Related Terms

Automatism

Automatism: This is a movement that is unconscious and that can look like a simple repeated tics or can be an intricate series of movements that are natural-looking. This interesting type of conduct occurs in a number of psychiatric and neurological disorders. The neurologic disorders linked with automatisms include narcolepsy – which is the abrupt recurring uncontrollable impulse to sleep, and definite types of epilepsy such as psychomotor epilepsy. The psychiatric circumstances linked with automatisms including schizophrenia – catatonic type and fugue or flight states. Automatism comprises acting out “automatically” and not recalling later that “one did it” or “how one did it”. Automatisms are likewise called behavior that is automatic.

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