It is estimated 1 in 3 adults will experience mental health illness at some point in their lives. 
There are many reasons behind the variety of mental health illnesses which exist and in order to care for sufferers effectively, supporting people and agencies need to understand these and how. 

Family, friends and health professionals become in a position of responsibility to help deal with issues surrounding the mental health of loved ones (or clients). The supporting people need to know how they can best help... this course will teach you how.

CORE MODULES

1. Psychology and Counselling

• Stress
• Abnormal Behaviour
• Individual Behaviour
• Group Behviour
• Methods of dealing with abnormalities
• Conflict resolution
• Interpersonal communication skills

2. Psychological Assessment

• Introduction to psychological assessment
• Context of clinical assessment
• The Assessment Interview
• Behavioural Assessment
• Wechsler Intelligence Scales
• Wechsler Memory Scales
• Minnesota Memory Scales
• Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory

3. Abnormal Psychology

• Disorders usually diagnosed in infancy
• Delirium, dementia, amnesic and other cognitive disorders
• Substance related disorders
• Schizophrenia and other psychotic disorders
• Mood disorders
• Anxiety disorders
• Somatoform, factitious and dissociative disorders
• Sexual and gender identity disorders
• Eating and sleeping disorders
• Impulse control disorders
• Personality disorders

4. Counselling Skills I

• Learning Specific Skills
• Listening and Bonding
• Reflection
• Questioning
• Interview Techniques
• Changing Beliefs and Normalising
• Finding Solutions
• Ending the Counselling

ELECTIVE MODULES
(Choose two from the list below)

• Managing Mental Health in Adults
• Child and Adolescent Mental Health
• Child and Adolescent Disorders
• Counselling Skills II
• Counselling Techniques
• Professional Practice in Counselling
• Introduction to Psychology
• Crisis Counselling
• Psychopharmacology

SAMPLE COURSE NOTES TAKEN FROM ABNORMAL PSYCHOLOGY:

DEMENTIA

Dementia, a usually progressive brain dysfunction, leads to a gradually increasing restriction of daily activities. It is not a disease but a collection of two or more cognitive impairments. Unlike delirium, dementia does not involve alterations to consciousness (except in the case of dementia with Lewy bodies) though many sufferers have accompanying delirium. It is what is called senility by the layperson, the deterioration of intellectual functioning until social and occupational functions are impaired. The most well-known type of dementia is Alzheimer's disease.

The prevalence of dementia increases with age. It is estimated that around 1% of people aged 65 – 74 have dementia, 4% of those aged 75 to 84, and 10% of those over 84. These figures may be underestimates, as some people will die from some causes of dementia. Dementia is caused by many conditions that affect the brain. Dementia is usually progressive and it is irreversible when caused by injury or disease though it may be reversible in a small number of cases such as dementias caused by alcohol, drugs, depression or hormonal imbalances. The major signs are memory loss, confusion, disorientation and lessening of intellectual functioning - with memory loss often being the presenting complaint. Dementia can come on slowly over a period of years and subtle changes can occur, such as difficulty remembering things. The poor recall of recent events is a prominent symptom of dementia.

Examples include:

• Running a tap then leaving the room.
• Being unable to remember the name of a friend, or as symptoms progress - their son or daughter.

They may also develop poor hygiene, forget to bathe or dress adequately. Their judgement may become faulty and they may have difficulties making plans or decisions. They may also lose control of their impulses, for example, tell coarse, inappropriate jokes, make sexual advances to strangers, shoplift etc. Other times, they may have symptoms of depression, such as flatness of affect or emotional outbursts. Around 50% of patients may experience hallucinations and delusions. Some people with dementia may have disturbances with language, such as vague patterns of speech. They may have difficulties recognising familiar surroundings. Episodes of delirium may also occur.

The course of dementia can be progressive, static or remitting, depending on the cause of the dementia. People with progressive dementia will eventually become withdrawn and apathetic. In the terminal phase of the dementia, their personality loses its sparkle and integrity. Relatives and friends may say that the person is not themselves anymore. Social involvement with others will become more and more narrow. Finally, they will become oblivious to their surroundings.

Treatable conditions that can cause dementia include a high fever, dehydration, vitamin deficiency and poor nutrition, bad reactions to medicines, problems with the thyroid gland, or a minor head injury or tumour. Medical conditions like these can be serious and should be treated by a doctor as soon as possible.

Alzheimer's disease is the most common form of dementia. Among other causes are medical conditions (thyroid disease, drug toxicity, thiamine deficiency with alcoholism, and others), brain injury, strokes, multiple sclerosis, infection of the brain (such as meningitis and syphilis), HIV infection, hydrocephalus, Pick's disease, and brain tumours.

There are four main types of dementia :

• Senility – one of the most common.
• Frontal-temporal dementia – this describes the area of the brain that is most affected.
• Frontal-subcortical dementia – again describes the area of the brain most affected.
• Vascular dementias – caused by stroke.

• Conditions or diseases that cause irreversible dementia, especially in older people, include Alzheimer's disease (AD), dementia with Lewy bodies, and multi-infarct dementia (MID), also called vascular dementia.
• Alzheimer's disease. AD is the most common cause of dementia. In AD, nerve cells in the brain die. The causes of the brain damage of AD are not yet clear. Symptoms of AD begin slowly with memory problems and become steadily worse. Over time, the brain damage in AD leads to serious problems in thinking, judgment, and the ability to carry out daily activities.
• Dementia with Lewy bodies. This type of dementia is the second most common cause of dementia in older adults. Lewy bodies are abnormal structures found in certain areas of the brain. It is not yet clear whether dementia with Lewy bodies is a separate illness or perhaps a variant of AD or Parkinson's disease.
• Multi-infarct or vascular dementia. In MID, small strokes occur, and blood clots in the blood vessels in the brain cause the death of brain tissue. Symptoms that begin suddenly may be a sign of this kind of dementia. High blood pressure is a cause of strokes and MID.

Other less common causes of dementia include Huntington's disease, Parkinson's disease, Pick's disease, Binswanger's disease, and AIDS.