PSYCH 1XX3 - Psychological Treatments

external barriers to treatment

usually systemic - time and money

internal barriers to treatment

the way a person perceives their disorder can affect their ability to be treated

ego dystonic

having a negative relationship with your disorder

ego syntonic

having a positive relationship with your disorder (accepting your disorder and embracing it, believing that it is there for a reason)

Prochaska and DiClemente's Stages of Change

the stages of change that describe the progression to healthy behaviour

precontemplation, contemplation, preparation, action, maintenance

precontemplation

they have not yet acknowledged the existence of the problem

contemplation

the individual acknowledges the existence of the problem but is unwilling to change the problem

preparation

individuals recognize the problem and prepare for change

action

taking active steps to change the behaviour

maintenance

individuals continue the healthy behaviours set up in the action stage

relapse

the return of old, unhealthy behaviours, often driving the individual all the way back to the precontemplation stage

education of a clinical psychologist versus a psychiatrist

Ph.D in clinical psychology, MD

typical approach of a clinical psychologist versus a psychiatrist

holistic (biopsychosocial), medical (physiological)

typical focus of a clinical psychologist versus a psychiatrist

psychological therapy, pharmacology

can clinical psychologists prescribe medication?

no

can psychiatrists prescribe medication

yes

efficacy studies

check if the treatment works under ideal conditions with a highly selective study population

effectiveness studies

check if the treatment works in real-world clinical setting with highly inclusive study populations

psychosis

a broad term to describe symptoms that involve a detachment from reality, correlated with increased dopamine

how do antipsychotic medications work

they reduce dopamine by binding and holding onto post synaptic dopamine receptors, stopping dopamine from being absorbed

benzodiazepines

increase GABA levels by binding to different sites on GABA receptors to increase GABA activity, GABA reduces how often neurons fire action potentials, causing an individual to feel more calm

what is anxiety correlated with?

low levels of serotonin and GABA

what is depression correlated with

low levels of serotonin

how do SSRIs work?

combat low serotonin activity by inhibiting the reuptake process, allowing for more prolonged serotonin activity in the synaptic cleft

triggers

neutral stimuli that our brains interpret stressfully

cycle of anxious thoughts

triggers turn to worry thoughts which turn to anxiety

ineffective coping mechanisms

avoiding triggers

goal of CBT

challenging worry thoughts and ineffective coping mechanisms, breaking the cycle

can CBT improve unbalanced neurotransmitter levels

yes

supernatural approach

an umbrella term for a group of approaches to psychological treatment based on non-empirical concepts like religion, mythology, and astrology

exorcisms

a religious ritual used to cleanse a person of evil spirits, possessions, etc.

psychological approach

an umbrella term for a group of approaches to psychological treatment based on psychological, social and cultural factors

biomedical approach

an umbrella term for a group of approaches to psychological treatment based on anatomy, physiology and disease

institutionalization

the process by which abnormally behaving individuals were sent by there families to isolated asylums with low standards of care

humoral theory of disorders

an ancient biomedical theory that posited disease as an imbalance of four bodily fluids

hysteria

served as a catch-all diagnosis that could be given to any woman who presented with any condition that could not be easily explained by a known condition including, but not limited to nervousness, hallucination, emotional outbursts and sexual urges

what did Hippocrates believe the cause of hysteria was

a wandering uterus

old treatments of hysteria

prescribing marriage or luring the uterus back to its original position by fumigating the vagina

what did Sigmund Freud argue regarding hysteria

physical symptoms of hysteria arose when women were unable to confront suppressed traumatic memories

how did we connect that psychological disorders could be traced to a physical cause?

syphilis, caused by a bacterial microorganisms infecting the brain, had psychotic symptoms and could be cured by a high malarial fever that would kill off the bacteria

behavioural and cognitive symptoms were connected to a physical cause

electroconvulsive therapy (ECT)

procedure involving the brief passage of an electrical current through electrodes applied to the scalp, simulating a generalized seizure

psychosurgery

the treatment of psychological disorders through brain surgery

psychoanalysis

a therapeutic approach championed by Sigmund Freud in which a therapist seeks to uncover and address distress-causing unconscious conflicts

conscious

containing the thoughts and feelings that you have access to at any given moment

preconscious

the contents of which can be actively brought to mind as needed

unconscious

where a vast repository of inaccessible thoughts, repressed traumatic memories, and primitive urges reside

free association

the patient is encouraged to let their mind wander, reporting the content to the therapist without self-censorship

analysis of resitance

a psychoanalytic approach where the psychoanalyst analyzes which topics the patient wants to avoid in order to gain insight into their unconscious.

transference

the process by which a patient's early childhood thoughts, feelings and drives are 'transferred' onto the relationship with their analyst. as such, analysis of the patient's behaviour toward the analyst can provide insight into unconscious conflicts causing distress in the patient's relationships with others.

psychodynamic approaches

current day applications of psychoanalytic therapy, which are modified to be feasible and appropriate for a modern understanding and context of therapy

systematic desensitization

a behavioural therapy based on the principles of classical conditioning, often used to target symptoms of phobia disorders

cognitive therapy

a therapeutic approach that seeks to correct a patient's learned maladaptive cognitive thought patterns and behaviours

cognitive-behavioural therapy

a modern therapeutic technique with evidence-based success that combines aspects of both behavioural and cognitive techniques

pharmacotherapy

the treatment of psychological conditions using medications

extratherapeutic factors

factors that operate outside of therapy itself

therapeutic relationship

the degree to which the patient and therapist establish a relationship in which the client feels safe ,understood, hopeful

expectancy

the therapist makes every effort to understand the client's feelings in the moment, and validates those feelings back to the client by communicating those understandings