1. Module 8
Hypnosis and Drugs

2. HYPNOSIS Hypnosis definition
procedure in which a researcher, clinician, or hypnotists suggests that a person will experience changes in sensation, perceptions, thoughts, feelings, or behaviors
Who can be hypnotized?
not correlated with introversion, extraversion, social position, intelligence, willpower, sex, compliance, gullibility, being highly motivated, or being a placebo responder

3. HYPNOSIS (CONT.) Who is susceptible?
individuals with the remarkable ability to respond to imaginative suggestions
best known test: Stanford Hypnotic Susceptibility Scale

4. HYPNOSIS (CONT.) Theories of hypnosis
Altered States Theory of Hypnosis
holds that hypnosis puts a person into an altered state of consciousness, during which the person is disconnected from reality, which results in being able to experience and respond to various suggestions
Sociocognitive Theory of hypnosis
behaviors observed during hypnosis result not from being hypnotized, but rather from having the special ability of responding to imaginative suggestions and social pressures

5. HYPNOSIS (CONT.) Behaviors Hypnotic analgesia
Reduces pain and anxiety (dental tx)
Posthypnotic suggestion
Age regression
Posthypnotic amnesia

6. DRUGS: OVERVIEW Reasons for use
include obtaining pleasure, joy, and euphoria; meeting social expectations; giving in to peer pressure; dealing with or escaping stress, anxiety, and tension; avoiding pain; and achieving altered state of consciousness
Psychoactive drugs
affect nervous system
may alter consciousness and awareness, influence how we sense and perceive things, and modify our moods, feelings, emotions, and thoughts

7. DRUGS: OVERVIEW (CONT.)
Addiction
3 C’s of addiction
Compulsion
Control
Consequences
1957 AMA declared alcoholism a disease
3 criteria
known etiology
known progression of symptoms
known outcome

8. DRUGS: OVERVIEW (CONT.)
Tolerance
after a person uses a drug repeatedly over a period of time, the original dose of the drug no longer produces the desired effect so that a person must take increasingly larger doses of the drug to achieve the same behavioral effect
Dependency
refers to a change in the nervous system so that a person now needs to take the drug to prevent the occurrence of painful withdrawal symptoms
Withdrawal symptoms
painful physical and psychological symptoms that occur after a drug-dependent person stops using the drug

9. DRUGS: OVERVIEW (CONT.)
Effects on nervous system
drugs affect neurotransmitters
Neurotransmitters
chemical keys that search for and then either open or close chemical locks to either excite or inhibit neighboring neurons, organs, or muscles
Mimicking
some drugs produce their effects by mimicking the way the neurotransmitters work
Reuptake
some drugs block reuptake

10. DRUGS: OVERVIEW (CONT.)
Effects on nervous system
some drugs directly activate the brain’s reward/pleasure center
also activated when one eats food, has sex, and does other pleasurable activities

11. STIMULANTS Definition
stimulants, including cocaine, amphetamines, caffeine, and nicotine, increase activity of the central nervous system and result in heightened alertness, arousal, euphoria, and decreased appetite and fatigue

12. STIMULANTS (CONT.) Caffeine drug
mild stimulant, produces moderate physiological and psychological arousal, including decreased fatigue and drowsiness, feelings of alertness and improved reaction times
Nervous system
caffeine belongs to the chemical class called xanthines
blocks certain receptors (adenosine receptors) in the brain
mild physiological and psychological arousal

13. STIMULANTS (CONT.) Caffeine Dangers
mild to heavy doses of caffeine can result in addiction and dependency similar to those produced by alcohol, nicotine, and cocaine (two cups of coffee)
higher doses result in depression, tension, and anxiety

14. STIMULANTS (CONT.) Nicotine drug
stimulant that triggers the brain’s reward/pleasure center to produce good feelings
low doses improve attention, concentration, and short term memory
regular use causes addiction and dependency
leads to withdrawal

15. Freud's drug addiction? 20 cigars/day STIMULANTS (CONT.) Nicotine
nervous system
stimulates the production of dopamine
also stops other controlling cells from turning off the pleasure areas
Dangers
very addicting
causes sexual problems including impotency
withdrawal symptoms range in severity and include nervousness, irritability, difficulty in concentrating, sleep disturbances, and strong craving
20 cigars/day

16. Smoking and Drinking

17. ALCOHOL History and use
first brewery appeared in Egypt in about 3700 B.C.
national and CA legal definition of being drunk is 0.08 (after possibly 3-4 drinks)
effects the nervous system and results in behavioral and emotional changes

19. ALCOHOL (CONT.)
drug
ethyl alcohol is a psychoactive drug classified as a depressant
depresses activity of the central nervous system
alcohol seems like a stimulant but later depresses physiological and psychological responses

20. ALCOHOL (CONT.) Nervous system
affects many parts of the nervous system
stimulates GABA neural receptors, leads to feeling less anxious and less inhibited
also impairs the anterior cingulate cortex, monitors the control of motor actions
drinkers fail to recognize their impaired motor performance (driving)
high doses: depresses vital breathing reflexes in the medulla (brain stem)
may lead to death

21. ALCOHOL (CONT.) Dangers hangover
includes upset stomach, dizziness, fatigue, headache, and depression
repeated and heavy drinking can result in tolerance, addiction, and dependency
withdrawal symptoms
shaking, nausea, anxiety, diarrhea, hallucinations, and disorientation
another serious problem, blackout
occur after heavy and repeated drinking

22. ALCOHOL (CONT.) Dangers (cont.) blackouts
person seems to behave normally but does not remember what happened when sober
repeated and heavy drinking can also result in liver damage, alcoholism, and brain damage

23. ALCOHOL (CONT.) Risk factors genetic risk factors
refer to inherited biases for predispositions that increase the potential for alcoholism
genetic factors contribute 50 to 60% to the reasons a person becomes an alcoholic

24. Beer and Ball: Student Binge Drinking

25. MARIJUANA Use and effects Most widely used illegal drug
medical marijuana
can be effective in treating nausea and vomiting associated with chemotherapy, appetite loss in AIDS patients, eye disease (glaucoma), muscle spasticity in patients with multiple sclerosis, and some forms of pain
gateway effect
says that using marijuana leads young people to try harder drugs

26. MARIJUANA (CONT.)
psychoactive drug whose primary active ingredient is THC (tetrahydrocannabinol)
depending on the user’s state of mind, marijuana can either heighten or distort pleasant or unpleasant experiences, moods, or feelings

27. MARIJUANA (CONT.)
THC receptors are located throughout the brain, including the hippocampus, cerebral cortex, limbic system, cerebellum, and basal ganglia
the brain itself makes a chemical similar to THC
(anandamide) currently under study

28. MARIJUANA (CONT.) Dangers
can cause temporary changes in cognitive functioning
can temporarily decrease secretion of various hormones and effectiveness of the immune system
respiratory problems like bronchitis and asthma
high doses: may cause toxic psychoses, including delusions, paranoia, and feelings of terror

29. Drugs, Brain, & Behavior
Brain structures that may correspond with behaviors:
Thalamus: hallucinations, impaired decision-making
Hypothalamus: nausea, decreased appetite
Amygdala: Intense emotions, anxiety relief
Hippocampus: impaired decision-making
Pons: slowing of time, relaxed euphoria, drowsiness, alertness/wakefulness
Cerebellum: relaxation of body muscles, tremors
Medulla: increased heart beat, coma, death