Psychological Problems (3)
what is bipolar depression?
phases of extreme depression followed by phases of mania
what is unipolar depression?
constant low mood and depression
what is the biological explanation for depression? (4 points)
- low levels of serotonin in the body
- serotonin is a neurotransmitter responsible for sleep, apetite and calm mood.
- low serotonin means the 'calm mood' message won't get transmitted to the next neuron, causing low mood
- serotonin levels may be low due to genes (nature) or a diet low in carbohydrates (nurture) as carbs give the body neccesary ingredients to produce seritonin
what is the psychological explanation for depression?
faulty attributions are a cognitive style common in depressed individuals which involve mistakenly blaming negative events on themselves or stable causes, eg thinking things are always bad
what are faulty internal attributions?
blaming negative events on themselves rather than external factors
what are faulty stable attributions?
believing things do not change and stay bad forever
what are faulty global attributions?
believing something negative happens all over the world instead of blaming the negative experience eg. all people are horrible
what do SSRI's do?
block the re-uptake ports in the pre synaptic neuron, forcing the body ti make more serotonin abailable to bind to the post synaptic meuron
what are some negative side effects of SSRI's
nausea, weight gain, insomnia
what is a positive for using SSRI's
less time consuming than therapy, cheaper and reduces symptoms
what are all characteristics of addiction?
tolerance
persistence despite harm
difficulty controlling use
higher priority given to substance
withdrawal
strong desire