Mental and Physical Health

Introduction to Health Psychology
Health Psychology: Subfield of psychology that emphasizes the interplay between psychological processes and physical health through the lens of behavioral medicine. It focuses on how psychological factors can influence health and illness, as well as the effectiveness of health care systems.

Psychoneuroimmunology: An interdisciplinary field that studies how psychological, neural, and endocrine processes interact to affect the immune system and overall health. This involves examining how stress and emotional states can influence the body's immune response, leading to both short-term and long-term health outcomes.

Understanding Stress
Definition of Stress: A complex psychological and physiological process involving the evaluation, perception, and response to threatening or challenging situations. Stress is influenced by individual interpretations and coping mechanisms, and it can manifest in both mental and physical forms.

Types of Stressors:

• Eustress: Positive stress that encourages growth, enhancing motivation and performance in tasks such as public speaking or athletic competitions, leading to a sense of achievement.

• Distress: Negative stress that leads to adverse effects on health and well-being, potentially causing anxiety, depression, and physiological symptoms.

Common Stressors:

• Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs): Traumatic events, such as abuse or neglect during childhood, suffering long-term effects on physical health, emotional stability, and behavioral issues in adulthood.

• Catastrophes: Unforeseen large-scale events (e.g., natural disasters like hurricanes or earthquakes) that can cause significant psychological distress and disrupt normal functioning.

• Significant Life Changes: Events like divorce, bereavement, or job loss that significantly alter a person's life, leading to emotional turmoil and stress responses.

• Daily Hassles: Minor irritations, such as delays in traffic, technical failures, or disputes with others, which can accumulate over time and contribute to overall stress levels.

Stress Response
Stress Process: Goes beyond merely being triggered by stimuli; it involves appraisal (how one perceives the threat) and coping strategies adopted to manage challenges. This can affect both physical and mental states.

Evidence: A stressful event can elicit an overwhelming physiological response characterized by elevated heart rates and adrenaline secretion, diverting cognitive and physical resources and leading to symptoms affecting overall health and productivity.

Health Consequences of Stress
Stress can alter immune functioning by increasing levels of cortisol, which, if prolonged, may impair the immune system's ability to fend off illness. This indirect effect underscores the importance of stress management for maintaining health.
Habitual stress contributes to poor decision-making regarding health habits, such as increasing the consumption of caffeine, alcohol, or unhealthy foods, which can have cascading effects on physical health.
Long-term Effects:

• Increased risk of heart disease due to chronic inflammation and unhealthy lifestyle choices.

• Immune suppression leading to higher susceptibility to infections and illnesses.

• Chronic headaches, hypertension, and gastrointestinal disorders resulting from sustained stress response.

Type A and Type B Personalities
Type A Personality: Characterized by competitiveness, impatience, and a high sense of urgency; often prone to stress and a higher risk for coronary heart disease due to increased secretion of stress hormones like adrenaline and cortisol.
Type B Personality: Typically more relaxed and open, less likely to experience stress-related illnesses, embodying a more balanced approach to life.
Catharsis: The notion that expressing or releasing pent-up anger does not significantly alleviate stress; instead, pursuing alternative coping strategies such as distraction and distancing oneself from stressors may be more effective.

General Adaptation Syndrome (GAS)
Proposed by Hans Selye, GAS describes the three phases of how organisms respond to stress:

1. Alarm Reaction: Immediate physiological and psychological response characterized by the activation of the sympathetic nervous system, increased heart rate, and the mobilization of resources for fast-paced coping.

2. Resistance: Sustained response where the body remains alert and physiological activities are elevated, allowing some adaptation to stressors, but potentially leading to resource depletion over time.

3. Exhaustion: Prolonged stress leads to depletion of the body's resources, resulting in increased vulnerability to illnesses, chronic fatigue, burnout, and in severe cases, total collapse.

Impact of Stressors
Prolonged stress can lead to significant physiological deterioration, including accelerated aging processes indicated by epigenetic changes, and impaired cognitive functions such as memory and decision-making.
Brain Effects: Stress can slow neuron production in the hippocampus (a region crucial for memory formation) and can cause degeneration of neural circuits, ultimately leading to shortened telomere lengths associated with aging and stress-related cognitive decline.

Coping Strategies for Managing Stress
Problem-Focused Coping: Involves directly confronting or addressing the source of stress in a practical manner to reduce its impact.
Emotion-Focused Coping: Involves regulating emotional responses to stress through seeking emotional support or employing mental strategies, though it may lead to maladaptive coping patterns if not managed well.
Influences on Coping: Individual beliefs about personal control, as well as the quality of social and emotional relationships, can significantly influence the success and effectiveness of coping strategies employed during stressful times.

Positive Psychology and Well-being
A paradigm shift from a traditional pathology-focused approach to promoting strengths and virtues that contribute to human flourishing and optimal mental health.
Happiness Factors:

• Perception of well-being linked to personal satisfaction and meaningfulness in life.

• Engagement in positive relationships, healthy social networks, and fulfilling activities that promote happiness and mental health.

• Regular physical exercise and adequate sleep crucial for maintaining energy levels and emotional balance.
  Resilience: The ability to bounce back from setbacks and adversities is pivotal for mental health; key factors influencing resilience include an individual's capacity for positivity, availability of support systems, and effective coping strategies.

Role of the Body in Stress Management
Aerobic Exercise & Meditation: Both physical activities enhance cardiovascular fitness and promote psychological well-being by effectively reducing stress levels and symptoms of depression and anxiety through the release of endorphins and serotonin.
Social Support: Strong and supportive social connections mitigate the adverse effects of stress and foster faster recovery from stress-related situations by providing emotional and practical assistance.
Mindfulness: Practicing a reflective awareness of present experiences can significantly reduce stress and anxiety, fostering improved mental health and emotional regulation.

Post-Traumatic Growth
Post-Traumatic Growth: Refers to positive emotional change and personal transformation that may follow significant trauma, leading individuals to develop deeper appreciations for life, stronger relationships, and new possibilities for personal development and fulfillment.

Psychological Disorders and Their Definitions
Understanding psychological illnesses through categories defined by the DSM-5, which classifies mental disorders into specific categories based on observable symptoms.
Criteria for Disorders:

• Clinically significant disturbances must be identified in cognition, emotional regulation, or behavior that impair functioning in day-to-day life.

• Must not be culturally expected responses to stressors or losses to distinguish between normal emotional responses and clinically diagnosable disorders.

Classification of Disorders
Organized into various categories that include anxiety disorders, depressive disorders, bipolar disorders, schizophrenia spectrum disorders, personality disorders, and more. Each classification helps identify specific symptoms for accurate diagnoses and ensures appropriate treatments and management strategies are selected, enhancing recovery prospects.