Psychiatry II Flashcards
What are 4 general functions of the brain?
- Organise sensory inputs
- Process sensory and social inputs
- Ensure survival
- Maximise its own efficiency
What is object relation?
Internalising our early childhood attachments —> affect later relationships and psychology
- So… individuals relate to others based on their
internalised representations (“objects”) of
themselves and others
What is an individual’s psychology based on?
Object relations during development
How should psychiatric symptoms be interpreted?
- Unconscious adaptations
- Unconscious communication
Why is understanding a patient’s upbringing so important in psychiatry?
Allows doctor to understand why they think the way they do both consciously and unconsciously
Why do patients develop anxiety disorders?
Self-perpetuating network of positive feedback loops exacerbate normal adaptive response of fear
Why do patients develop depression?
Self-perpetuating network of positive feedback loops exacerbate normal adaptive response of sadness
What is trait vs state anxiety?
Trait —> tendency of an individual to perceive
situations as threatening (personality)
- long-term
State —> anxiety-related reactions to specific adverse
situations
- short-term
Why do patients develop compulsions?
Distress-reducing mechanism —> temporary relief (negative reinforcement) —>repeatedly used as patient in persistent distress —> habit-formed —> compulsion
Why do patients develop addictions?
Coping mechanism - repeated negative reinforcement
- substance —> direct action on neural circuits —>
used to cope with persistent distress —> repeated
negative reinforcement —> becomes subconcious
What are 4 examples of psychiatric compulsions leading to disorders?
- Addictions
- OCD
- Eating disorders
- Self-harm
Why do patients develop OCD?
Coping mechanism - negative reinforcement
- intrusive thoughts + habit-formation —>
compulsions
What is positive vs negative reinforcement?
Positive: feel fine —> feel great
- make you happy
Negative: feel down —> feel less down
- make you less sad
Why do patients develop eating disorders?
Coping mechanism - negative reinforcement
- source of control when patient is under intense
distress and feels out of control
Why do patients develop self-harm?
Coping mechanism - negative reinforcement
- short-term relief from low self-worth and persistent
distress
