ALTERED STATES OF CONSCIOUSNESS:Electroencephalogram, Hypnosis

<< PERCEPTION II:Depth Perception, Relative Height, Linear Perspective

LEARNING:Motor Learning, Problem Solving, Basic Terminology, Conditioning >>

Introduction to Psychology PSY101

Lesson 19

ALTERED STATES OF CONSCIOUSNESS

Significance of Wakefulness, Sleep, and Fatigue

Wakefulness is the productive part of our life. At the same time sleep is also an essential aspect.

When we are awake, we are consuming our physical energy, and after some time we begin to

experience fatigue. All these are the various faces of consciousness .Psychologists agree that we

may experience different states of consciousness at different times of the day.

Consciousness

· The awareness of the sensations, thoughts, feelings and emotions, events, and surroundings that are

experienced by a person. Consciousness is the subjective experience and understanding of both the

environment around our private internal world, unobservable to outside and us. The nature of

consciousness spans several dimensions. It can range from our perceptions while wide-awake to the

dreams we have during sleep, with wide variation in how aware we are of outside stimuli. Some

psychologists argue that `consciousness' is a term that should be applied even to mental

experiences, which we are not aware of.

Consequently, some psychologist argue that the definition of consciousness ought to be expanded to

include all mental experiences, whether we aware of them.

Altered States of Consciousness

The states when an individual is either fully or partially unaware of the sensations, thoughts, feelings and

emotions, events, and surroundings that are experienced by a person; this may be due to various reasons.

Consciousness is a continuum

________________________________________________________________________

Total conscious

Unconsciousness

The Study of Consciousness Has Long Been in Question

In the olden times it was not possible to study this phenomenon in a scientific manner. Today a

number of scientific techniques are available for assessing, testing, judging, and analyzing

consciousness and its altered states e.g. EEG.

Varied States of Consciousness

·Sleep

·Dreaming

·Hypnosis and Meditation

·Drug induced states

Characteristics of the Variations in States of Consciousness

· Affected sensations.

· Impaired thinking: may become shallow, superficial, illogical and irrational.

· Altered emotional response; that may affect personal relationships.

· Abnormal perceptual processing; the sense of time and space may suffer.

· Impaired physiological processes.

Sleep

A state of total or partial unawareness ranging from slight wakefulness to light tranquility, to nearly

total detachment from the external world.

Sleep is the time of rest and rejuvenation for the body.

The muscles and the nerves relax.

114

Introduction to Psychology PSY101

The body recharges its energy for the hours of work to come the next day.

People may need a siesta in the afternoon too, depending upon the climate, culture, age, and their

health status.The Stages of Sleep

oStage- 1

oStage- 2

oStage- 3

oStage- 4

These stages move in cycles of about 90 minutes duration each.

The person passes through regular transitions between these stages.

The sleep becomes less and less deep as the night passes.

These stages can be studied through an electroencephalogram (EEG).

Electroencephalogram (EEG)

· An apparatus/machine that measure records and displays electrical activity within the brain of a person.

· Brain wave activity, or electrical charge, is recorded in the form of a graphic pattern.

Stage-1 Sleep

The initial stage when one is in transition between wakefulness and sleep.

The brain waves during this phase are quite rapid and low-voltage.

In the beginning of this stage one does not dream, although photograph like images may appear.

Heart rate is elevated and irregular; breathing is rapid, and the blood pressure high.

Rapid eye movement takes place.

Stage-2 Sleep

A level of sleep deeper than stage-1.

The wave pattern becomes more regular, that may momentarily show sharp peaks, or waves that are

sharply pointed, called ` sleep spindles'.

If a person is at stage-2 sleep, it becomes difficult to wake him up.

Stage-3 Sleep

The brain waves are slower.

Higher peaks and lower valleys are shown by the wave pattern.

Stage-3 and stage-4 sleep dominate the first half of the night.

Stage-4 Sleep

In this stage the person is almost cut off from the external world, and is least responsive to

stimulation from outside: the deepest sleep.

The brain wave pattern now is more regular and even slower.

The time during which this stage is most likely to occur is the early part of the night.

Lighter stages of sleep dominate the last half of night.

How much sleep do we need?

Circadian Rhythm

· An internal pace maker and biological control system: Biological processes that repeatedly occur on

roughly a 24-hour cycle. e.g. sleep, body temperature etc.

· Circadian Rhythm may vary from person to person in terms of its pattern; some people feel like going

to sleep early and some late; even during the day some need a midday nap and some do not.

REM: Rapid Eye Movement Sleep

· Sleep characterized by rapid movement of the eyes.

· REM dominates a little more than twenty percent of an adult's sleeping time.

115

Introduction to Psychology PSY101

Occurs during stage-1 sleep.

Eyes move back and forth.

Sleep is very deep and the major muscles seem as if paralyzed.

Difficult to wake up the person during REM sleep.

Usually people dream during REM.

It is thought that eyes move back and forth during REM because they are following the action-taking

place in dreams.

· REM sleep plays an important part in a person's life, both physical and psychological, as the body

needs a certain amount of REM sleep.

· Experiments have shown that people whose REM sleep was interrupted and disturbed by being

awakened, exhibit a rebound effect: they try to avail every chance to get REM sleep whenever they

get a chance. How much of sleep is required?

· At least some amount of sleep is necessary.

· The number of hours people need to go to sleep my range from 3 to 9 hours, and even less or more:

But on average people sleep for 7-8 hours at night.

· Sleep has a cumulative effect. The person tries to make up for the hours of sleep that he missed in

previous nights.

· Sleep deprivation in humans as well as animals has adverse effects although temporary.

· Sleep deprivation affects all faculties, mental and physical: causes fatigue, and irritability;

concentration and logical thinking are adversely affected.

· Reaction time is slowed.

· Sleep Deprivation may have serious consequences in case of academic performance, automobile

driving, and certain professions requiring sharp alertness of mind and body.

· A good night's sleep keeps one fresh and ready for facing stresses of everyday life.

Sleep Disorders

· Sleep related problems ranging from inability to sleep, to difficulty falling to sleep, to interrupted

sleep, to feeling sleepy even when one has had enough hours of deep sleep; Generally known by the

name of Insomnia, sleep disorders include sleep walking and sleep talking as well.

Causes of Sleep Disorders

· Sleep disorders or slumbering problems may be due to various reasons:

· Stress

· Preoccupation (concern or fear etc.)

· Mental illness

· Noise pollution

· Digestive problems

· Physical illness

· Drug abuse and medication

· High caffeine intake, and many other

How to Handle and Treat Sleep Disorders?

REMEMBER: The actual problem of most people suffering from sleep disorders is not that they can

not fall asleep, but the concern that " I will not be able to sleep today too."

Practical Steps for Getting Rid of Most Sleep Problems

· Avoid taking sleeping pills.

· Fix a place/room where you will go to sleep every night, and do not do anything else over there.

· Do not "think" about going to sleep.

· Keep television away from your sleeping place, and if it is there NEVER EVER watch an interesting

movie or program at sleep time.

· Develop a habit of reading at bedtime, but NEVER EVER read an interesting or exciting book.

116

Introduction to Psychology PSY101

If you are in your bed and still can't go to sleep, then get out of the bed and take a round around the

house and come back.Develop a habit of rising early in the morning every day, at the same time.

Do not change your sleep time.

Learn some relaxation exercises.

Avoid caffeine.

Avoid heavy meals at night, and eat your dinner about two hours before bedtime.

A glass of warm milk helps quite often.

Dreams and Sleeping

· Dreams are mental experiences during sleep.

· Every body dreams though they may forget the contents.

Why do we dream?

· Different psychologists have tried to explain this phenomenon, thus pointing towards the significance

of dreams. The main explanations are:

· Theory of unconscious wish fulfillment: Sigmund Freud

· Reverse Learning Theory

· Dreams for Survival Theory

· Activation Synthesis Theory

Freud's Theory of Unconscious Wish Fulfillment

· Unconscious wishes that cannot be fulfilled in real life and are repressed, find an expression in the

dreams.

· The manifest content represents the latent content. However the manifest part is different from the

latent part, and represents the unfulfilled wishes in a symbolic form.

· The psychoanalyst is trained in digging out the hidden content, and can bring it to the conscious level.

Reverse Learning Theory

· There are loads of irrelevant information that accumulates in our mental repertoire throughout the day.

If we let this information keep piling up, it will confuse us and hinder clearer thinking. Dreams are a

way of getting rid of this accumulation.

· Dreams do not mean anything more than a scavenger.

· We are in a way unlearning what we had learnt unintentionally.

Dreams-for-Survival Theory

· Dreams are a source of reconsidering and reprocessing important information.

· Dreams do have a meaning with reference to our daily living, and represent our concerns, decisions,

uncertainties etc.

· It is a capacity inherited from our non human ancestors who had limited capacity for processing

information during daytime due to smaller brains; hence the mechanism of information processing

during sleep as well.

Activation- Synthesis Theory

· Dreams are a by-product of fundamental biological processes.

· During REM sleep our brain generates random electric energy that stimulates memories stored in

various portions of the brain.

· The brain puts these random memories into such an order that forms a comprehendible storyline. The

gaps in the story are filled in so that the consequent scenario becomes logical.

· Theory proposed by Hobson.

Other Altered States of Consciousness

· Hypnosis and Meditation

117

Introduction to Psychology PSY101

Drug Induced States

Hypnosis

· A condition in which the person is in a highly suggestible state.

· Following a number of instructions by the hypnotist, the person enters a trance and follows the

suggestions or further instructions without resistance.

· The instructions are followed even after the person is out of the trance.

· However, a hypnotic state does not mean total loss of will; people may not follow instructions that

clash with their moral/ethical ideology.

· It is primarily a varied state of consciousness in which one is not fully awake.

· Self-hypnosis is also taught.

Why Do People Go For Hypnosis?

People may choose hypnosis as a therapy for various reasons:, e.g. for:

· Quitting smoking

· Quitting alcohol

· Pain management

· Assertiveness training/overcoming shyness

· Improving sport performance

· Treatment of psychological problems (fears/ phobias)

· Eating Disorders

· Recalling events

How Effective Is Hypnosis?

There is no conclusive evidence available in this regard.

Meditation

· The person learns (after instruction) to refocus attention and to concentrate in such a way that

he/she is totally detached from all the unwanted stimulation for as long as he/she desires.

· Its history can be traced in many religions.

· For focusing attention a word, syllable, or sound may be repeated e.g. the way we do in

transcendental meditation(TM).

· In some forms of meditation some object e.g. a marble, crystal, candle flame, or picture may be

used

· The main idea is to concentrate.

Physiological changes due to meditation

· Decreased heart rate

· Lowered blood pressure

· Lessened oxygen usage

· Changed brainwave pattern

How does meditation affect?

· It gives a heightened feeling of relief and relaxation.

· Concentration is sharper.

· Insight is improved and problem solving better.

· It has a positive effect on health, and in some studies longevity has been found to be associated

with prolonged practice of TM.

Drug Induced States

· Changes in consciousness due to use/abuse of different drugs.

Psychoactive drugs

· Drugs that affect behavior and mental processes including cognitions, emotions and perceptions.

118

Introduction to Psychology PSY101

More deep rooted and adverse effects are caused by the addictive drugs; drugs causing dependence.

Effects of Drugs

Main effects:

· Withdrawal effects

· Overdose effects

The withdrawal effects determine, to a great extent, the success of a quitting program.

Categories of Drugs

· Stimulants

· Depressants

· Narcotics

· Hallucinogens

Stimulants

· They give you a "high' feeling; they influence the CNS, and the person's heart rate, Blood pressure,

and muscle tension is increased.

· Cocaine

· Amphetamines

· Benzedrine

· Dexedrine

Depressants

Depressants' intake leads to a slowed down nervous system. These include:

· Barbiturates

· Alcohol

Narcotics

Create a feeling of relaxation, and alleviate anxiety and pain. Are highly addictive.

· Heroin

· Morphine

Hallucinogens

Drugs that produce hallucinations; affecting perceptual processes:

· Cannabis

· Marijuana (bhang)

· Hashish

· Hash oil

· LSD

· PCP (Phencyclidine)

Why do people take drugs?

Addiction

Role modeling

Peer pressure

Stress/ Relaxation

Thrill/Excitement/Experimenting

119

Table of Contents: