Study Notes on Mental and Physical Health

Unit 5: Mental and Physical Health

  • Definition of Health Psychology

    • Health psychology addresses issues of physical health and wellness as they apply to behavior and mental processes.

    • Includes aspects of mental health, with a focus on:

    • Stress

    • Positive Psychology

Understanding Stress

  • What is Stress?

    • Stress is the process by which we perceive and respond to certain events (referred to as stressors) that we appraise as threatening or challenging.

    • The perception of stressors varies from person to person; what may be exciting to one individual can be dreadful to another.

Types of Stress

  • Eustress

    • Positive stress response, involving optimal levels of stimulation.

    • Results from challenging but attainable and enjoyable or worthwhile tasks (examples include participating in an athletic event or giving a speech).

    • Beneficial effects include generating fulfillment, achievement, and facilitating growth, development, and high levels of performance.

  • Distress

    • Negative stress response, often involving negative affect and physiological reactivity.

    • Results from being overwhelmed by demands, losses, or perceived threats.

    • Triggers physiological changes that pose serious health risks, especially when combined with maladaptive coping strategies.

Exposure to Stress

  • Types of Exposure:

    • Chronic Stress: Long-term stress duration that intensifies severity.

    • Acute Stress: Short-term but typically intense stress, can be either positive or negative.

  • Common Stressors:

    • Hassles

    • Significant life changes

    • Trauma

Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACES)

  • Definition of ACES:

    • ACES are traumatic events that occur before the age of 18, having lasting cumulative effects on mental and physical health and overall well-being into adulthood.

  • Examples of ACES:

    • Physical or emotional abuse

    • Abandonment or neglect

    • Loss of a family member to suicide

    • Substance abuse or alcoholism in the household

    • Mentally ill parent

    • Incarcerated parent

    • Parental divorce or separation

  • Risk Factors for ACES:

    • Low-income or low-education families

    • High levels of family or economic stress

    • Families lacking closeness and open discussions about feelings

    • Use of corporal punishment by parents

    • Parents who themselves experienced abuse or neglect

    • Communities with high rates of violence or substance abuse

    • Economically disadvantaged communities

    • Communities lacking resources for youth

  • Impact of ACES:

    • Difficulty in forming close relationships

    • Trouble keeping jobs

    • Financial difficulties

    • Higher rates of depression

    • Increased likelihood of engaging in violence

    • Early, unplanned pregnancies

    • Greater risk of incarceration

    • Higher unemployment levels

    • Increased exposure of offspring to ACEs

    • Greater risk of alcohol or substance abuse

    • Higher likelihood of suicide attempts

    • Health issues including heart disease, cancer, lung disease, and liver disease

General Adaptation Syndrome (GAS)

  • Stages of GAS:

    • Alarm Reaction: A stressful situation is encountered, leading the body to send out an "alarm" signal.

    • Resistance Phase: The body responds to the stressor with an "all hands on deck" approach, reallocating energy from other systems.

    • Exhaustion: The body depletes its energy reserves, resulting in fatigue and potential illness.

Coping with Stress

  • Problem-Focused Coping:

    • Involves perceiving stress as a problem to be solved, finding and implementing solutions.

  • Emotion-Focused Coping:

    • Involves managing emotional reactions to stress. Techniques may include:

    • Meditation

    • Deep breathing or breath control

    • Medication

Positive Psychology

  • Definition of Positive Psychology:

    • A field that seeks to identify factors leading to well-being, resilience, positive emotions, and psychological health.

  • Three Pillars of Positive Psychology:

    • Connecting with others

    • Savoring pleasure

    • Developing a sense of gratitude

  • PERMA Model (Seligman):

    • Positive emotions: Experiencing optimism, gratitude about the past, contentment in the present, and hope for the future.

    • Engagement: Achieving a state of "flow" with enjoyable activities and hobbies.

    • Relationships: Building social connections with family and friends.

    • Meaning: Finding purpose in life larger than one’s self.

    • Accomplishments: Setting and achieving personal goals and successes.

Character Strengths and Virtues

  • Engaging in activities that utilize one’s signature strengths or virtues correlates with higher levels of happiness and subjective well-being.

  • Classification of Character Strengths:

    • Six categories of virtues: wisdom, courage, humanity, justice, temperance, transcendence.

Post-Traumatic Growth

  • Definition: Growth that surpasses mere resilience, allowing individuals to reflect, grow, and shift perspectives about themselves and others.

  • Examples:

    • Not provided in the transcript but generally refers to how individuals may discover new meanings and strengths following adversity.

Abnormal Psychology

Defining Abnormal Behavior

  • Abnormal behavior is defined by several factors:

    • Dysfunctional

    • Maladaptive

    • Unusualness

    • Social deviance

    • Emotional distress

    • Dangerousness

    • Faulty perceptions/interpretations of reality

  • Factors to Consider:

    • Cultural context

    • Context within time

Eccentrics and Abnormality

  • Examples of Eccentricity:

    • The behaviors of certain historical figures like James Joyce or Emily Dickinson are cited as instances of eccentricity rather than mental disorders.

  • Research on Eccentrics:

    • Researcher David Weeks studied eccentrics and estimated that only 1 in 1000 eccentrics suffer from mental disorders.

Classification of Psychological Disorders

  • American Psychiatric Association (APA):

    • Uses the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM V) as the standard for diagnostic criteria and codes used by mental health workers.

    • Functions include identifying disorders and determining suitable treatment methods.

  • Significant Changes in DSM V:

    • Changed terminology for disorders such as autism/Asperger’s syndrome to autism spectrum disorder.

    • Changed mental retardation to intellectual disability.

    • New categories added including hoarding disorder and binge eating disorder.

  • International Classification of Mental Disorders (ICD):

    • From the World Health Organization, it provides an additional classification system for psychological disorders.

Behavioral Perspective on Mental Disorders

  • Definition:

    • Focuses on maladaptive learned associations between responses to stimuli as the primary cause of mental disorders.

Psychodynamic Perspective on Mental Disorders

  • Definition:

    • Concentrates on unconscious thoughts and childhood experiences as root causes of mental disorders.

Humanistic Perspective on Mental Disorders

  • Definition:

    • Attributes mental disorders to a lack of social support and the inability to fulfill one’s potential.

Cognitive Perspective on Mental Disorders

  • Definition:

    • Explains that mental disorders stem from maladaptive thoughts, beliefs, attitudes, or emotions.

Evolutionary Perspective on Mental Disorders

  • Definition:

    • Proposes that certain behaviors and mental processes may have evolved to reduce the likelihood of survival.

Sociocultural Perspective on Mental Disorders

  • Definition:

    • Focuses on how maladaptive social and cultural relationships contribute to mental disorders.

Biological Perspective on Mental Disorders

  • Definition:

    • Assesses mental disorders through a lens of physiological or genetic issues.

Models of Abnormal Psychology

  • Medical Model:

    • Proposes that psychological disorders have biological causes and can be treated through medical interventions.

  • Biopsychosocial Approach:

    • A comprehensive model considering biological, psychological, and social-cultural influences on mental health.

  • Diathesis-Stress Model:

    • Suggests that the development of psychological disorders arises from a combination of genetic vulnerability (diathesis) and stressful life experiences (stress).

  • Eclectic Approach:

    • Combines various approaches and is the most commonly used by mental health professionals.

Categories of Mental Health Conditions

  • Categories Included in CED:

    • Neurodevelopmental disorders

    • Schizophrenic spectrum disorders

    • Depressive disorders

    • Bipolar disorders

    • Anxiety disorders

    • Obsessive-compulsive and related disorders

    • Dissociative disorders

    • Trauma and stressor-related disorders

    • Feeding and eating disorders

    • Personality disorders

Neurodevelopmental Disorders

  • Description:

    • Onset during the developmental period, symptoms evaluated in the context of what is typical for age and maturity.

    • Can stem from environmental, physiological, or genetic causes.

  • Focus:

    • Attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)

    • Autism spectrum disorder (ASD)

Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)

  • Criteria:

    • Number of symptoms required varies by age group:

    • Children up to age 16: Six or more symptoms of inattention and/or hyperactivity-impulsivity.

    • Ages 17 and older: Five or more symptoms.

  • Symptoms of Inattention:

    • Common issues include careless mistakes, difficulty maintaining attention, and organizational challenges.

  • Symptoms of Hyperactivity-Impulsivity:

    • Common issues include fidgeting, difficulty remaining seated, excessive talking, and impulsive actions.

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)

  • DSM V Criteria:

    • Persistent deficits in social communication and social interaction.

    • Restricted, repetitive patterns of behavior, interests, or activities.

    • Symptoms must be present in early development and cause significant impairment in functioning.

Schizophrenia

  • Definition:

    • A psychological disorder characterized by delusions, hallucinations, disorganized thinking/speech, disorganized motor behavior, and negative symptoms.

  • Symptoms of Schizophrenia:

    • Delusions: False beliefs varying in type (persecutory, grandiose).

    • Hallucinations: False sensory experiences that can be visual, auditory, or tactile.

    • Disorganized Thinking/Speech: Often referred to as "word salad".

    • Disorganized Motor Behavior: Includes positive (excitement) and negative (stupor) behaviors.

    • Negative Symptoms: Lack of emotional expression, flat affect.

  • Important Concepts:

    • Typical onset occurs in young adulthood and affects both genders.

    • Onset can be influenced by stress and can be chronic or acute in nature.

    • Potential Causes:

    • Genetic Factors: Family history can increase onset risk.

    • Biological Factors: Prenatal exposures to infections.

    • Chemical Imbalances: The dopamine hypothesis posits that irregular dopamine levels may contribute to symptomatology.

Mood Disorders

  • Definition:

    • Psychological disorders characterized by emotional extremes.

  • Types:

    • Major Depressive Disorder

    • Bipolar Disorder

Major Depressive Disorder

  • Criteria:

    • Lasting two or more weeks with five or more symptoms, including either depressed mood or loss of interest.

  • Possible Symptoms:

    • Not specified in the transcript.

Bipolar Disorder

  • Definition:

    • Characterized by alternation between depressive moods and episodes of mania.

  • Mania Symptoms:

    • Excitement, talkativeness, reduced need for sleep, engaging in reckless behavior, feeling invincible.

  • Causes of Mood Disorders:

    • May include a combination of biological, genetic, social, cultural, behavioral, and cognitive factors.

Anxiety Disorders

  • Definition:

    • Psychological disorders marked by persistent anxiety or maladaptive behaviors that alleviate anxiety.

  • Types:

    • Generalized Anxiety Disorder

    • Panic Disorder

    • Phobias

Generalized Anxiety Disorder

  • Characteristics:

    • Continually tense and apprehensive, symptoms persisting for at least six months without a specific reason.

Panic Disorder

  • Characteristics:

    • Involves episodes of intense dread with physical symptoms like heart palpitations and feelings of losing control.

Phobias

  • Definition:

    • Persistent, irrational fears and avoidance of specific objects, activities, or situations.

  • Types:

    • Specific phobias, social anxiety disorder (fear of being judged), agoraphobia (avoidance of situations where escape is difficult).

Obsessive-Compulsive Disorders

  • Definition:

    • Characterized by unwanted, repetitive thoughts (obsessions) and/or behaviors (compulsions) aimed at reducing anxiety related to these obsessions.

  • Example:

    • Hoarding disorder, which involves difficulty discarding possessions leading to cluttering and impairment in functioning.

Dissociative Disorders

  • Definition:

    • Disorders defined by dissociation from consciousness, memory, identity, and behavior.

  • Key Types:

    • Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID) and Dissociative Amnesia.

    • DID: Characterized by the presence of two or more distinct personalities.

    • Dissociative Amnesia: Inability to recall autobiographical memories associated with traumatic events.

PTSD (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder)

  • Definition:

    • Characterized by persistent symptoms following a traumatic experience, including hypervigilance, anxiety, flashbacks, and emotional detachment.

Eating Disorders

  • Types of Eating Disorders:

    • Anorexia Nervosa

    • Bulimia Nervosa

    • Binge Eating Disorder

  • Anorexia Nervosa (DSM-5 Criteria):

    • Includes significant restriction of energy intake, an intense fear of weight gain, and a distortion in body image.

  • Bulimia Nervosa (DSM-5 Criteria):

    • Characterized by recurrent episodes of binge eating followed by inappropriate compensatory behaviors (e.g., self-induced vomiting).

Additional Information on Eating Disorders

  • Include lifetime prevalence and comorbidity statistics related to eating disorders.

Personality Disorders

  • General Definition:

    • Personality disorders feature enduring patterns of behavior deviant from cultural norms, causing personal distress or impairment.

  • DSM-5 Classifications:

    • Divided into three clusters (A, B, and C).

Cluster A Disorders (Odd or Eccentric)

  • Examples:

    • Paranoid, schizoid, and schizotypal personality disorders.

Cluster B Disorders (Dramatic, Emotional, Erratic)

  • Examples:

    • Antisocial, borderline, histrionic, and narcissistic personality disorders.

Cluster C Disorders (Anxious, Fearful)

  • Examples:

    • Avoidant, dependent, and obsessive-compulsive personality disorders.

Specific Personality Disorders

  • Paranoid Personality Disorder Features:

    • Characterized by persistent distrust and suspicion of others.

  • Schizoid Personality Disorder Features:

    • Marked by a detectable preference for solitary activities and limited emotional expression.

  • Antisocial Personality Disorder Features:

    • Demonstrated by a disregard for others’ rights and socially irresponsible behaviors.

  • Borderline Personality Disorder Features:

    • Includes unstable relationships and emotional dysregulation.

  • Histrionic Personality Disorder Features:

    • Characterized by excessive emotionality and attention-seeking behavior.

  • Narcissistic Personality Disorder Features:

    • Involves grandiosity, a need for admiration, and lack of empathy.

  • Avoidant Personality Disorder Features:

    • Defined by a pattern of avoidance due to fear of criticism and rejection.

  • Dependent Personality Disorder Features:

    • Involves excessive need to be cared for leading to submissive behavior.

  • Obsessive-Compulsive Personality Disorder Features:

    • Characterized by a preoccupation with order and perfectionism, resulting in interpersonal problems.

Somatic Symptom and Related Disorders

  • Definition:

    • Involves physical symptoms without an apparent physiological cause.

  • Types:

    • Conversion Disorder: Symptoms with no physiological basis.

    • Illness Anxiety Disorder: Intense worry about having a serious illness despite evidence suggesting otherwise.

Factitious Disorders

  • Definition:

    • Deliberate creation or exaggeration of ailments for no obvious gain.

  • Types:

    • Factitious Disorder Imposed on Self

    • Factitious Disorder Imposed on Another

Final Thoughts on Mental and Physical Health

  • Mental and physical health are integrally connected, with stress and psychological well-being influencing physiological health, and vice versa. Understanding these connections can help in effective coping strategies and addressing mental disorders effectively.

Types of Therapy and Treatments

  • Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT):

    • Focuses on changing unhelpful cognitive distortions and behaviors, and improving emotional regulation.

    • Often used for anxiety disorders, depression, and PTSD.

  • Psychodynamic Therapy:

    • Explores unconscious processes and past experiences to understand current behavior.

    • Useful for addressing the root causes of emotional distress.

  • Humanistic Therapy:

    • Emphasizes personal growth and self-actualization.

    • Utilizes techniques like client-centered therapy, where the therapist provides a supportive environment.

  • Behavioral Therapy:

    • Focuses on modifying harmful behaviors through reinforcement strategies.

    • Commonly used in treating phobias and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD).

  • Exposure Therapy:

    • A type of behavioral therapy that exposes patients to the source of their fears in a controlled environment.

    • Effective for treating anxiety disorders, particularly phobias.

  • Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT):

    • A specific type of cognitive-behavioral therapy designed for individuals with intense emotional responses.

    • Often used for borderline personality disorder and includes mindfulness techniques.

  • Group Therapy:

    • Involves a therapist leading a group of individuals who are facing similar challenges.

    • Provides shared experiences and support from peers.

  • Family Therapy:

    • Involves family members in the therapeutic process, aiming to improve communication and resolve conflicts.

    • Useful for addressing issues that affect the entire family unit.

  • Medication:

    • Often used in conjunction with therapy, medications can help manage symptoms of mental health disorders.

    • Common categories include antidepressants, anti-anxiety medications, and mood stabilizers.

  • Mindfulness-Based Therapies:

    • Incorporates mindfulness practices to help patients become more aware of their thoughts and feelings.

    • Beneficial for stress reduction and increasing emotional regulation.