States of Consciousness

Unit 4

Topics for Unit 4Levels of Consciousness

Sleep

Dreams

Hypnosis

Drugs

Levels of Consciousness

Conscious level: The information about us and our environments we are currently aware of.

The highest level on Freud’s Iceberg. These are our current thoughts and perceptions.

Non-conscious level: Bodily functions we aren’t generally aware of.

This refers to our heartbeat, respiration, digestion, etc.

Levels of Consciousness

Preconscious level: Information about us or our environment not currently on our mind, but is easily accessible.

This refers to information like what hospital you were born at, what street you live on or your mother’s middle name

Subconscious level: Information that we are not consciously aware of, but we know must exist due to our behaviors.

What happened in our past that we cannot remember or are not aware of might shape and define our behavior

Levels of Consciousness

Unconscious level: Repressed thoughts and emotions that may scare us, or be unacceptable to our conscious.

Remember Psychoanalysis, Freud.

It is difficult to prove or validate the Unconscious level.

May present itself through dreams, Freudian slips

SleepOur Circadian rhythm daily cycle that includes eating, sleeping, waking, using the bathroom and so on

Most people have a typical sleep cycle that they become accustomed to.

Maintaining a healthy sleep cycle is important to the efficiency of our daily lives

Sleep CycleMost of us need a good, solid night sleep to function properly.

Generally to function at our best, the average full grown human needs about 7.5-9 hours of sleep. (This may vary among people with different lifestyles, however)

It is important to note that sleep is not a state of unconsciousness, but rather an altered state of consciousness.

SleepThroughout the night we go through different stages of sleep.

The period in which we are falling asleep, or drifting off is called Sleep onset. It is that transition stage between wakefulness and sleep.

During sleep onset we experience Lucid dreams

When awoken from sleep onset, many people report that they did not feel that they were asleep.

Sleep StagesStage 1: This sleep stage is the beginning of our nightly sleep journey. It usually lasts about 5-10 minutes. It is similar to sleep onset in the sense that many people who are awoken from stage 1 feel as if they were not awake.

Abrupt muscle contraction is frequent during stage 1.

Think back to those awkward moments at sleepovers

Sleep StagesStage 2: This is the stage that prepares the body for deep sleep.

During stage 2 muscles intermittently flex and relax

Also, in stage 2 your body temperature decreases and heart rate begins to slow

Sleep spindles, which are short spurts of brain wave activity occur and usually within 4 or 5 minutes of Sleep spindles people believe they are asleep(people awoken at this time, that is)

Sleep StagesStages 3 and 4: These stages are the deep sleep portions of the evening. Stage 3 is a move into deep sleep and stage 4 is the deepest level of normal sleep.

People are more difficult to wake up during stages 3 and 4 and when awoken, most people feel very groggy and disoriented.

Deep sleep is important for replenishing body’s chemical supplies, releasing hormones and strengthening our immune system

NREM and REM Sleep

R.E.M. stands for Rapid-Eye Movement.

Our bodies throughout the night alternate between REM and NREM(non-REM) sleep.

NREM sleep occurs during Stages 1-4.

REM sleep occurs as part of each cycle

Sleep cycles and not 1,2,3,4,1,2,3,4 but rather

1,2,3,4,3,2,1,REM,1,2,3,4,3,2,1, REM

NREM and REM Sleep

About 90% of NREM sleep is dream free. Dreams from NREM sleep are usually vague and forgettable

During the REM portion of your sleep your brain appears to be as active as it is when it is awake. Your eyes dart around, hence Rapid-Eye Movement.

The most intense, bizarre and memorable dream take place in the REM portion of sleep.

During REM sleep our bodies become almost paralyzed.(Remember, Sleep paralysis)

Sleep CyclesA normal sleep cycle lasts about 90 minutes and we cycle through anywhere from 4-7/night.

More time is spent in REM sleep later in our sleep cycle.

Some people can remember multiple dreams throughout the night, mostly from the REM portion of sleep.

Sleep DisordersThroughout the night, many of us have issues getting a complete, uninterrupted night sleep.

Insomnia

The most common of all sleep disorders. Affecting up to 10% of the population.

Insomniacs experience trouble getting to, or staying asleep.

Sleep DisordersThe opposite of Insomnia, and far less common is the case of Narcolepsy.

Whereas Insomniacs can’t get to sleep, people suffering from Narcolepsy fall asleep uncontrollably.

Generally Narcoleptics fall into a deep REM sleep.

This can be dangerous while driving, operating machinery or playing sports.

Found in less than 0.001% of the population

Sleep DisordersSleep Apnea is a dangerous disorder that is as about as common as Insomnia.

Sleep Apnea is when a person stops breathing for intermittent periods of time while sleeping

The person suffering from this continually wakes up gasping for air.

People lose the ability to stay in the important deep sleep stages

Sleep DisordersNight Terrors are a very common occurrence, especially among children.

When a person suffers from Night Terrors, they can wake up in the middle of the night screaming and yelling, making erratic body movements and walking or running around their room.

Most people return to sleep and do not remember the night terror in the morning.

DreamsDreams are the story-like images we experience as we sleep.

Sigmund Freud was fascinated with dreams and their meanings.

Manifest Content: The literal content of our dreams

Latent Content: Unconscious meaning of our dreams

Dream TheoriesMany different theories exist for why we dream, and how they take place

Activation-synthesis theory: Our brains are attempting to make sense of all of the neural activity happening in our sleep

Information-processing theory: Dreams are an attempt to make sense of your day’s experiences and memories

DreamsMost people report that dreams are reflective of events that happen throughout the day.

Many correlate with our own experiences, but many seems to be random and inexplicable

Dream interpretation websites and books exist for people interested in the meaning of their dreams.

Validity cannot be confirmed, but they are a fun and sometimes accurate way to look at our dreams.

HypnosisHypnosis and its validity have been widely questioned and scrutinized.

Hypnotists claim to be able to alter people’s behavior through making suggestions to people once they are in an altered state.

Some people are more susceptible than others to the effects of hypnosis.

HypnosisSome people report having posthypnotic amnesia. This is when people report that they have forgotten the events that occurred while they were hypnotized.

A posthypnotic suggestion is a suggestion for how a hypnotized person should act once they come out of Hypnosis. The suggestion is given by the performer of the hypnosis.

Hypnotic suggestibility refers to the fact that some people are more easily influenced while hypnotized than others

HypnosisRole theory states that hypnosis is not an altered state, some people are just more easily influenced.

State theory suggests that since people are less aware of their surroundings, they are more likely to go along with hypnosis and its suggestions.

Dissociation theory argues that we are able to divide our consciousness and one part gets “hypnotized” while the other stays aware.

DrugsPsychoactive drugs are chemicals that change the chemistry of the brain

Drugs can effect our neural processes by mimicking or blocking natural transmitters in the synaptic gaps

If a drug is mimicking a neurotransmitter, the body will begin to produce less of its natural neurotransmitters causing withdrawals and altering the body’s tolerance to drugs.

Types of DrugsThere are different types of drugs that have different effects on the body and our mind.

Some of these drugs are legal and are used everyday.

Other drugs, when used without caution can have a devastating impact on the lives of users.

Drugs can be categorized in 4 groups: Stimulants, Depressants, Hallucinogens and Opiates

StimulantsStimulants speed up body processes including autonomic nervous system functions such as heart rate and respiration

Caffeine, cocaine, Amphetamines and nicotine are popular and common stimulants.

Give the user a euphoric feeling of confidence and energy

Disturbed sleep, anxiety and reduced appetite are common effects

Depressants Depressants slow down the bodily processes that stimulants speed up.

Alcohol and anti anxiety pills (xanax) are popular “downers”

Delays in judgment and motor skills occur.

Alcohol is the most common leading to thousands of deaths/year.

Abuse of downers can greatly affect moods and relationships with others

HallucinogensAlso called Psychedelics, they cause changes in our perception of reality. We can hallucinate, lose our identity and create vivid fantasies.

Common hallucinogens are LSD, mushrooms and marijuana.

These drugs may stay in our system for weeks!!

Behavior and effects of Hallucinogens can be very unpredictable.

OpiatesOpiates are known to be powerful painkillers and mood elevators. They are derived from the Poppy plant.

Common Opiates are morphine, heroine and codeine.

Opiates cause drowsiness and extreme Euphoria.

They are among the most addictive and dangerous drugs. Our bodies quickly create a tolerance to Opiates so we need more and more of a drug to get the same feeling as before.