4.1.1-12 consciousness & sleep Flashcards
1
Q
consciousness
A
awareness of objects and events in the external world and our own existence and mental processes at any given moment
2
Q
states of consciousness
A
level of awareness of our internal state and external cues; on a continuum; NWC and ASC
3
Q
normal waking consciousness (NWC)
A
states on consciousness associated with being awake and aware of our thoughts, memories, feelings and the sensations we are experiencing from the outside world
4
Q
attention
A
concentration of mental activity that involves focusing on specific stimuli and ignoring other stimuli
5
Q
selective / focused attention
A
act of focusing on one event (to the exclusion of others)
6
Q
divided attention
A
focusing on two or more events simultaneously; tasks are automatic processes
7
Q
altered states of consciousness (ASC)
A
any state of consciousness that is distinctly different from NWC, in terms of level of awareness and experience;
8
Q
polysomnography
A
intensive study of a sleeping person involving simultaneous monitoring and recording of various physiological responses of the sleeper through the night
9
Q
EEG (electroencephalogram)
A
detects, amplifies and records the electrical activity that is spontaneously generated by the brain; used to study brain wave patterns during sleep and dreaming
10
Q
beta brain wave
A
high frequency, low amplitude;
associated with alertness and intensive mental activity during NWC
11
Q
alpha brain wave
A
medium to high frequency, low amplitude;
awake and alert but mentally and physically relaxed and internally focused
12
Q
theta brain wave
A
medium frequency, low and high amplitude; very drowsy (falling asleep), creative activities, deeply meditating
13
Q
delta brain wave
A
lowest frequency, highest amplitude;
deep, dreamless sleep or unconsciousness, deepest sleep (stage 4)
14
Q
EMG (electromyogram)
A
used to detect, amplify and record the electrical activity in the muscles
15
Q
EOG (electro-oculogram)
A
used for measuring the eye movements or eye positions by detecting, amplifying and recording electrical activity in eye muscles that control eye movements;
electrode area surrounding eyes
16
Q
video monitering
A
used in the study of sleep and sleep disturbances or disorders; video cameras record externally observable physiological responses throughout a sleep episode
17
Q
sleep diaries
A
self-reported record of an individuals sleep and waking time activities over a period of several weeks
18
Q
heart rate: sleep
A
as we move into a deeper sleep our heart rate drops
19
Q
body temperature: sleep
A
drops by 1 degree celsius during sleep
20
Q
cognitive task
A
task that requires mental processes and that has an easily specified correct outcome
21
Q
speed and accuracy
A
involves response or reaction time to a stimulus and the number of correct responses and incorrect responses made by the individual
22
Q
objective
A
not subject to personal opinion or interpretation
23
Q
controlled processes NWC
A
require alert awareness, full attention and mental effort in which the individual focuses on achieving a goal; only one activity at a time
24
Q
automatic process NWC
A
any activity that requires low levels of concentration; occur with little conscious awareness, require minimal attention and mental effort
25
content limitations describe NWC
content is more restricted than in ASC; we exercise control over what is acceptable modes of thought and behaviour in our environment; content more organised and logical
26
content limitations time orientation NWC
familiar with the normal passage of time; awareness of our place in time and have the ability to focus on the past, present and future
27
content limitations memory NWC
brain actively stores and retrieves information; individual can recall experiences and information
28
content limitations perception NWC
individual has a clear sense of their internal/external environment
29
content limitations emotional awareness NWC
individuals are aware of their feelings and show a normal range of appropriate emotions
30
cognition ASC
disorganised and illogical thinking; difficulty with problem solving; difficulty paying attention; dreaming
31
perception ASC
hallucinations; lose sense of identity or become detached from self; altered perception of pain
32
disturbed sense of time ASC
inaccurate estimation of time; passes at a different speed than normal
33
changes in emotional awareness ASC
more emotional or express openly; unpredictable emotional responses; emotionless; inappropriate emotional reactions
34
changes in self-control ASC
susceptible to suggestions; through hypnosis can help people gain greater control
35
drugs
any substance that can change a persons physical and/or mental functioning; certain types of drugs can induce ASC
36
stimulants
drugs that increase activity in the CNS and the rest of the body; have an alerting, activating effect;
increase higher frequency, decrease lower frequency;
increase beta, decrease delta, alpha and theta
37
depressants
drugs that decrease activity in the CNS and the rest of the body; calm, relaxation, drowsiness, reduce alertness;
increase lower frequency, decrease higher frequency;
reduced beta, increased delta, alpha and theta
38
effects on consciousness of one night full sleep deprivation / legal BAC
performance on cognitive tasks following sustained wakefulness decreased to an equivalent of a person with a BAC of 0.05%
39
sleep
reversible behavioural state of perceptual disengagement from and unresponsiveness to the environment
40
reversibility of sleep
a sleep can always be awoken with a strong stimulus, such as a noise and therefore 'reverse back' to the waking state quite quickly
41
perceptual disengagement of sleep
sleeper has no awareness of sensory stimuli in their external environment of which they are usually conscious in waking state
42
biological rhythms
cyclic changes in bodily functions or activities that repeat themselves through time in the same order; e.g. body temperature, secretion of hormones
43
circadian rhythms
involves change in bodily functions or activities that occur as part of a cycle with duration of about 24 hours
44
sleep-wake cycle
daily, naturally occurring 24-hour circadian rhythm of sleep and wake states regulated by a biological clock
45
zeitgebers
environmental time cues such as light-dark, meal times, clocks, jobs and social interactions
46
suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN)
regulates timing and activity of sleep-wake cycle --> amount of incoming light and adjusts sleep-wake cycle accordingly
47
ultradian rhythms
involves changes in bodily functions or activities that occur as part of a cycle shorter than 24 hours; includes heartbeat and respiration
48
hypnogogic state
transition from awake to asleep
49
awake (drifting off)
beta waves --> first close eyes alpha --> into first stage of NREM
50
how long is a complete sleep cycle
80-120 minutes (consists of both REM and NREM)
51
how many sleep cycles does a normal adult experience a night
4-5 cycles per night
52
NREM sleep (non-rapid eye movement)
stages 1-4
53
NREM stage 1
occurs when drift into sleep; muscles relax; decrease in alpha and replaced with theta; decrease heart rate, respiration;
lasts about 5-10 minutes
54
NREM stage 2
light stage of sleep; body movements lessen; theta waves;
sleep spindles & K complexes;
lasts about 10-20 minutes
55
sleep spindles
brief bursts of higher frequency brain wave activity; lasts 1 second; indicate person is asleep
56
K complexes
bursts of low frequency, high amplitudes brain waves in response to an arousing stimulus
57
NREM stage 3
stage of deepest sleep; extremely relaxed and less responsive; delta waves make up 20-50% (SWS), remaining are theta; usually groggy if woken;
lasts about 10 minutes
58
NREM stage 4
very deep sleep; delta waves make up more than 50% (slower and larger); sleep inertia;
up to 20 minutes
59
sleep inertia / drunkenness
difficult to wake up; may take 10 minutes to orient themselves and have poor memories of sleep events
60
how long does the progression of NREM from stage 1 to 4 take
about 45-60 minutes before progressives move back through stages
61
REM sleep (rapid eye movement) stage 5
eyeballs rapidly move beneath the closed eyelids; brain wave activity is similar to being awake (low amplitude, high frequency beta); difficult to wake; muscles temporary state of 'paralysis'; dreams
62
paradoxical sleep
internally the brain is active, while externally the body appears calm and inactive
63
REM sleep increases after what
stressful / emotional events;
| related to cognitive functioning
64
NREM sleep increases after what
physical exertion;
| related to physical recovery
65
restorative theory
NREM sleep is needed for the body to recover, relax, repair tissue, remove waste products and replenish neurotransmitters
66
restorative theory criticisms
unless we partake in extreme physical activity we shouldn't need more sleep; bed ridden people have similar sleep habits
67
evolutionary (circadian) theory
sleep evolved to enhance survival by protecting an organism through making it inactive during the part of the day when it is most risky or dangerous to move about
68
evolutionary (circadian) theory criticisms
assumes sleep is useful but not essential
69
differences in sleep across lifespan
number of hours of sleep decreases from around 16 hours to 6 hours;
amount of REM sleep generally decreases also
70
circadian rhythm phase disorders
group of sleep disorders involving sleep disruption that is primarily due to a mismatch between an individual's sleep-wake pattern and the pattern that is desired or required;
involve a problem with the timing of the sleep and wake states
71
main concept of circadian rhythm phase disorders
individual cannot sleep when sleep is desired, needed or expected
72
sleep wake shift in adolescence
during adolescence, hormonally induced shift of the sleep-wake cycle forward about 1 to 2 hours; timing of melatonin secretion that induces sleep onset peaks later; bodies not ready to sleep; biologically driven
73
sleep-wake cycle shift
a change in the timing of the major sleep episode, either through forward or backward movement
74
sleep debt
sleep that is owed and needs to be made up because daily sleep requirements have not been met
75
shift work
sleep disturbances associated with shift work that takes place outside the times of the normal '9 to 5' work day, especially at night when the work is scheduled during the habitual hours of sleep; accumulate sleep debt; we're not nocturnal beings
76
jet lag / time zone change syndrome
sleep disorder due to a disturbance to the circadian sleep-wake cycle caused by rapid travel across multiple time zones; shifting to new time zone results in a mismatch between our internal circadian biological clock and the external environment; temporary desynchronisation
77
symptoms of jet lag / time zone change syndrome
difficulties in intimating or maintaining sleep, excessive sleepiness, reduced day time alertness, impaired concentration and cognitive performance, digestive problems, malaise
78
malaise
vague feeling of bodily discomfort
79
west of best jet lag
jet lag is less disruptive when we travel in a westerly direction; we follow the apparent pathway of the sun; less mismatch between our biological clock and the day-night cycle of the external environment
80
sleep deprivation
general term used to describe a state caused by inadequate quantity or quality of sleep, either voluntary or involuntary
81
partial sleep deprivation
involves having less sleep (either quantity or quality) than what is normally required
82
total sleep deprivation
involves not having any sleep at all over a short-term or long-term period; the person stays awake for one or more days
83
affective (emotional) effects of partial sleep deprivation
amplified emotional responses; compromise brains ability to process emotional information, make accurate emotional perceptions, regulate how we respond emotionally; more likely to occur with REM sleep deprivation
84
behavioural effects of partial sleep deprivation
sleep inertia; excessive sleepiness, sewer reaction rate, microsleep
85
cognitive effects of partial sleep deprivation
reduces alertness and our ability to stay focused on task; ability to think clearly reduces; think in irrational ways; perform worse on learning and memory tasks
86
microsleep
brief period of sleep, lasting up to a few seconds; person typically has a fixed gaze, blank expression and doesn't blink
87
dyssomnias
sleep disorder that relates to problems with falling asleep and staying asleep
88
sleep onset insomnia / initial insomnia
used to refer specifically to the sleep disorder involving persistent difficulty falling asleep at the usual sleep time
89
insomnia
sleep disorder that typically involves persistent difficulty initiating or maintaining sleep; regular problems falling asleep and/or staying asleep, despite having adequate opportunity for sleep
90
symptoms of sleep onset insomnia
regular failure to fall asleep within about 20-30 minutes after intending to of to sleep; occurs at least 3 nights a week and for at least 3 months; non-restorative sleep
91
sleep onset insomnia effect on sleep-wake cycle
sleep onset occurring much later than desired; non-restorative; preoccupation with sleep and distress due to inability to sleep --> override and inhibit normal sleep-onset mechanisms
92
parasomnias
sleep disorders characterised by the occurrence of inappropriate physiological and/or psychological activity during sleep or sleep-to-wake transitions
93
sleep walking / somnambulism
involves getting up from bed and walking about or performing other behaviours while asleep; engage in activities which are routine and of low complexity; occurs in stage 3 and 4 NREM
94
cognitive behavioural therapy
aims to find solutions on how to change a persons current thoughts and behaviours so that they can function better now and in the future
95
CBT-I (cognitive behavioural therapy for insomnia)
goal is to help individuals with insomnia identify and replace thoughts and behaviour that cause or worsen their insomnia with thoughts and behaviour that minimise the likelihood of their insomnia and promote good sleep
96
cognitive: CBT-I
assists the individual to recognise and change inappropriate or dysfunctional attitudes, beliefs and other thoughts about their sleep
97
behavioural: CBT-I
helps the individual develop good sleep habits and avoid behaviours that prevent them from sleeping well
98
most effective behavioural therapy techniques for insomnia
stimulus control therapy and sleep hygiene education
99
stimulus control therapy
behavioural therapy for people with insomnia that aims to strengthen the bed and bedroom as cues for sleep, to weaken them as cues for behaviours that are incompatible with sleep, and to establish a regular sleep-wake schedule that is consistent with the circadian sleep-wake cycle
100
sleep hygiene / habits education
involves providing information about practises that tend to improve and maintain good sleep and full daytime alertness
101
bright light therapy / phototherapy
involves timed exposure of the eyes to intense but safe amounts of light
102
bright light therapy used for circadian rhythm phase disorders
aims to shift an individual sleep-wake cycle to a desired schedule, typically the day-night cycle of their physical environment; light may be sunlight or artificial
