Unit 5

States of Consciousness

Consciousness

The tiredness battle Waking consciousness Disrupting body rhythms can alter your

mood and your ability to function

Consciousness – being aware of yourself and your environment

Body rhythms

Biological rhythms Periodic physical changes in your body that can

have different types of impacts on you

3 major types Circadian – “about a day”

Occur usually once a day – SLEEPING Bright light in the morning activates light sensitive

proteins in the retina Trigger signals to superchiasmic nucleus in

hypothalamus Tells the brain to stop producing melotonin Time zone changes

Benefits of sleep

Strengthens memory Increases concentration Boosts mood Moderates hunger and obesity Boosts immune system

Sleep bank/sleep debt Body needs a certain amount of sleep

Sleep

Lack of sleep can cause Your immune system to stop working correctly Lead to impaired memory or learning More stress More car accidents – increase after daylight

savings time high blood pressure inability to concentrate irritability premature aging

Sleep and Teens

Teenagers average 2 hours less sleep today than they did 70 years ago

More distractions Less hard work?

4 out of 5 teens are dangerously sleep deprived Dement 1999 What time do you wake up on the

weekend/snow day?

Are you sleep deprived?

Answer the following questions in your notebook – keep track of your answers, T or F

1. I need an alarm clock to wake up at the appropriate time.

2. It’s a struggle for me to get out of the bed in the morning

3. Weekday mornings I hit the snooze bar more than once to get more sleep

4. I feel tired, irritable, and stressed during the week5. I have trouble concentrating and remembering6. I feel slow with critical thinking, problem solving, and being creative7. I often fall asleep watching TV8. I often fall asleep in boring meetings or lectures or in warm rooms

9. I often fall asleep after heavy meals10. I often fall asleep while relaxing after dinner11. I often fall asleep within 5 minutes of getting into bed12. I often feel drowsy while driving13. I often sleep extra hours on weekend mornings14. I often need a nap to get through the day15. I have dark circles around my eyes

According to James Maas if you answered True to 3 or more of those questions, you could be considered sleep deprived

Try going to bed 15 minutes earlier every night until you can wake up without an alarm clock and feel alert all day

Why do we sleep?

No complete answer to this question exists

The hypothalamus seems to control the Circadian rhythm of sleep Picks up changes in light and dark Initiates changes in which will put you to

sleep by increasing or decreasing hormone levels Melatonin

Theories of sleep’s necessity Preservation Theory

Traveling at night can be very dangerous Maybe our ancestors who slept at night

survived because of sleep Provides protection from night time

dangers for daytime mammals Bats sleep 20 hours a day Cats 15 Elephants only 3 or 4

Maximizes our safety and survival

Theories of sleep’s necessity Restoration Theory

allows us to recuperate from wear and tear of everyday life

Brain and body remain active while we are sleeping Memories can be filed away body can rebuild itself What we learned can be compartmentalized Free radicals are produced to destroy toxins

Feeds creative thinking – sleep on it Growth process

The Stages of Sleep

Sleep-Wake Cycle is Circadian We all go through 90 minute ultradian

cycles during sleep when 2 different types of sleep occur

Can be measured by scientists if 1. You are asleep 2. You have at least 5 electrodes attached to

your head EEG

What happens when you sleep? EEG shows a number of things happen in

your body Cycle through 4 different levels of sleep before

you start dreaming Stage 1. Small brain waves, irregular –

only lasts about 5 minutes if awoken, you’d probably say you weren’t asleep Sensations like falling or floating

Stage 2. Even smaller brain waves little bursts of activity – SPINDLES First time lasts about 20 minutes, but you will spend

more and more time in this stage over the night Talking in your sleep happens here or lower

What happens when you sleep?

Stage 3/4 Even slower – after about 30 minutes of sleep

2 stages Delta Sleep

Large brain waves that continue to grow in number until you reset to Stage 1

Hard to wake up

Continue cycling down to Stage 4 and back up to Stage 1

NonREM and REM Sleep

Non REM sleep Non Rapid Eye Movement Sleep Initially spend more time here Stages 1-4

After you move back up (4-1) you enter REM Sleep REM sleep is when you are dreaming very

vividly Eyes are moving rapidly under your eye lids The longer you sleep, the more time you

spend here

REM Sleep

Only discovered in 1952

Pulse quickens

Temporarily Paralyzed Body outside is completely relaxed Inside – high state of arousal

Paradoxical Sleep

Harder to be awoken We all dream, every single night, all the time

For about 100 minutes Not everyone can remember, not even a second of

it

Why do we dream?

Several theories

Wish fulfillment Freud believed dreams were key to solving

internal conflicts Interpretation of Dreams – Freud 1900 Ability to do things that you cant do in real

life Manifest Content – what you can remember Latent Content – underlying theme of a dream

Why we dream

Information Processing Theory A way of tying up loose ends from the day Info gets sorted out and sifted REM sleep helps with memory storage

Develop and Preserve neural pathways REM stimulates the brain Babies sleep a lot – need more time to

develop

Why we dream

Activation Synthesis/Neural Static The brain is trying to make sense out of

random neural firing that happens while you are sleeping

Cognitive Development Reflects dreamer’s cognitive development Kids dreams aren’t as vivid

Sleep Disorders

Insomnia Recurring problems in falling asleep or

staying asleep Sleeping pills can make it worse

Restrict or inhibit REM sleep So does alcohol

Perception of time? Those with insomnia feel like it takes 2x as long

to fall asleep

Sleep Disorders

How to help insomnia Stay away from caffeine after 3 pm

Soda, Coffee, chocolate Get up the same time every morning

Waking up late on the weekend can create problems

Avoid night time activities that get you riled up

Don’t stress about not being able to fall asleep Give it time, it will happen

Sleep Disorders

Sleep Apnea Temporary cessation of breathing Constantly waking yourself up Lots of snoring Can happen as many as 400x one night Usually happens to overweight men over

40

CPAP machine – Continuous Positive Airway Pressure

Sleep Disorders

Narcolepsy Uncontrollable sleep attacks “numbness seizure” Heritable Strong emotions will cause individuals to

fall asleep Happiness, fear

Fall immediately into REM sleep

Treatable with medication

Sleep Disorders

Somnambulism - Sleep walking Cant happen during REM sleep

Night Terrors – different than nightmares Hard to remember

Bruxism –Grinding your teeth Enuresis – Bed wetting Myoclonus – sudden sharp body

movements

Hypnosis

Social interaction in which one person suggests to another that certain perceptions, feelings, thoughts, or behaviors will spontaneously occur

Evidence of two track mind or split consciousness

All about how open to suggestion you are How often do you lose yourself in a movie? Postural Sway

Hypnosis

Recalling lost/suppressed memories Memories are not always locked away

They are often lost forever Even hypnosis cant retrieve them

Age Regression

Hypnotic Refreshing – framing questions/hints Inception?

Hypnosis

Can you make people act against their will? Put their hand in acid or throw it in someone’s face Individuals who were asked to pretend they were

hypnotized did the same thing Power of Authority – Milgram Experiment

Can be helpful in therapy Obesity Not so much in smoking, drugs, and alcohol

addiction Post Hypnotic Suggestion

Hypnosis

Hilgard – Pain Selective attention

“Hidden Observer” The hypnotized brain acts differently –

dissociation Pain can be reduced by blocking attention to

pain

Hypnosis works due to both social influence and dissociation

Psychoactive drugs

Chemicals that change perceptions about mood by interactions at the synapse

These interactions can cause dependence Physical – causing pain and cravings Psychological – a way of stemming negative

emotions

Tolerance + Withdrawal

The more drugs you do the more it will take to feel the same effect Tolerance Blood chem changes to offset drugs in the body

(neuroadaptation) Heart, brain, liver tolerance?

Withdrawal Body becomes used to drugs Without drug, dependence becomes more obvious

Addiction

Addiction – compulsive craving for something even though it may have adverse consequences May present with physical symptoms

Aches Nausea Stress / anxiety

Are addictions irresistible?

Myths about addiction

1. Addictive drugs become addictive immediately and lead to other drugs Morphine + Heroine Morphine used to reduce pain in hospitals More often than not, does not lead to

addiction Cocaine – can be very addictive, but only

15-16% of people get hooked

Myths about addiction

2. Addictions cannot be overcome voluntarily, must use therapy Therapy can be helpful for many, but isn’t

necessary for all

Addiction a disease? Hope Self control

Myths about addiction

3. Addiction can cover more than just drug use, but other pleasure seeking behaviors

Eating, shopping, exercise, gambling, work All purpose excuse Compulsive behavior is different than

addiction Though a stretch, some think you can label

these people addicts Can present with dysfunctional qualities

Psychoactive drugs

Three major categories Depressants Stimulants Hallucinogens

They will mimic, inhibit or stimulate the brains natural chemical messengers

Depressants

Alcohol Slows different parts of the brain and may

cause you to act differently Relaxation Slurs speech Slows reaction time

Disinhibition - increases helpful and hurtful tendencies Urges you feel sober are more likely to be

acted out when drunk

Alcohol – cont’d

Memory disruption – doesn’t allow memories to become long term

Reduces self awareness and control Might be driven to drink to forget about

shortcomings/failures

Can alter expectations “social drinkers”

Depressants

Barbiturates Tranquilizers Induce sleep or quell anxiety Too much can cause death

Especially when combined with alcohol

Depressants

Opiates Opium Heroine Codeine and morphine Creates a sense of bliss Can become very addictive in some

The brain can stop producing endorphins

Stimulants

Temporarily excite neural activity

Caffeine and nicotine, amphetamines (cocaine, ecstasy, methamphetamine)

Stay awake, lose weight, boost mood and athletic performance

Stimulants

Meth – speed

Can give 8+ hours of euphoria and increased energy

More dopamine released in men May be why more men become addicted

Body may stop producing dopamine completely Rely on this to feel good

Stimulants

Caffeine Worlds most used drug

Small doses can last 3-4 hours

Constant use will dull effects Tolerance Withdrawal

Stimulants

Nicotine 250 Million packs consumed daily

5.4 Million deaths/year By 2030 – 8M

Teens – more likely to start Image/Rebellion If you make it to college w/o smoking, you

probably never start

Nicotine

If both parents and best friends don’t smoke, you probably wont either

Quitting can cause withdrawal Irritability, anxiety, insomnia

All it takes to remove these symptoms is another cigarette

Nicotine

Compulsive and Mood altering

Hits of nicotine enter the body within 7 seconds Effect epin. And norepi. Suppress appetite and boost mental efficiency Also calms anxiety and reduces pain sensitivity

“Slow Motion Suicide” About 50% chance of dying from the habit

Stimulants

Cocaine

Enters the blood stream quickly

Crack – crystallized cocaine Even faster, more potent

Monkeys addicted have pressed levers more than 12,000x to get one more hit

Stimulants

Ecstasy Both a stimulant and mild hallucinogen MDMA

Methylenedioxymethamphetamine Triggers dopamine release also releases serotonin

and blocks its reabsorbtion Feel good flood – lasts 3-4 hours

Causes dehydration (club drug – can lead to death) Inability to produce serotonin (depression) Impairs immune system and memory

Hallucinogens

Distort perception and evoke sensory images in the absence of sensory input

Psychedelics Mind manifesting

Hallucinogens

LSD – Lysergic Acid Diethylamide

Created by Albert Hofmann in 1938 Ingested by accident in 1943

Perceptions can alter the high/trip

LSD

Hallucinations begin with seeing shapes

Then images or past experiences

Feeling of being separated from your body

Marijuana

THC – active ingredient

Relaxes and disinhibits like alcohol

Amplifies sensitivity to colors, sounds, tastes, smells

Less tolerance effect, unlike other drugs

Marijuana

Can delay reaction time, dangerous to drive

Problems with short term memory

Cannabinoid receptors Special areas of the brain that react to

marijuana Help reduce pain

Influences of drug use

Biological influences Heredity

Adopted individuals are more likely if biological parents have history (alcohol)

Identical twins more likely than fraternal Mice have been bred to prefer alcoholic drinks

rather than water Psychological

Feeling meaningless High school dropouts vs married Depression, stress – dulls pain of self

awareness?

Influences of drug use

Social influences Most drinking in teens occurs socially Cities more than small towns

Genetic populations?

Peer influence Believing that your friends are doing it can be

enough People who started because of peer group also

more likely to stop when peer group changes Smokers quitting together