and mean by it a psychological and biological readiness for disease.

(drugs, alcohol, smoking)

• The use of the legal substances tobacco and alcohol continues to pose a particularly high health risk.
• Estimates from the 2010 Global Burden of Disease study show that tobacco and alcohol use, along with hypertension, are among the top three risk factors for the development of disease worldwide.
• The results of the supplementary mental health survey conducted show that substance-related disorders are the most prevalent mental disorders among adults after anxiety and depressive disorders.
• If you can no longer do without drugs or other substances and are thus restricted in your thoughts and actions, you are said to be addicted.

Drugs for self-medication:

Illegal substances or abuse of prescribed medication may give an illusion of confidence and control, but eventually the long-term negative effects will catch up on you.