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Stress management. Physiological approaches. Anxiolytic drugs. Enhance the activity of gamma-amino-butyric acid GABA GABA = body’s natural form of anxiety relief. Allows chloride ions into neurons to slow down activity – relaxation Reduces serotonin activity. Benzodiazepines.
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Physiological approaches Anxiolytic drugs
Enhance the activity of gamma-amino-butyric acid GABA • GABA = body’s natural form of anxiety relief. • Allows chloride ions into neurons to slow down activity – relaxation • Reduces serotonin activity. Benzodiazepines
Reduce activity of sympathetic branch of the autonomic nervous system. • Reduce heart rate, blood pressure and levels of cortisol Beta-blockers
Effective: Placebo checks provide evidence (Kahn et al 1986) • Easy to use • Lifts blame from patient STRENGTHS
Addiction to BZs. Withdrawal symptoms even on mild doses. • Side effects – drowsiness, dizziness, tiredness, weakness, dry mouth, diarrhoea, upset stomach, changes in appetite, blurred vision, changes in sex drive, seizures, severe skin rash, irregular heart beat. • Treats symptoms, not the cause WEAKNESSES
PHYSIOLOGICAL APPROCHES • BIOFEEDBACK
4 PROCESSES OF BIOFEEDBACK • FEEDBACK Machines provide information about various ANS activities: e.g. heartbeat, blood pressure.
RELAXATION Techniques used to reduce activity of sympathetic nervous system – reduces heart rate, blood pressure etc
Operant conditioning Reduced heart rate = rewarding Leads to repeated behaviour Leads to ‘stamping in’
Transfer Skills are transferred into real situations
Successful in treating a wide range of behaviours e.g. heart rate, bp, skin temperature and brain waves. • Successful in treating disorders, e.g. curvature of the spine, migraine, asthma, Reynaud’s disease (restricted blood flow to fingers and toes) • Biofeedback found to work more effectively than just relaxation (Bradley 1995) • No side effects strengths
Expensive – specialist equipment and needs supervision • Treats symptoms rather than the cause - but does provide the individual with potentially long-lasting method of dealing with symptoms • Requires lots of commitment and effort (although this could be a strength) WEAKNESSES