Chapter 5: Anxiety Disorders Flashcards
Behavioral inhibition system (BIS)
Activated by signals from the brain stem of unexpected events, such as major changes in body functioning that might signal danger
What is anxiety useful for?
warning for threats
Anxiety becomes a disorder when:
out of proportion, significantly interferes with life
Anxiety vs Fear w/ Danger
anxiety: apprehensive (lack of control), fear: immediate danger
Anxiety vs Fear w/ Time
anxiety: future-oriented, fear: present-oriented
Anxiety vs Fear Systems
anxiety: somatic symptoms of tension (chest/abdominal pain), fear: sympathetic nervous system activated
What do anxiety and fear have in common?
both have a negative effect
panic attack
abrupt experience of intense fear
Anxiety Biological Effects
increased physiological vulnerability, polygenic influences, limbic system and BIS
Freud and Anxiety
reactivation of infantile fear situation
Types of Anxiety
reality, neurotic, moral
Examples of reality anxiety
realistic fear (dog bites), ego
Examples of neurotic anxiety
nervous fear, overwhelmed, Id
Examples of moral anxiety
social fear, punishment, guilt, superego
Expected (cued) panic attack
linked to known stressors and specific triggers
Unexpected (uncued) panic attack
occur suddenly without any obvious cause or indication
What is the limbic system?
acts as a mediator between the brain stem and cortex
Triple Vulnerability Theory
generalized biological vulnerability, generalized psychological vulnerability, specific psychological vulnerability
Triple Vulnerability Theory Definition
David Barlow; anxiety disorders result from the interaction of the three vulnerabilities
Generalized Biological Vulnerability
vulnerability that is inherited that contributes to negative affect
Generalized Psychological Vulnerability
generalized helplessness that exists within the person in every situation
Specific Psychological Vulnerability
specific beliefs that make the person vulnerable in every situation
One of your parents is afraid of dogs, so you develop a fear of dogs. Which type of vulnerability is this?
specific psychological vulnerability
comorbidity
the co-occurrence of two or more disorders in a single individual
A ____ is an abrupt experience of intense fear of acute discomfort accompanied by physical symptoms, such as chest pain and shortness of breath.
panic attack
An ____ panic attack often occurs in certain situations but not anywhere else.
expected
Anxiety is often associated with specific ___ (Ex: behavioral inhibition system or fight/flight system) and ___ systems (Ex: nonadrenergic).
brain circuits, neurotransmitter
The rates of ____ among anxiety and related disorders are high because they share the common features of anxiety and panic.
comorbidity
____ life events can trigger biological and psychological vulnerabilities to anxiety.
stressful
Difference between panic and GAD
panic is associated with autonomic arousal, GAD is characterized by muscle tension and agitation, susceptibility to fatigue, some irritability, and difficulty sleeping
Panic Disorder (PD)
individuals experience severe, unexpected panic attacks
Agoraphobia
fear and avoidance of situations in which a person feels unsafe or unable to escape in the event of panic
common medication for anxiety
benzodiazepines
Specific Phobias
extreme and irrational fear of a specific object or situation
Four subtypes of specific phobia
blood-injection-injury, situational, natural environment, animal
What makes Blood-injection-injury phobia different from other phobias?
significant decrease in heart rate and blood pressure
Situational phobia
the fear of specific situations (Ex: claustrophobia)
Natural Environment Phobias
fear of situations of events occurring in nature
Four ways of developing a phobia
direct experience, experiencing a false alarm (panic attack), observing someone else experiencing severe fear, being told
Information transmission
developing a phobia from being warned repeatedly about a potential danger
