Body Rhythms and Mental States

1. Body Rhythms and Mental States

2. Understanding biological rhythms Consciousness Awareness of oneself and the environment Biological rhythms Periodic, more or less regular fluctuations in a biological system; may or may not have psychological implications

3. Endogenous biological rhythms Endogenous Generated from within Circadian rhythms Once about every 24 hours Example: the sleep-wake cycle

4. Circadian rhythms • Occur in animals, plants, and people. • Studied by isolating volunteers from time cues. • Regulated by hypothalamus by regulating melatonin, a hormone secreted by the pineal gland • Reset by light but not necessary

5. Internal desynchronization A state when biological rhythms are not in phase with each other • Circadian rhythms are influenced by changes in routine. Ex. Airplane flights across time zones, Adjusting to new work shifts • Affected by illness, stress, fatigue, excitement, drugs, mealtimes, and daily experiences

6. Moods and long-term rhythms Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) A controversial disorder in which a person experiences depression during the winter and an improvement of mood in the spring Treatment involves phototherapy or exposure to fluorescent light. Antidepressants may be prescribed as well. Evaluating the frequency of and treatment for SAD is difficult.

7. Menstrual cycles and mood • PMS and its more severe version Premenstrual dysphoric disorder PMDD • Physical symptoms are common  Ex. Cramps, breast tenderness, and water retention • Emotional symptoms are rare Ex. Irritability and depression – However, fewer than 5% of women have symptoms predictably.

8. Why women overestimate “PMS” They notice depression or irritability when these moods occur premenstrually but overlook times when moods are absent premenstrually. They attribute irritability before menstruation to PMS and irritability at other times to other causes.

9. Learning objectives: The rhythms of sleep 5.5 – The stages of sleep 5.6 – How sleep gets disrupted and the consequences that result 5.7 – The mental benefits of sleep

10. Realms of sleep Stage 1. Feel self drifting on the edge of consciousness Stage 2. Minor noises won’t disturb you; sleep spindles occur Stage 3. Breathing and pulse have slowed down; delta waves occur Stage 4. Deep sleep; most activity is delta waves REM. Increased eye movement, loss of muscle tone, dreaming

11. Why do we sleep? The exact function of sleep is unclear, but sleep appears to provide time for the body to carry out important functions. • To eliminate waste products from muscles • To repair cells • To conserve and replenish energy stores • To strengthen the immune system • To recover abilities lost during the day

12. Sleep disorders Sleep deprivation leads to decreases in physical and mental functioning. • Sleep apnea – stop breathing during sleep • 1 in 25 people (mostly overweight men) • Can repeat up to 400 times per night! • Wake up snorting so partner often complains of loud snoring • Most don’t remember awakening

13. Night terrors – high arousal and physiological symptoms of terror during stage 4 sleep • Heart rate and breathing rate double • REM behavior disorder -A person acts out their dreams because REM-related muscle paralysis does not occur.

14. Insomnia – problems falling or staying asleep • People with insomnia tend to overestimate their lack of sleep • Sleeping pills and alcohol reduce REM sleep • Narcolepsy – uncontrollable sleep attacks • 1 in 2000 people • triggered by strong emotions • lapse into REM sleep with accompany muscular paralysis

15. Other interesting sleep disorders – • Klein-Levin syndrome – sleep for days • Sleep-wake disorders – bodies run on 26 or 27 hour clock; fall asleep later each night • Hypnophobia – fear of going to sleep • Hypnalgia – dream pain

16. Why we sleep? • Evolutionary psychology – sleep protects; better to be safe in cave than vulnerable in dark • Physiological psychology – sleep frees up energy to restore body and brain and allow for growth

17. What is your experience? Do you typically remember your dreams? • Yes • No

18. What is your experience? Have you ever died in a dream? • Yes • No

19. What is your experience? Do you have a recurring dream? • Yes • No

20. What is your experience? Have you ever dreamed about doing something impossible (e.g., flying, playing music even though you can’t)? • Yes • No

21. What is your experience? Have you ever had a dream in which one person transformed into another? • Yes • No

22. What is your experience? Do your dreams often contain inconsistencies? • Yes • No

23. What is your experience? Have you ever dreamed about being attacked or pursued? • Yes • No

24. What is your experience? Have you ever dreamed about acting violently or hurting another person? • Yes • No

25. What is your experience? Have you ever dreamed about arriving too late for something important? • Yes • No

26. Dreams as unconscious wishes Freud concluded that dreams might provide insight into desires, motives, and conflicts of which we are unaware. Manifest contentincludes aspects of the dream we consciously experience. Latent contentincludes unconscious wishes and thoughts symbolized by the dream. Not everything in dreams is symbolic.

27. Dreams as reflections of current concerns • Dreams may reflect ongoing conscious issues such as concerns over relationships, work, sex, or health. • Dreams are more likely to contain material related to a person’s current concerns than chance would predict. • Dreams may provide an opportunity for us to attempt to “solve” problems from our lives.

28. Dreams as thinking Dreaming is similar to the activity we engage in when we are awake. The difference is that the cerebral cortex is cut off from external stimulation. Predicts that if we were awake, but cut off from external stimulation, our thoughts would have the same hallucinatory quality we experience in dreams!

29. Dreams as interpreted brain activity Activation-synthesis theory Dreaming results signals triggered by activity in the lower part of the brain. At the same time, brain regions that handle logical thought and sensation from the external world are shut down.

30. Evaluating dream theories Psychoanalytic model Interpretations are often far fetched Problem-focused model Skepticism about the ability to solve problems during sleep Activation-synthesis model Does not explain coherent, story-like dreams or non-REM dreams Cognitive model Some specific claims remain to be tested

31. Hypnosis A procedure in which the practitioner suggests changes in the sensations, perceptions, thoughts, feelings, or behavior of the subject

32. The nature of hypnosis • Hypnotic responsiveness depends more on the person being hypnotized than on the skill of the hypnotist. • Hypnotized people cannot be forced to do things against their will. • Feats performed under hypnosis can be performed by motivated people without hypnosis. • Hypnosis doesn’t increase accuracy of memory. • Hypnosis doesn’t produce a literal re-experiencing of long-past events.

33. When does hypnosis work? • Hypnotic suggestions have been used effectively for medical and psychological purposes. • Ex. pain management, quitting smoking

34. Theories of hypnosis • Dissociation theories • Hypnosis is a split in consciousness in which one part of the mind operates independently of consciousness. • During hypnosis, dissociation occurs between an executive control system (probably in the frontal lobes) and other systems of thinking and acting.

35. Theories of hypnosis • Sociocognitive theories • Effects of hypnosis result from interaction between social influence of the hypnotist and the beliefs and expectations of the subject. • Can explain “alien abduction” and “past-life regression”

36. Classifying drugs Psychoactive drug Substance capable of influencing perception, mood, cognition, or behavior by changing the body’s biochemistry Types Stimulants speed up activity in the CNS. Depressants slow down activity in the CNS. Opiates relieve pain. Psychedelic drugs disrupt normal thought processes.

37. What do you think? Marijuana should be legalized. • Yes • No

38. What do you think? Should nicotine be made illegal? • Yes • No

39. Physiology of drug effects Psychoactive drugs work by acting on neurotransmitters. They can. . . • Increase or decrease the release of neurotransmitters • Prevent the re-absorption of excess neurotransmitters by the cells that release them • Block the effects of neurotransmitters on receiving cells • Bind to receptors that would ordinarily be triggered by a neurotransmitter

40. Cocaine’s effect on the brain • Blocks the brain’s reuptake of dopamine and norepinephrine, increasing the levels of these neurotransmitters. • Results in over-stimulation of certain brain circuits and a brief euphoric high. • When drug wears off, depletion of dopamine may cause user to “crash.”

41. Psychology of drug effects Reactions to psychoactive drugs depend on several factors. • The number of times a person has used a drug • Physical factors such as body weight, metabolism, initial state of emotional arousal, and physical tolerance • Environmental factors such as where and with whom one uses a drug • Mental set or expectations of a drug’s effects and the reasons for taking it