mental health

Question 1

mental health

Answer 1

is a state of emotional and social wellbeing in which individuals realise their own abilities, can cope with the normal stresses of life, work productively and contribute to their community

Question 2

mental health problem

Answer 2

indicate a disruption to an individual’s usual level of social and emotional wellbeing, including when our abilities are negatively impacted.

Question 3

resilience

Answer 3

a person who has developed the ability to properly adapt to stress and cope with adversity

Question 4

mental disorder

Answer 4

is a psychological state characterised by emotional difficulties that lead to emotional or behavioural impairment or disability serious enough to require psychiatric intervention
are longer lasting
more serious
need treatment to overcome.

Question 5

characteristics of mentally health

Answer 5

able to cope with normal stressors
able to from positive relationships
few sleep difficulties

Levels of functioning can be demonstrated by being able to interact and involve oneself in society and to undertake everyday tasks, like personal hygiene, going to work, or eating food.
Social wellbeing is a sense of belonging to a community – this may involve having a job, being a member of a sporting team, or contributing to the community.
Emotional wellbeing means to experience positive emotions such as joy, love, or happiness, and feeling generally satisfied with life.
Resilience to life stressors A resilient person is better able to cope with life’s challenges (such as negative events) and maintain their social and emotional wellbeing. Resilience doesn’t remove the stresses involved in a negative situation, but it does help the person to better manage and deal with the stress so that they can function and still enjoy life. Resilient people are influenced by their biology, behaviours, cognitions, social and situational environments and have skills and capacities, including:

Question 6

characteristics of mental health problems

Answer 6

difficulties in coping
mild to moderate stress
some changes in sleep patterns and appetite

Question 7

characteristics of mental disorder

Answer 7

marked distress
withdrawal and avoidance from social events
significant changes in sleep patterns and appetite

Question 8

health

Answer 8

‘state of complete physical, mental, and social wellbeing, and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity’

Question 9

ethical implications

Answer 9

informed consent

• the participants must be fully informed in the true nature and purpose of the experiment and obtain written consent
• if the participant is under the age of 18 a guardian must complete the informed consent form

placebo: a fake treatment that has no active effect. can cause the placebo effect: change in behaviour caused by the participants belief that they have been exposed to a treatment that will affect them in some way.
- participants are being deceived and violates there writes to be fully informed. however if the participants are debriefed this negates deception.

Question 10

stress

Answer 10

“A state of arousal involving unpleasant feelings of apprehension or uneasiness that something is wrong or something bad is about to happen. Normal response to pressure

Comes in cycles and normal.
Is quite critical for survival.
Managed
Some people can perceive certain events as more stressful than others
Characterised by persistent tension, distress, nervousness and apprehension
Does not make them lose touch with reality, but makes day-to-day functioning harder

Question 11

anxiety

Answer 11

state of physiological arousal associated with feelings of worry, dread or uneasiness that something is wrong or that something unpleasant is about to happen.
Common, experienced by everyone at least once
Response to an unclear or ambiguous threat.
Repetitive and ongoing stress can lead to anxiety
When anxiety is out of proportion to a situation it may result in an anxiety disorder
Generalised anxiety disorder (GAD) – persistent, excessive or unrealistic anxiety or worry (general feeling of uneseased and not directed towards a particular thing like a phobia)

Question 12

phobia

Answer 12

type so anxiety disorder recurring, unrealistic and intrusive fear of a particular object or event.

May interfere with learning new information, or carry out complex tasks
When the anxiety becomes out of proportion to the situation preventing causing dysfunction (avoidance behaviour).
Treated, if left untreated anxiety disorders may affect aspects of a person’s life
Intense fear, irrational fear, avoids fear stimulus, cannot control fear, interrupts daily functioning, overwhelming anxiety.
Animals, situations, blood/injections/injuries, natural environments e.g. dark and heights.

Question 13

Specific phobia

Answer 13

– excessive, persistent and unreasonable fear of a specific object or situation

• intense fear
• avoidance
• overwhelming anxiety
• interrupts daily functioning

Question 14

CBT cognitive behavioural therapy

Answer 14

uses learning to extinguish the stress response to the specific stimulus and replacing it with a non stressful response

Question 15

B- GABA

Answer 15

inhibitory neurotransmitter that calms the body response which counteract the excitability of glutamate etc.

reduces heart rate, respiration

Question 16

neurotransmitters

Answer 16

are chemicals that are released into the synapse between neuron’s, they act as messengers which carry information about stimuli from the pre synaptic neutron to the post synaptic neutron.

Question 17

GABA dysfunction

Answer 17

low levels fo GABA may not be able to regiulate their anxiety so they have a greater chance of developing a phobia
leads to excessive stress, mode disorders

Question 18

role of long term potentiation

Answer 18

. fear is a learnt response.
. we associate fear with a specific stimulus and a new memory with emotional feeling attached is made.
. each time a person is confronted with their fear the synapses are strengthened that communicate with the amygdala.

Question 19

P- precipitation by classical conditioning

Answer 19

neutral stimulus associated with unconditioned stimulus leads to unconditioned response
Precipitating – catalyst/trigger close before onset of mental illness (e.g. trauma)

Question 20

P-perpetration by operant conditioning

Answer 20

the behaviour being repeated is determined by the consequence
eg a person is rewarded when they avoid the phobia due to not having to suffer anxiety.
Perpetuating – what prolongs symptoms (e.g. substance abuse)
Avoidance is a negative reinforcer
Exposure is punishment

Question 21

P- cognitive biases

Answer 21

memory bias -alter recalled memories, exaggerating the circumstances can also remember more negative information surrounding the event.

catastrophic thinking - repeatedly overestimating the potential dangers assuming the worst. heightened levels if distress and anxiety and underestimate their ability to cope

Question 22

S - specific environmental triggers

Answer 22

specific stimulus can trigger a fearful response ie a spider can make you remember about the time you were bit.

Question 23

S - stigma around seeking treatment

Answer 23

social disapproval surrounding mental illness

Question 24

intervention biological BENZODIAZEPINE

Answer 24

Reduce activity of the central nervous system by increasing levels of GABA.
. panic disorder
. anxiety
enhance GABA induced inhibition of overexcited neurotransmitters
reduce any over activity the brain

Question 25

intervention psychological cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT)

Answer 25

Exposed to fear
Given coping mechanisms (e.g. controlled breathing and relaxation)

relaxation training- help calm the body and mind in presence of specific phobia stimulus ie guided imagery

flooding - exposing a phobic person to the real feared stimulus all at once until the anxiety response disappears

Question 26

intervention social psychoeducation for families/supporters with reference to challenging unrealistic or anxious thoughts and not encouraging avoidance behaviours

Answer 26

education about an illness such as the nature of the illness, its treatment and management strategies

not encouraging fortune telling or overgeneralisation about a phobia, neither avoiding the phobia it self

Question 27

protective factor biological (before a person has a mental disorder)

Answer 27

adequate diet and sleep
Sleep- is necessary to maintain mental health and to be aware of the recommended amount of sleep for your age.
Resilience improves with enough sleep, because they are able to deal with adversity and challenges better.
Chronic sleep deprivation can create negative thinking and emotional vulnerability.
A link has been demonstrated between poor sleep and mental health problems sch as depression and anxiety.
Worrying about sleep can cause a vicious cycle as the more you worry about a lack of sleep, the less sleep you get!
Diet- a good diet, of fresh unprocessed and nutrient-rich foods, including an adequate amount of complex carbohydrates, essential fats, amino acids, vitamins and minerals and water.
Provides energy to sustain an active lifestyle and promote healthy development, great for our brains as well
When leading a healthy lifestyle, people feel better and fitter and are more able to cope with challenges

Question 28

protective factor psychological

Answer 28

cognitive behavioural strategies

Question 29

protective factor social

Answer 29

support from family friends and the community
Social support decreases psychological distress in people who are dealing with stressful life events

Strong social support for emotional disclosure has been found to decrease a person’s vulnerability to stress and increase their ability to cope.

may also be tangible support

Question 30

health psychology

Answer 30

. Combines research on physical health and psychology to better understand how this relationship contributes to overall wellbeing and to develop holistic strategies to promote it.
. An individual’s behaviours, together with their thoughts and feelings, are central in understanding and improving their health
. Importance in promoting health-enhancing behaviours as opposed to health-impairing behaviours

Question 31

negatives of Benzos

Answer 31

Benzodiazepines are also addictive.
Tolerance can occur if taken over a long time
Withdrawal symptoms often appear when discontinued.
short term use
cause drowsiness, fatigue

Question 32

Biopsychosocial Framework

Answer 32

Comprehensive approach describing the interdependence and interaction of biological, psychological and social factors to influence one’s physical and mental health and illness
Biological – predisposition to gene influence
Psychological – mindset and ways of thinking
Social – interaction with others/community

Question 33

intervention- biological

Answer 33

exercise - increase alertness and concentration, release endorphins. reduce anxiety by stopping adrenaline and cortisol build up

breathing retraining- can help calm your sympathetic NS by kicking in you parasympathetic NS

Question 34

intervention psychological systematic desensitisation

Answer 34

phobic person is introduced very slowly to the stimulus until the fear response is extinguished