Mental and Physical Health

Unit 5: Mental and Physical Health Notes

Health Psychology

  • Health psychology: A subfield exploring the impact of psychological, behavioral, and cultural factors on health and wellness.

  • Involves enhancing health and healthcare through psychology.

  • Identified health-influencing behaviors include:

    • Regular exercise

    • Nutritious eating

    • Sufficient sleep

    • Not smoking

Stress

  • Definition: Stress is the perception and response to stressors perceived as threatening or challenging.

  • Effects of excessive stress:

    • Increases susceptibility to psychological disorders and physical diseases, such as:

    • Heart disease

    • Hypertension (high blood pressure)

    • Headaches

    • Colds

    • Poor immune response

  • Type A vs Type B Personalities:

    • Type A: Competitive, impatient, and prone to anger.

    • Type B: Easy-going.

    • Longitudinal studies showed a significant heart attack prevalence in Type A personalities (69% vs 0% in Type B).

Stress Response and Types of Stressors

  • Eustress vs Distress:

    • Eustress: Motivating stress, necessary for motivation (e.g., studying).

    • Distress: Debilitating stress, leading to adverse effects (e.g., stress from multiple tests).

  • Types of Stressors:

    • Catastrophes: Natural disasters, pandemics.

    • Significant life changes: Death of a loved one, breakups.

    • Daily hassles: Homework, social media pressures.

    • Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs): Childhood abuse or trauma affecting lifelong well-being.

General Adaptation Syndrome (GAS)

  • Three Phases:

    1. Alarm Reaction Phase: Activation of the sympathetic nervous system; fight-or-flight response.

    2. Resistance Phase: Body's adaptation, high levels of temperature, blood pressure, and heart rate.

    3. Exhaustion Phase: Resources are depleted, greatest vulnerability to illness.

Coping Strategies

  • Tend-and-Befriend Theory:

    • Suggests that especially women may seek social connections to alleviate stress.

  • Coping Mechanisms:

    • Problem-focused coping: Identifying stress as a problem to be solved.

    • Emotion-focused coping: Managing emotional responses; strategies include:

    • Deep breathing

    • Meditation

    • Medication (anxiolytics)

Positive Psychology

  • Definition: The scientific study of well-being, resilience, and positive emotions.

  • Key Concepts:

    • Subjective well-being: Self-perceived happiness/satisfaction.

    • Adaptation-level phenomenon: Happiness relative to past experiences.

    • Character strengths and virtues: Six categories:

    1. Wisdom

    2. Courage

    3. Humanity

    4. Justice

    5. Temperance

    6. Transcendence

  • Enhancing Well-being: Methods include:

    • Expressing gratitude

    • Aerobic exercise

    • Mindfulness and meditation

    • Community faith involvement.

  • Feel-good, do-good phenomenon: Helping others boosts personal happiness.

Psychological Disorders

  • Definition: Maladaptive thoughts, emotions, or behaviors resulting in distress and impairing daily functioning.

  • Diagnosing Disorders:

    • Tools include DSM (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual) and ICD (International Classification of Diseases).

    • Diagnosis can have both positive (correct treatment) and negative effects (stigmatization).

  • Perspectives on Psychological Disorders:

    • Psychodynamic: Focus on unconscious thoughts.

    • Humanistic: Lack of social support.

    • Behavioral: Learned behaviors affecting reactions.

    • Cognitive: Maladaptive thoughts contribute to disorders.

    • Biological: Physiological/genetic factors.

    • Sociocultural: Influence of social interactions on disorders.

Anxiety Disorders

  • Characterized by excessive fear/anxiety disrupting behavior.

    • Includes:

    • Specific Phobias

    • Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD)

    • Social Anxiety Disorder

    • Panic Disorder

  • Specific Phobia: Irrational fear of specific objects/situations.

  • GAD: Continuous anxiety with no identifiable cause.

Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD)

  • Characterized by:

    • Obsessions: Intrusive, distressing thoughts.

    • Compulsions: Repetitive behaviors enacted to reduce distress (e.g., excessive cleaning).

  • Hoarding Disorder: Difficulty parting with possessions; persistent pattern.

Trauma- and Stressor-Related Disorders

  • Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD): Symptoms include flashbacks, nightmares, social withdrawal after traumatic events.

Depressive and Bipolar Disorders

  • Major Depressive Disorder: Prolonged periods of sadness and reduced interest.

  • Persistent Depressive Disorder: Milder depression lasting at least two years.

  • Bipolar Disorders: Alternating periods of mania (euphoric) and depression.

    • Bipolar I: Severe mania.

    • Bipolar II: Less severe hypomania.

Schizophrenia Spectrum Disorders

  • Involves delusions, hallucinations, disorganized thoughts, and behaviors.

  • Positive Symptoms: Hallucinations (e.g., hearing voices), inappropriate behaviors.

  • Negative Symptoms: Lack of typical behaviors (e.g., flat affect).

Dissociative Disorders

  • Characterized by dissociations affecting consciousness and memory (e.g., Dissociative Identity Disorder).

Personality Disorders

  • Enduring patterns that deviate from cultural norms. Classifications include:

    • Cluster A: Odd/eccentric behaviors.

    • Cluster B: Dramatic, emotional, erratic behaviors.

    • Cluster C: Anxious, fearful behaviors.

Feeding and Eating Disorders

  • Altered consumption impacting health; key disorders include:

    • Anorexia Nervosa: Starvation despite being underweight.

    • Bulimia Nervosa: Binge eating followed by purging behaviors.

Neurodevelopmental Disorders

  • Include ADHD and Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD).

Treatment for Psychological Disorders

  • Historical approaches: Inhumane methods used in psychiatric care.

  • Current methods focus on ethical standards in therapy, evidence-based practices, and therapeutic alliances.

  • Types of Therapy:

    • Psychodynamic, Humanistic, Behavioral, Cognitive, Cognitive-Behavioral, Group, and Family.

  • Biomedical Approaches:

    • Use of medication to manage symptoms, including antipsychotics, antidepressants, and mood stabilizers (e.g., Lithium).

  • Invasive Techniques: Last resort procedures like Electroconvulsive Therapy (ECT) for severely depressed patients.

  • Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS): Non-invasive method for treating depression.