Psychological aspects of mood/depression

Question 1

socio-economic status and depression

Answer 1

higher SES = less chance of dep

Question 2

resilience

Answer 2

developed through recovering/processing post exposure to trauma and difficulties
-> intermittent trauma = stronger as more time to recover

Question 3

pain

Answer 3

-useful in indicating when you should stop something harmful
-healthy pain vs pathological pain

Question 4

mood/feeling fluctuate - is this normal?

Answer 4

this is completely normal. However, it becomes a problem when it’s prolonged → issue

Question 5

What is the main purpose of moods and feelings?

Answer 5

→ keeps us safe, it is an early warning system. Feelings can be good or bad and we need both to survive

Question 6

What is a mood?

Answer 6

A temporary emotional state that influences perception and behaviour and fluctuates

Question 7

Influences on Moods

Answer 7

-both external (e.g., weather, life events) and internal factors (e.g., hormones, personality traits) play a role.
-Society, time period, biology, age and hard wiring also play a role. Today’s society is not okay with feeling bad
- intensity, duration and type of event?

Question 8

Control Over Moods:

Answer 8

• While some aspects of mood are within our control, others, such as hormonal changes or unexpected life events, are not.
  
  • attend and accept feelings they are a WARNING SYSTEM
    -> You have 0 control of what you feel but you have control over the expression of your emotions. = Supression is not good, but accept whatever you think and feel.

Question 9

What affects your mood?

Answer 9

• the life you’ve had before.
• E.g if you’ve had near death experiences etc. you may be less bothered by smaller things.
  = The metric of your tolerance has changed
• Life’s experiences changes your parameter of what actually influences your mood.
• By trying to change your mood you’re taking a prophylic action

Question 10

Transition to Disorder:

Answer 10

• A mood becomes a disorder when it persists, leading to significant distress or impairment in social, occupational, or other important areas of functioning.
• When you can’t trace back the cause → indicative of disorder

Question 11

treatments for mood disorders

Answer 11

-Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT),
-Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT),
-medication,
-and lifestyle changes like exercise.

Question 12

CBT

Answer 12

attempts to alter the way you see things in the world. We label a lot of emotions as negative in society e.g anger. However, anger signals attack! This is useful information.

Question 13

Pros and cons of CBT:

Answer 13

PROS: teaches you that it’s not the way something happens but how you react to it that affects you.
CONS: - use of pain rating scales but the issue with this is that it is subject to a person’s pain scale → not the same for everyone
- normal for mood to fluctuate - past, genetics, personality
- Different events could cause the same level of pain in different people, even when the events are seemingly very different e.g major vs minor

Question 14

metrics for depression diagnosis

Answer 14

how generalisable are they?
-Now 2 weeks but was 6 weeks before

Question 14

Mood Enhancers:

Answer 14

Marketing strategies are designed to manipulate moods through emotional appeal. Marketing knows how to manipulate your mood.

Question 15

Awareness

Answer 15

Understanding these tactics can help in mitigating their impact on our mood and decisions.

Question 16

External influences

Answer 16

• include the environment - weather, social interactions, and life events.

Question 17

Internal factors

Answer 17

• involve biological aspects such as neurotransmitters and hormones, and psychological factors like personality traits.
  -These are underestimated.
  -Predisposition to serotonin uptake receptors e.g has an effect and we have no control over this.
  -Vitamin D deficiency, lack of sleep and thyroid (physiology) has big effects!
  -Diet, environment, personality e.g neuroticism, extraversion etc.

Question 18

epigenetics:

Answer 18

• behaviours affect future offspring genetics
• Recent research on genetics has been done and how our behaviours affect our genes e.g smoking → affects genes passed on to offspring.
  -How you think of the world/how much you think affects your child’s brain.

Question 19

treatments for depression

Answer 19

• usually in conjunction with medication which allows the person to access therapy
• mild depression - good eve for physical exercise
• exposure and response prevention therapy helps with anxiety
• CBT - mindfulness = helpful from stress to psychosis
• CBT through NHS
• Self-Help Resources: books
  -AI - bot chat = less judgy

Question 20

Psychological theory

Answer 20

• We can choose how we think about things/what we do ⇒ thus can influence how we feel
• BUT be careful:
  
  • randomized controlled trials routinely exclude groups of people who are regularly seen in clinics
  • psychiatric diagnoses have limited validity and reliability

Question 21

misconceptions

Answer 21

• that mentally ill people can get well…
  
  • to an extent - yes but what about long-term chronic or replacing conditions or personality disorders?
  • self-harming behaviours might be hard to give up?

Question 22

Psychoanalysis

Answer 22

• Explores unconscious motives and how they influence behavior and relationships. Constantly criticising will NOT improve anything.
  -It doesn’t help us bit only tells us not to accept ourselves.
  
  • powerful treatment - good eve for long term meaningful change in people lives

Question 23

Freud

Answer 23

• people can experiencecatharsisand gain insight into their state of mind by bringing the content of the unconscious into conscious awareness.
  -Through this process, a person can find relief from psychological distress.
• People use defense mechanisms to protect themselves from information contained in the unconscious.

Question 24

Surgery vs. Plaster

Answer 24

Some conditions require deeper exploration for long-term change, akin to surgery over a plaster cast for physical injuries.

Question 25

Psychoanalysis in the Present:

Answer 25

• It is a misconception that psychoanalysis only focuses on past experiences.
  -It also addresses current unconscious processes and the therapeutic relationship.
  -> Tavistock Clinic’s study, British psychoanalytic council

Question 26

Exploration and Inquiry

Answer 26

Encourages continuous questioning and critical thinking about the nature of the mind, love, memory, and coincidences.

Question 27

Music as a Mood Altering Substance:

Answer 27

• Highlights the power of music to influence emotional states.

Question 28

Neuroplasticity and Mood:

Answer 28

Recent research highlights the brain’s ability to change and adapt, suggesting that interventions like meditation and learning can positively affect mood regulation.

Question 29

Social Connection:

Answer 29

Strong social ties have been shown to improve mood and mental health, underscoring the importance of community and supportive relationships.

Question 30

Diet and Mood:

Answer 30

Nutritional psychiatry is an emerging field exploring the link between diet, brain function, and mood, suggesting that certain diets may enhance mental health.