biological explanations of stress

Question 1

2 explanations ?

Answer 1

1. adrenaline and acute stress (superhero)
2. cortisol and chronic stress (sidekick)

Question 2

describe the sympathomedullary pathway ? (SAM)

Answer 2

when a person perceives a threat the hypothalamus is altered, co-ordinating a response from the autonomic nervous system ANS. This arouses the sympathetic branch of the ANS this branch sends a single to the adrenal medulla to release hormones such as adrenaline and noradrenaline. This circulates through the body targeting key organs such as heart and muscles creating heart to beat faster and blood pressure to rise. When threat has passed the response is lowered by the parasympathetic branch of ANS

Question 3

what is ANS concerned with?

Answer 3

non skeletal movements works with little to no conscious control by you.
2 main functions: to activate internal organs and save energy done through 2 branches

Question 4

2 branches of ANS?

Answer 4

• parasympathetic
• sympathetic

Question 5

parasympathetic branch ?

Answer 5

concerned with the conservation of resources

Question 6

sympathetic branch ?

Answer 6

actives internal organs in situations needing engird such as for fight or flight

Question 7

what happens to the body during the flight or flight response?

Answer 7

adrenaline is released in order to allow the body to get ready to fight or flight
- blood therefore oxygen is diverted away from non-essential areas and taken to areas needed for action such as muscles in order to make them work harder.

Question 8

effects of adrenaline on the heart?

Answer 8

high levels of adrenaline and noradrenaline have a direct effect on the heart which has been linked to cardiovascular disorders linked to stroke and heart attacks this is because the heart is required to work harder and blood pressure is raised

Question 9

2 evaluation points for adrenaline?

Answer 9

• research evidence
• gender differences

Question 10

adrenaline research evidence ?

Answer 10

• Jonathan lear et al found there was an increase in the number of deaths caused by cardiovascular issues on the day of a Californian earthquake.
• stress cardiomyopathy also known as broken heart syndrome affects people who suffer server emotional stress after an event such as grief

Question 11

adrenaline - gender differences ?

Answer 11

one issue with fight or slight Is that it tends to focus on males and women may react differently.
- Taylor et al called the female stress response ‘tend and befriend’ in the EE it would have been adaptive for women to deal with stress through nurturing their young and creating social networks. This may be due to the different levels of oxytocin between men and women. Women produce more oxytocin in stress situations whereas men produce more testosterone

Question 12

what is the hypothalamic pituitary adrenal system HPA compared to SAM?

Answer 12

it is a slower response than SAM as it is a response to chronic stressors

Question 13

what is cortisol and its main function?

Answer 13

a steroid hormone
- main function is to play a role in the central nervous system where its involved in learning and memory. it regulates glucose and immune system.

Question 14

how can cortisol affect our body when we are sick?

Answer 14

the immune system responds to the virus by attacking them, however when we are going through chronic stress the immune system is seen as non-essential so its shut down to divert engird elsewhere, this creates immunosuppression which can cause colds and infections

Question 15

evaluation point for chronic stress ?

Answer 15

low levels of cortisol is also an issue - research shows that its not just high levels of cortisol that can cause health problems. for many people its not until the stressor is removed that they get ill for example falling ill after exam season. The sudden drop of cortisol levels may lead to an inflammatory effect.
- Heim et al reports on a number of studies linking low levels of cortisol on a number of different health conditions such as PTSD.