Week 4 - Stress & Physical Outcomes

Question 1

Fight/flight responses are characterized by _________, while the freeze response is characterized by __________.

Answer 1

Mobility; immobility

Question 2

What emotions are implicated in the freeze response?

Answer 2

Fear and anxiety

Question 3

What parts of our autonomic nervous system becomes activated during the freeze response?

Answer 3

Sympathetic –> increased muscle tension, pain suppression
Para sympathetic –> heart rate deceleration, immobilization

Question 4

What two systems are relevant to the freezing response? Which one is slower and which one is faster?

Answer 4

(1) SAM (Sympathetic Adrenal Medulla) system - faster
(2) HPA (Hypothalamic Pituitary Adrenal) system - slower

Question 5

What 3 factors influence whether someone fights, flees, or freezes?

Answer 5

(1) Environmental Factors –> escape routes, distance from predator
(2) Individual differences –> personality, age, etc.
(3) Characteristics of the stressor –> proximal stressors may elicit different reactions (like freezing) than distal (fighting)

Question 6

What 3 things does the development of PTSD depend on?

Answer 6

(1) experiencing a freeze response (and state of helplessness associated with the threat)
(2) dissociation (experienced during the freeze response)
(3) not being able to stop freezing

Question 7

Who formulated the concept that prolonged chronic stress could lead to developing specific diseases? What hormone gets released in response to chronic stress that leads to disease? What did he name these types of diseases?

Answer 7

Selye; cortisol gets released; he named it the “disease of stress”

Question 8

What is the term used for an invasion of the body by a harmful microorganism?

Answer 8

Infection.

Question 9

Differentiate between disease and illness (sickness)

Answer 9

Disease is a pathological health condition with a recognized pattern of signs and symptoms, while illness/sickness is the unhealthy state that is caused by a disease.

Question 10

What is the name for the system that is responsible for protecting itself against infections and harmful substances?

Answer 10

Immune system.

Question 11

Describe antigens and antibodies.

Answer 11

Antigens –> foreign substances and toxins that pose a threat to physical well-being
Antibodies –> protect against antigens by circulating in the bloodstream and binding to antigens to neutralize them; the more we have of antibodies, the better we can be protected against antigens

Question 12

What are antibodies produced by?

Answer 12

B cells

Question 13

What is the term for white blood cells? What are they used for?

Answer 13

Leukocytes; they are the immune system’s main defense against infection

Question 14

What are the two types of antigens?

Answer 14

(1) Exogenous –> external antigens (ie. bacteria and viruses)
(2) Endogenous –> internal antigens (ie. mutated cancer cells)

Question 15

In general, simple terms, what effect does stress have on one’s immune system? What are the two ways in which this occurs?

Answer 15

weakens the immune system and makes someone more vulnerable to infection. This is due to:
(1) immunosuppression, which is suppression of the immune system’s abilities
(2) modifying the processes in the CNS and neuroendocrine system

Question 16

What two axes are activated during the flight/flight response (during acute stressors) and what do they release?(

Answer 16

SAM and HPA (hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal); they release catecholamines (E & NE) and glucocorticoids (cortisol)

Question 17

What specific types of catecholamines temporarily boosts immune system function during acute stressors and how?

Answer 17

norepinephrine and epinephrine; they temporarily increases leukocyte activity in the immune system, meaning an increase in immune function

Question 18

During acute stressors and after E & NE have temporarily boosted immune function, what occurs?

Answer 18

the HPA axis activates and releases glucocorticoid hormones (like cortisol), which induces leukocytes to exit the blood

Question 19

What is the term used for an impaired immune system that overreacts or underreacts to antigens?

Answer 19

Immune Dysregulation

Question 20

Define what a sick role is and what secondary gains are.

Answer 20

A sick role is a role that a person may adopt when ill in which they seek help from others.

Secondary gains are rewards associated with adopting a sick role (eg. exam accommodations)

Question 21

What is the term for a health condition that has a diagnosable pattern, but no known organic cause? Give an example.

Answer 21

A functional syndrome. An example would be Essential Hypertension (HTN), which is high blood pressure.

Question 22

How does stress affect the cardiovascular system? Describe in terms of the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous system.

Answer 22

(1) affects heart rate (sympathetic system would increase heartrate, parasympathetic system would decrease it)
(2) affects blood pressure (sympathetic system would increase blood pressure, parasympathetic system would decrease it)

Question 23

What type of emotions are closely associated with the development of cardiovascular diseases?

Answer 23

Negative emotions, such as anger & hostility.

Question 24

What are autoimmune diseases?

Answer 24

Diseases that involve the immune system which fail to discriminate between the self and other, attacking various body systems.

Question 25

What are the two types of headaches that are associated with stress?

Answer 25

(1) tension-type headache –> head pain accompanied by pain the neck, back and other muscles; associated with proximal stressors, or stress from the recent past
(2) Migraine headaches –> typically felt on one side of head, may be accompanied by nausea; associated with distal stressors, or stress from the distant past

Question 26

What is the term for the involuntary habit of teeth grinding from stress?

Answer 26

Bruxism

Question 27

What is the term for the syndrome that is characterized by facial pain when chewing in response to stress?

Answer 27

TMPDS (temporomandibular pain & dysfunction syndrome)