Psych Flashcards
What is stress?
Our body’s response to any demand for change
Defined by Selye in 1936
What are the two types of stress?
- Eustress (positive stress)
- Distress (negative stress)
What are the two components of stress?
- Stressor (the event)
- Response (our reaction)
What types of events can be considered stressors?
- Everyday hassles
- Turning point events
- Long-term problems
- Traumatic events
What is the fundamental adaptive value of stress?
Survival: Fight / flight / freeze
What is the ‘tend and befriend’ response?
A stress response more commonly observed in women, involving protecting and nurturing offspring
How does stress affect mental and physical health?
- Reduces ability to think and plan
- Increases emotional responses
- Suppresses the immune system
What physiological changes occur during stress?
- Shift from storing energy to using energy
- Focus on immediate circumstances
- Activation of autonomic nervous system
What is Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)?
A disorder that can occur after exposure to a traumatic event, resulting in symptoms like fear and helplessness
What are common symptoms of PTSD?
- Intrusion symptoms
- Avoidance symptoms
- Negative alterations in cognition and mood
- Increased arousal
What is the prevalence of PTSD in the US?
- 12-month: 4.7%
- Lifetime: 6.1% - 8.3%
What is the duration for acute stress disorder?
Symptoms must persist for at least three days and up to one month
What are adjustment disorders?
Emotional or behavioral symptoms occurring within three months of an identifiable stressor
What defines prolonged grief disorder?
Maladaptive grief reaction diagnosed after 12 months since the death of a close relationship
What are the types of dissociative disorders?
- Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID)
- Dissociative Amnesia
- Depersonalization/derealization disorder
- Other specified Dissociative disorder
- Unspecified Dissociative disorder
What characterizes Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID)?
Presence of two or more distinct personality states with recurrent gaps in recall
What is dissociative amnesia?
Inability to recall important biographical information, usually traumatic or stressful
What is the prevalence of dissociative amnesia in the US?
~2% of the population
What is a dissociative fugue?
Sudden, unexpected travel away from home with inability to recall one’s past
What are the experiences associated with depersonalization/derealization disorder?
- Depersonalization: detachment from self
- Derealization: detachment from surroundings
What is the typical onset age for depersonalization/derealization disorder?
Typically during adolescence or young adulthood
What are the treatment options for Dissociative Identity Disorder?
Usually long-term psychotherapy focused on integrating the various alters into a single personality
Is Dissociative Identity Disorder considered iatrogenic?
Controversial; some believe it may be unintentionally produced by practitioners
What are the comorbidities often associated with Dissociative Identity Disorder?
- Depression
- Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD)
- PTSD
- Substance abuse
