AP Psych Levels of Consciousness Notes

Consciousness

The awareness of one’s environment and mental processes

Most early psychologists studied levels of consciousness

varies throughout the day

Higher level of consciousness= better to process info

William James’ definition of Consciousness

• Always Changing

• A personal experience

  • different for everyone

• Continuous

• Selective

Freud’s View on Consciousness

Iceberg Theory

Conscious- ideas, memories, feelings, or motives of which we are actively aware

Preconscious- aspects of our experience that are not conscious but can easily be brought to awareness

• more info based like old locker number

Unconscious- cognitions, feelings, or motives of which we are not aware

• takes time and effort to bring to awareness

  • need hypnosis

Sleep

an altered state of consciousness

a form of consciousness

a lot of processing goes on when we sleep

Electroencephalogram

One of the devices used to determines a person’s sleep stages

EEG- best measure of brain electrical activity

measures electrical activity of the brain

Electromyogram

Measures Muscle tone, another indicator of sleep stages

also used in sleep studies to help indicate sleep level

if have major sleep issues, you will be prescribed a sleep study

measures what the sleep actually looks like

4 brainwave stages

Beta- awake and REM, 13-30 Hz

• dreams in REM sleep are more vivid, not the same as NREM dreams

Alpha- stage 1 sleep, 7-13 Hz

Theta- transitional sleep (when brain is transitioning between stages of sleep), 3.5-7 Hz

Delta- deep sleep, 0.5-3.5 Hz

• stages 3 and 4

How many stages of NREM sleep are there?

4

NREM

Non Rapid Eye Movement

Dreams can occur, but not the same as REM dreams

Stage 1 of Sleep

Stage 1: Brief transitional stage usually lasts 5-10 minutes

• shallow sleep, short nap

Alpha waves give way to Theta waves

Predominatly alpha waves with theta waves towards the end

very light sleep

hypnotic state

change one’s habits through hypnotic suggestions

Hypnic jerk

Hypnotic state

at the beginning of sleep and at the end when waking up- not with alarm

change one’s habits through hypnotic suggestions- right before falling asleep

right before going to sleep feels like about to go into hypnosis

Hypnic Jerk

feeling of falling followed by a jerk into wakefulness

almost like the brain does want to do to sleep yet

Stage 2 of Sleep

Stage 2: Characterized by brief burst (spindles) of higher frequency brain waves, sleep spindles- fairly regular intervals

relatively easy to be awakened

predominantly theta waves

• transitional waves that happens between stages of sleep

Sleep spindles- unique to this stage

K-complex- unique to this stage

Sleep Spindles

unique to Stage 2

short bursts of brain activity

K complex

unique to stage 2

the brain is shutting out external stimuli (ability to hear and sense of surroundings)

• shut out what we don’t need so brain can go into deep sleep

Stage 3 of Sleep

20% of EEG activity DELTA WAVES

predominantly delta waves, deep sleep waves

very difficult to awaken

internal functions slow down, brain is most inactive in deep sleep

“deep sleep” or physical restful sleep

• get most physical restfulness

more 3 and 4 at the beginning of the night, less as night goes on

stage 3 and 4, tossing and turning occurs

stage 3 sleepwalking occurs, motor cortex is activated in this stage

• somnambulism

Sleepwalking

also known as somnambulism

occurs in stage 3

motor cortex in the brain is activated which allows sleepwalking to occur

Stage 4 of Sleep

More than 50% of EEG DELTA WAVES

last stage of NREM sleep

at the end of stage 4 brainwaves start to increase as you travel up stages 3,2,1 and then enter your first period of REM sleep (vivid dream time)

What is the ideal amount of sleep per night?

7-8 hours

B-A-T-D back to B

Beta

Alpha

Theta

Delta

Back to beta

REM Sleep

Rapid Eye Movement

Brain is just as active as when it is awake

Beta Waves- same as awake and alert

REM is caused by the visual cortex (occipital lobe which is 1 of 4 main parts of the brain, located in the back) of the brain being activated during dreaming

adults typically spend 25% of night in REM sleep

• teens spend more

REM is most essential for our cognitively ability and mood

REM increases as the night goes on and during stressful times

FMRI

Functional Magnetic Residents Imagining

machine that reads activity in the brain as it is going on

• a lot of activity in REM sleep

Time for entire sleep cycle

90 minutes

Time for stages 1-4 of sleep

60 minutes

Freud on Dream

Believed Dreams had meaning and sought to decode their meanings

“Dreams the royal route to the unconscious”

Wrote Interpretation of Dreams in 1899

Latent Content: unconscious drives and wishes that would be threatening if expressed directly

Manifest Content: obvious or known meaning to the dream

Latent content

unconscious drives and wishes that would be threatening if expressed directly

meaning of the dream that is hidden

true, underlying, meaning of the dream that resides in a person’s unconscious mind

Manifest Content

obvious or known meaning to the dream

content of which the dreamer is consciously aware

3 Dream Theories

Information processing

Physiological Function

Activation Synthesis

Information Processing

the brain sifts through the day’s events and keeps what is needed and discards unnecessary info

• files away what we need, trashes what we don’t

Recent studies support this theory

• has most research supporting it

House Keeping of the Brain

Physiological Function

REM occurs as a result of brain and body growth

• may explain why infants and children dream more than adults

Dreams provide the sleeping brain with periodic stimulation to develop and persevere neural pathways

Neural networks of newborns are quickly developing therefore they need more sleep

Activation Synthesis

Random neural firings occur during REM

the brain is simply trying to make sense of these random neural firings

Dreams are activated via physiological mechanism in the brainstems

• brainstem generates neural activity

• cerebral cortex synthesizes the activity into meaningful “stories”

• mor research evidence than Freud’s theory

Suggests that the brain engages in a lot of random neural activity

• dreams make sense of this activity

Sleep Disturbances

Nightmare

Night Terror

Sleepwalking

Nightmares

anxiety producing dreams that usually lead to awakening

mare is an old English phrase that means spirit or goblin

younger kids have more

Night Terrors

aka Incubus Attack or devil on your back

Abrupt awakening from dream or nightmare that occurs during NREM sleep (reason they are so disruptive to sleep)… accompanied by intense feelings of panic (wake up screaming, heart racing)

Often associated with PTSD

Disrupts the balance of sleep

Sleepwalking

Somnambulism

occurs when a sleeping person arises and wanders about in deep NREM sleep (stage 3 or 4, mostly 3)

more common when you are younger

motor cortex is responsible for big motor functions like walking

talking in sleep also occurs at this time

Sleep Disorders

DSM-5 (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders) classifies 3 groups of sleeping disorders

• Insomnia

• Narcolepsy

• Sleep Apnea

Insomnia

Inability to fall asleep or stay asleep for the entire night

3 different kinds

• Onset- inability to fall asleep, beginning of sleep

• Maintenance- inability to stay asleep, wake up in the middle of the night

• Termination- waking up early and not able to return to sleep

  • wake up hours before the alarm

Pseudo insomnia- dreaming of being awake, when in reality you are asleep… can often have the same effects as insomnia

• dream about not being able to sleep

Solutions to help you fall asleep faster

Sleeping Pills and Alcohol- not good long term

Reduce Blue Light/ Blue Light Filter

Melatonin

Sleeping Pills and Alcohol

may make you sleepy, but they can be addictive and suppress the amount of REM sleep you get

• not good, we want REM

the use of sedatives is not recommended for long term use

can gain tolerance to them

Blue Light Reduction

blue light emitted from electronic devices are also known to reduce REM

exposure to these should be REDUCED OR ELIMINATED at least 1-2 hours before bedtime

Blue light filter on devices can also help

Melatonin

Hormone found in the body which helps to regulate sleep

a reduction of melatonin is seen in people who are taking high doses of aspirin and ibuprofen

• Lack of sunlight also causes less melatonin production

Melatonin supplements can be helpful if you have a melatonin deficiency

Melatonin is the all natural night ca, our bodies natural hormone that we produced to sleep

Amount produced by our body lessens as we get older

Narcolepsy

feeling of extreme sleepiness which can occur at any time

• can fall asleep very quickly and easily

genetic component

Cataplexy- most common symptom, sudden and extreme muscle weakness

a sudden feeling of extreme sleepiness and a need to sit

around 1 in 2000 may have

truck driver/ bus driver is not a recommended occupation if you have

Obstructive Sleep Apnea

characterized by repeated awakenings throughout the night as a result of not being able to breath

Breathing may be stopped for as long as a minute, results in person waking up gasping for breath

• have no memory of event the next morning

airway is shutting off

• can occur as often as 300-400 times per night

Loud snoring is a Warning Sign

airways collapse and block air flow to lungs

remedy- CPAP Machine- Continues Positive Airway Pressure

Zepbound: new medication for sleep apnea, GLP-1 medication

Voluntary Alternations of Consciousness

Hypnosis

Meditation

Hypnosis

an altered state of consciousness one enters voluntarily

discovered by Franz Mesmer- Freud used hypnosis a lot with patients

able to access thoughts and memories in the past

increase in suggestibility- open to suggestions that a hypnotherapist may place in your subconscious- most often used in weight reduction, smoking, and phobias

can be used to block pain- painless child birth

hypnotherapist use hypnosis to suggest positive things unconscious when in hypnosis so conscious will take in

some are more open to hypnosis than others- more intelligent and better daydreamers tend to by more easily hypnotized

can give dissociation from pain

Highway Hypnosis: person drives a great distance responding to traffic signals and other cars with no recall of any consciousness effort to do so

Meditation

self induced state of altered consciousness

“mantras” often used to help focus one’s attention to relax

Psychoactive Drugs

Psychoactive Drugs are chemical substances that modify mental, emotional, or behavioral functioning

alteration of neural activity in the brain; speeds up, slows down, or interferes with neurotransmitters as they cross the synphase

not to be confused with psychotropic drugs

Psychotropic drugs

medications used to treat and help those with mental health issues

• anxiety, depression, etc.

Dependence

depend on drug to fell normal or happy

many people are dependent on caffeine

Tolerance

need more of a drug to feel same effect

Withdrawl

a negative response to an ending of a drug

Addiction

extreme willingness to do anything for the continued use of drug

Drug Abuse

lack of control, disruption of normal function to satisfy the user

Stimulants

are drugs that tend to increase central nervous system activation and behavioral activity

Are agonists- agents that increase nervous system activity

Types of Stimulants

Caffeine

Nicotine

Cocaine

Amphetamines

Caffenine

found in many foods (chocolates), drinks (coffee, energy drinks, tea), and pain killers (Anacin and Excedrin)

the MOST widely abused drug worldwide

sudden stop will cause side effects, headaches

Adenosine: neurotransmitter, causes humans to b/cm tired

• caffeine blocks adenosine by binding to receptors

  • as a result of block adenosine, adenosine floats around and speeds up adrenaline

More caffeine you take, more receptors for adenosine to bind to are made

• causes a tolerance of caffeine to build up

Takes 7-12 days for extra receptors to go away after quitting caffeine

Most abused Stimulant

Caffeine

Nicotine

activate excitatory synapse in both CNS and PNS- usually ingested by smoking

when nicotine gets into the brain, it attaches to acetylcholine receptors and mimics its actions

nicotine also raises levels of dopamine

Dopamine

the reward/pleasure neurotransmitter

Cocaine

elevates blood pressure and heart rate

produces a euphoric or “high” feeling

also effects the neurotransmitter dopamine

Amphetamines

Effects Norepinephrine and Dopamine- both affect a persons mood

common names: bennies, uppers, dexies, or jelly babies

a stimulant that helps mask fatigue

can be addictive because it stimulates the release of dopamine and norepinephrine

Depressants

reduces one’s awareness of external stimuli

all depressants are antagonists

Types of Depressants

Alcohol

Alcohol

most commonly used of all depressants

especially dangerous in pregnant women

affects GABA and glutamate (affect anxiety)

• both are excitatory neurotransmitters

Most used Depressant

Alcohol

Opiates (Narcotics)

can reduce or eliminate sensation of pain, tend to ignore real world stimuli

Ex. Heroin and Morphine

strongly addictive and dependency can quickly occur

sudden removal results in pain and depression

Barbiturates

synthetically produced sedatives (all others we have talked about have something natural)

slows nervous system activity by blocking neural receptors

Hallucinogens

are a diverse group of drugs that have a powerful effect on the mental and emotional functioning

distortions in sensory and perceptual experiences

LSD (Lysergic Acid Diethylamide)

lead to hallucinations, usually visual - seeing or hearing visions or voices

Affects serotonin, can affect one’s mood directly, mimics neurotransmitters

Maijuana

A mild, relaxed euphoria, accompanied by enhanced sensory awareness and a distorted sense of time

low doses acta as a depressant, high doses act as hallucinogenic

active ingredient is THC

impair judgement and memory… larger dose can cause hallucinations

can be used for medicinal purposes Ex. Cancer Patients- chemotherapy, help reduce nausea

use can affect offspring, whether mom or dad use it

Serotonin

a neurotransmitter that regulates mood

Active ingredient in Marijuana

THC