Unit 4 Extra

• Consciousness


  A state of awareness
• Self


  • Self-awareness: the special understanding of the self as distinct from other stimuli
• Importance of consciousness


  • Without consciousness, we have no sense of self, the world or even life itself
  • It allows us to process information, make decisions, and interact the world around us
  • A key component in understanding mental disorders and developing effective treatments for them
• Hypnosis


  An altered state of consciousness characterized by relaxation and increased suggestibility—through suggestions
• Meditation


  Person focuses attention on a singular source for a period of time
• Mindfulness meditation


  • Intentional focus and attention to what is going on in the moment without judgement
  • Includes emotions, thoughts, and/or sensations
• Hypnotic susceptibility


  • The ability to become hypnotized
  • Some people have a low degree of susceptibility and cannot easily be hypnotized
  • Others have a high susceptibility and can be easily hypnotized
• Neodissociation theory


  Hypnosis is truly an altered state of consciousness
• Response set theory


  Hypnosis is merely a willingness to respond appropriately to suggestions
• • Research indicates that hypnosis can reduce a person's awareness of physical pain
  • Can help people to relax, decrease stress, and facilitate greater progress in psychotherapy
  • Does not exist as a miracle cure for bad habits (e.g., smoking, overeating, nail-biting)
  • Cannot erase painful memories but can alter your interpretation of a memory and your response to it (e.g. lessen the emotional impact of a memory by changing its meaning or creating a sense of detachment from the memory)
  • Does not give you superhuman strength, speed, or other abilities
  • It does not cause age regression and cause you to adopt a younger version of yourself
  • Hypnosis is NOT psychotherapy
• Benefits of meditation and mindfulness include better health outcomes, stress reduction, improved mood, and decreased symptoms of anxiety and depression
• Psychoactive drugs


  Substances that influence the brain and the individual's behaviours—basically alter consciousness
• Tolerance


  • The amount of a drug required to produce its effect. As tolerance increases, the margin of safety narrows
• Withdrawal


  • Physical or behavioral effect that occur after a person stops using a drug. Symptoms may include nausea, pain, tremors, crankiness, and high blood pressure
• Substance use disorder


  • Inability to control drug use despite negative social, occupational, and health consequences
• Classification of psychoactive drugs

  • Depressants
  • Stimulants
  • Opioids/Opiates
  • Hallucinogens
• Depressants


  Drugs that inhibit or slow down normal neural functioning. They may also calm the brain, cause sleepiness, and relaxation
• Stimulants


  Drugs that can increase energy, alertness, and wakefulness
• Opioids/Opiates


  Pain-killing drugs that increase feelings of happiness or euphoria and create a tranquilizing effect. Most addictive
• Hallucinogens


  Drugs that stimulate the experience of false perceptions (hallucinations)
• • Alcohol is the most widely used depressant, often mistaken for a stimulant
  • Binge drinking is drinking a large amount in a very short time period
  • Korsakoff's syndrome is a memory disorder that results from vitamin B1 deficiency and is associated with alcoholism
  • Fetal alcohol syndrome is a group of adverse fetal and infant health effects associated with heavy maternal drinking during pregnancy
• • Body chemistry and drinking history impacts how one is affected by alcohol
  • Genetics and culture impacts how one is affected by alcohol
• Typical effects of blood alcohol concentration

  • .02-.03: Slight euphoria and loss of shyness; light-headedness. Depressant effects not yet apparent
  • .04-.06: Feelings of well-being, relaxation, and lowered inhibitions; minor impairment of reasoning and memory; lowered alertness
  • .07-.09: Slight impairment of balance, speech, vision, reaction time, hearing, reasoning and memory; reduced judgment and self control
  • .10-.125: Significant impairment of motor coordination, balance, vision, reaction time, and hearing; loss of judgment; slowed thinking; slurred speech
  • .13-.15: Gross motor impairment; lack of physical control; blurred vision and major loss of balance; severely impaired judgment
  • .16-.20: Anxiety, restlessness, sadness; nausea and vomiting; feeling dazed and confused; blackouts
  • .25: Severely impaired physical and mental abilities; increased risk of injury by falls or accidents
  • .30: Stupor; little comprehension of whereabouts; loss of consciousness
  • .35: Possible coma
  • .40+: Onset of coma; possible death due to respiratory arrest
• • Alcohol abuse is responsible for more than 65% of the deaths and injuries on South African roads
  • Alcohol-impaired driving is highest between the ages of 16 and 25, more common for males than for females
  • Estimated that at least half of the sexual assaults on university campuses involve alcohol use by the perpetrator, victim, or both
  • Strong correlation between alcohol and intimate partner violence
  • Children who live with parents who abuse alcohol more likely to experience high levels of physical, emotional, and sexual abuse
• Opiates


  Help to reduce pain signals. Includes morphine, codeine, Vicodin, heroin, opium, and others. Opiates mimic the body's own natural endorphin actions and are extremely addictive- causing dependence within a few weeks. Produce an intense "rush" of pleasure, as well as block pain. Withdrawal symptoms include hot and cold flashes, cramps, sweating, and shaking that may last from 4 to 7 days, but not life-threatening. Risk of overdose
• Stimulants


  Speed up normal brain functioning. Examples include caffeine and nicotine. Caffeine can lead to dependence and withdrawal symptoms. Nicotine is highly addictive and associated with many health risks
• Cocaine and crack


  Powerful and dangerous stimulant drugs. Interact with dopamine causing alertness, elevated mood, confidence and sense of well-being. High doses can cause paranoia, sleeplessness, delusions, seizures, strokes, and potentially cardiac arrest
• Amphetamines and methamphetamine


  Laboratory-produced stimulants. Effects similar to cocaine but the high produced is less intense but generally lasts longer. Methamphetamine leads to a crash marked by low energy levels, paranoia, and depressed mood
• Marijuana (cannabis)


  A mild hallucinogen. THC (tetrahydrocannabinol), a cannabis compound, is absorbed by the lungs and binds to the neurotransmitter anandamide, influencing learning, short-term memory, motor coordination, emotions, and appetite. There are medicinal effects of cannabis when taken in small dosages
• Synthetic marijuana (K2 and spice)

  Mimics THC and a marijuana-like high. Adverse side effects include extreme paranoia, hallucinations, heart palpitations, racing thoughts, psychosis, and seizures
• Phencyclidine (PCP)


  Unpredictable hallucinogenic, stimulant and depressant effects. Inhibits the perception of pain, responses to the environment, and memory
• Lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD)


  Low doses can cause bizarre hallucinations, distortions in time and body image, and intense emotions that together are often referred to as "tripping"
• • Our state of consciousness cannot easily be divorced from our general behavior
  • Sleep is a necessity, providing many benefits to our functioning and ensuring that we will be healthy, alert, and happy
  • Hypnosis, meditation and mindfulness may help some people decrease anxiety and manage pain
  • Psychoactive drugs alter our state of consciousness. The long-term negative effects outweigh the short-term high and feelings of well-being that they produce