Chapter 9 Physical Disorders and Health Psychology Flashcards
Behavioral medicine
- psychology applied to prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of illness
- This is an interdisciplinary field in which psychologists, physicians, and other health professionals work closely together to develop new treatments and preventive strategies.
Health psychology
- psychology of being healthy; system level interventions
- Is not interdisciplinary
- A subfield of behavioral medicine
Psychological and social factors influence health and physical problems in two distinct ways
- They can affect the basic biological processes that lead to illness and disease
- Long-standing behavior patterns may put people at risk to develop certain physical disorders.
- Sometimes both these avenues contribute to the etiology or maintenance of disease.
Selye theorized that the body goes through several stages in response to sustained stress.- General adaptation syndrome (GAS)
- Alarm
- Resistance
- Exhaustion
* go through stages in response to sustained stress
Alarm
- response to immediate danger or threat
2. Phase 1: Alarm response (sympathetic arousal)
Resistance
- mobilize various coping mechanisms to respond to the stress
- Phase 2: Resistance (mobilized coping and action)
Exhaustion
- our bodies suffer permanent damage or death
2. Phase 3: Exhaustion (chronic stress, permanent damage)
Stress
the physical response to the stressor
Stressor
a factor that increases the “load” (psychological, emotional, physical) on a person
Physiology of Stress
Sympathetic nervous system activation
HPA axis and other hormones like cortisol are released
Hippocampal control of stress response via cortisol feedback
Stress and the Immune system: clear link between stress and immune system
stress, negative emotion linked to duration of induced cold; colds, herpes, monocuclosis are all linked to stress
- marital discor, relationship problems, job loss, bereavement all linked to lowered immune function
- effects can occur as rapidly as 2 hours post-onset of stressor
stress hormones
cortisol and other related hormones with a close relationship to the stress response
corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF)
1 of the neurohormones; is secreted by the hypothalamus & stimulates the pituitary gland
Self-efficacy
A sense of control and confidence that we can cope with stress or challenges
-Bandura
Immune system
- Protects the body from any foreign materials that may enter it.
- The effect of stress on susceptibility to infections is mediated through the immune system
Chronic stress
- last longer
2. early stressful events, preexisting stress, emotional instability
Antigens
- foreign materials entering the body (viruses, bacteria, parasite, donated organs
- Can be any of a number of substances, usually bacteria, viruses, or parasites.
leukocytes
white blood cells; most of the work
Macrophages
- A type of leukocytes that surrounds identifiable antigens and destroys them
- leukocytes; might be considered 1 of the body’s first lines of defense:They surround identifiable antigens & destroy them; signal lymphocytes
Lymphocytes
- consist of two groups, B cells & T cells; signaled by macrophages
B cells
- operate w/in the humoral part of the immune system, releasing molecules that seek antigens in blood & other bodily fluids w/ the purpose of neutralizing them; produce immunoglobulins
- Lymphocytes that operate within the humoral part of the system and circulate in the blood and bodily fluids
T cells
- don’t produce antibodies; operate in the cellular branch of the immune system
- have several subgroups: helper T cells signal B cells to keep producing antibodies and trigger killer T cells to directly attack antigens
Killer T cells
- subgroup of T cells, that directly destroys viral infections and cancerous processes
- This subgroup targets viral infections within the cells by directly destroying the antigens
Memory T cells
- created to speed future responses to the same antigen