Chapter 5:

States of Consciousness
Definitions of Consciousness
• Consciousness: All the
sensations, perceptions,
memories, and feelings you
are aware of in any instant
– Waking Consciousness:
Normal, clear, organized,
alertness
• Altered State of
Consciousness (ASC):
Changes that occur in quality
and pattern of mental activity
 Sleep
• Innate, biological
rhythm
• Microsleep: Brief shift in
brain-wave patterns
similar to those during
sleep
Figure 6.4
SLEEP IS NOT OPTIONAL
• Sleep Deprivation:
Sleep loss; being
deprived of needed
amounts of sleep
• Sleep-Deprivation
Psychosis: Confusion,
disorientation,
delusions, and
hallucinations that occur
because of sleep loss
• Sleep Patterns: Daily
rhythms of sleep and
waking
 Rhythms

• Circadian Rhythms: Bodily changes that

occur every 24 hours
• Biological Rhythm: Any repeating cycle of
biological activity
• Day person vs. Night person-hard to change
• Shift work, lack of light/winter
• Body temperature can indicates rhythm
(lowest just before optimum waking time,
warmest at awake peak)
 Measuring Sleep Changes
• Electroencephalograph
(EEG): Brain-wave
machine; amplifies and
records electrical
activity in the brain
• Beta Waves: Small fast
waves associated with
being alert and awake
• Alpha Waves: Large,
slow brainwaves
associated with
relaxation and falling
asleep
 Stage 1 Sleep
• Small, irregular waves produced in light sleep (people
may or may not say they were asleep)
– Hypnic Jerk: Reflex muscle contraction
 Stage 2 Sleep
• Deeper sleep; sleep spindles (bursts of distinctive
brain-wave activity) appear
 Stage 3 Sleep
• Deeper sleep; Delta waves appear; very large and
slow
 Stage 4 Sleep
• Deepest level of normal sleep; almost purely Delta
waves
 Two Basic Kinds of Sleep

• Rapid Eye Movements (REM): Associated with

dreaming; sleep is very light
– Body is very still during REM sleep
– Lack of muscle paralysis during REM sleep is
called REM Behavioral Disorder
– REM happens in “Stage One” but usually not the
first Stage One…
 Non-REM (NREM) Sleep

• Occurs during stages 1, 2, 3, and 4; no rapid

eye movement occurs
– Seems to help us recover from daily
fatigue
– EEG patterns return to Stage 1
Some Sleep Disturbances
• Insomnia: Difficulty in getting to
sleep or staying asleep
– Sleeping pills exacerbate
insomnia; cause decrease in
REM and Stage 4 sleep and
may cause dependency
• Drug-Dependency Insomnia:
Sleeplessness that follows
withdrawal from sleeping pills
 Types and Causes of Insomnia
• Temporary Insomnia:
Brief period of
sleeplessness caused
by worry, stress, and
excitement
– Avoid fighting it and
read a book, for
example, until you’re
struggling to stay
awake
 Some More Sleep Concerns

• Chronic Insomnia: Exists if sleeping troubles

last for more than three weeks
-Adopt regular schedule; go to bed at the
same time each night, for example
• Tryptophan: Amino acid (chemical) that
produces sleep
-Eat something starchy prior to bed
Sleep Disturbances

• Sleepwalking
(Somnambulism):
Occurs in NREM sleep
during Stages 3 and 4
• Sleeptalking: Speaking
while asleep; occurs in
NREM sleep
 Some Other Sleep Disturbances

• Nightmares: Bad dreams that occur during

REM sleep
– May occur once or twice a month; brief and
easily remembered
– Imagery Rehearsal: Mentally rehearse the
changed dream before you go to sleep
again; may help to eliminate nightmares
 Night Terrors
• Night Terrors: Total
panic and often
hallucinations of
frightening dream
images may occur
– Occurs during Stage
4 sleep
– Most common in
childhood; may occur
in adults
– Not remembered
Physiological Sleep Problems
• Sleep Apnea: Repeated
interrupted breathing
during sleep; cause of
very loud snoring
– Hypersomnia:
Extreme daytime
sleepiness
– Apnea can be
treated by
• Surgery
• Weight loss
• Breathing mask
 Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS)
• Sudden, unexplained death of an apparently healthy
infant (infants should sleep on back or on side to try
to prevent)
• Also known as Crib Death
 Dreams

• Psychodynamic (Freudian) Theory:

Emphasizes internal conflicts, motives, and
unconscious forces
• Wish Fulfillment: Freudian belief that many
dreams are expressions of unconscious
desires
– Much evidence to refute this
• Dream Symbols: Images that have a deeper
symbolic meaning
 More on DREAMS:
Freud made some findings on dream design:
Four dream processes (mental filters) that hide true
meanings of
dreams:
• SECONDARY ELABORATION: Making a dream
more logical and adding details while remembering it
• SYMBOLIZATION: Non-literal expression of dream
content
• DISPLACEMENT: Directing emotions or actions
toward safe or unimportant dream images
• CONDENSATION: Combining several people,
objects, or events into a single dream image
One suggestion: focus on the emotional content for insight into the
meaning of your dreams. How did you feel vs. plot or content?
Activation-Synthesis Hypothesis:
• Dream content may be affected by motor
commands in the brain during sleep that are
not carried out
Perl’s View:
• Most dreams are a special message about
what is missing in our lives, what we avoid
doing when awake, or feelings that we need
to re-own
• Dreams fill in gaps in our personal experience
 Hypnosis

• Altered state of consciousness characterized

by intensely narrowed attention and
increased openness to suggestion
– Mesmer: Believed he could cure diseases
by passing magnets over body; true
“animal magnetism” (“mesmerize” means
to hypnotize)
– Must cooperate to become hypnotized
 Hypnotic Susceptibility
• How easily a person
can be hypnotized
• Basic Suggestion
Effect: Tendency of
hypnotized people to
carry out suggested
actions as though they
were involuntary
Table 6.2
 Hypnosis Can
• Help people
relax
• Reduce pain
• Get people to
make better
progress in
therapy
 Hypnosis Cannot

• Stage Hypnosis:
Simulation of hypnotic
effects, done to
entertain
• Produce acts of
superhuman strength
• Produce age regression
• Force you to do things
against your will
 Tricks of the Hypnosis Trade

• Waking Suggestibility: People on stage do not

want to spoil the act, so they will follow any
instruction
• Selection of Responsive Subjects: Any
“volunteer” who does not get hypnotized in the
stage group and does not follow instructions is
removed
• The Hypnosis Label Disinhibits: On stage, once
you are “in a hypnotic trance,” your
responsibility for actions is removed; you can
do whatever you want!
 More Stage Hypnosis “Tricks of the Trade”

• Hypnotist as Director: Once they are in a

trance, the “volunteers” are suddenly the
show’s stars, and they will act like it; the
hypnotist only needs to direct them
• Stage Hypnotists Use Tricks: Stage hypnosis
is 50% deception and 50% taking advantage
of the situation
• Conclusion: Stage hypnotists entertain; they
rarely hypnotize
 Meditation
• Mental exercise designed to
focus attention and interrupt
flow of thoughts, worries, and
analyses
• Concentrative Meditation:
Attention is paid to a single
focal point (i.e., object,
thought, etc.)
– Produces relaxation
response and thus works
to reduce stress
• Receptive Meditation: Based
on widening attention span to
become aware of everything
experienced at a given
moment
 More on Meditation
• Mantra: Word(s) or
sound(s) repeated
silently during
concentrative
meditation
• Relaxation Response:
Occurs at time of
relaxation; innate
physiological pattern
that opposes body’s
fight or flight responses
 Sensory Deprivation (SD)

• Any major reduction in amount or variety of

sensory stimulation
• Benefits
– Sensory enhancement
– Relaxation
– Changing habits
– Benefits called REST: Restricted
Environmental Stimulation Therapy
Figure 6.12
 Mindfulness
• Open, nonjudgmental awareness of current
experience-being “in the moment” and “open” or
“empty” of expectations…
Drugs and Altered States of Consciousness
• Psychoactive Drug:
Substance capable of
altering attention, judgment,
memory, time sense, self-
control, emotion, or
perception
• Stimulant: Substance that
increases activity in body
and nervous system
• Depressant: Substance that
decreases activity in body
and nervous system
 Dependence

• Physical Dependence: Addiction based on drug tolerance and

withdrawal symptoms
– Drug Tolerance: Reduction in body’s response to a drug
– Withdrawal Symptoms: Physical illness following withdrawal
of the drug
• Psychological Dependence: Drug dependence based on
psychological or emotional needs
Figure 6.13
Stimulants
• Amphetamine: Synthetic
stimulants that excite
nervous system
– Dexedrine and
Methamphetamine are
two types of stimulants
• Amphetamine Psychosis:
Loss of contact with reality
because of amphetamine
use; user tends to have
paranoid delusions
Interaction of Dopamine and Amphetamines
Cocaine
• Central Nervous System
stimulant derived from
leaves of coca plant; also
used as local anesthetic
– From 1886-1906, Coca-
Cola did indeed have
cocaine in it!
– Highly addictive drug
– Anhedonia (Inability to
Feel Pleasure): Common
after cocaine withdrawal
Interaction of Dopamine and Cocaine
 Caffeine
• Most frequently used
psychoactive drug in North
America; present in colas,
chocolate, coffee, tea
• Causes tremors, sweating,
talkativeness, tinnitus,
suppresses fatigue or
sleepiness, increases
alertness
– May be hazardous to
pregnant women if used
excessively; may cause
birth defects
 Caffeinism

• Physiological
dependence on caffeine
– Symptoms include:
Insomnia, irritability,
loss of appetite,
chills, racing heart,
elevated body
temperature
Nicotine
• Natural stimulant found
mainly in tobacco;
known carcinogen
• In large doses it causes
stomach pain, vomiting,
diarrhea, confusion,
tremors
• Addictive
• Smoking responsible for
97% of lung cancer
deaths in men, 74% in
women
Sum: DON’T SMOKE; SMOKING KILLS (SO DOES
CHEWING TOBACCO)
Understanding Addiction
 Sedatives, MDMA
• Sedatives: Barbiturates:
Sedative drugs that depress
brain activity
– Seconal and Amytal are
two types
• MDMA (Ecstasy):
Chemically similar to
amphetamine; created by
small variations in a drug’s
structure
– May cause severe liver
damage and fatal heat
exhaustion
– Repeated use damages
serotonergic brain cells
Interaction of GABA and Barbiturates
 GHB
• GHB (Gamma-
Hydroxybutyrate): Central
Nervous System (CNS)
depressant that relaxes and
sedates; combination of
degreasing solvent and drain
cleaner
– Sedative effects may result
in nausea, loss of muscle
control, and either sleep or
a loss of consciousness
– Inhibits gag reflex, so some
choke to death on their own
vomit
– Addictive and deadly
Tranquilizers
• Tranquilizers: Lower anxiety
and reduce tension
– Valium, Xanax, Halcion,
and Librium are four types
– Rohypnol: Related to
Valium; lowers inhibitions
and produces relaxation or
intoxication; larger doses
can induce short-term
amnesia and sleep
• Date rape drug
because it’s odorless
and tasteless
(“Roofies”)
 Dramatic Health Declines
Result From Polysubstance Abuse:
Drug Interactions
 Alcohol
• Ethyl Alcohol:
Intoxicating element in
fermented and distilled
liquors
– NOT a stimulant but
DOES lower
inhibitions
– Depressant
 Binge Drinking
• Consuming five or more
drinks in a short time, or
four or more for women
– Serious sign of
alcohol abuse
– May lead to up to 10
percent loss of brain
power, especially
memory
 How a Drinking Problem may Develop
(Jellinek, 1960)
• Initial Phase: Social drinker turns to alcohol to relieve
tension or feel good
• Crucial Phase: Person begins to lose control over
drinking
• Chronic Phase: Person is now alcohol dependent
 Treatment:
Alcohol Abuse and Dependence

Detoxification:
Withdrawal of the
person from alcohol;
occurs in a medical
setting and is tightly
controlled; oftentimes
necessary before long-
term treatment begins
 Alcoholics Anonymous (AA)

• Worldwide self-help organization composed

of recovering alcoholics; emphasizes
admitting powerlessness over alcohol usage
and wanting to recover
– Spiritual component
– Free; around for over 70 years!
• Rational Recovery, and Secular
Organizations for Sobriety (SOS): Non-
spiritual AA Alternatives
Devastating Consequences…
Table 6.3a
Table 6.3b
Some Hallucinogens

• Hallucinogen: Substance that

alters or distorts sensory
impressions
• Lysergic Acid Diethylamide
(LSD): Hallucinogen that can
produce hallucinations and
psychotic disturbances in
thinking and perception
• Mescaline (Peyote) and
Psilocybin (Magic Mushrooms)
• PCP (Angel Dust): Initially can
have hallucinogenic effects; also
an anesthetic and has stimulant
and depressant effects
 Marijuana (Pot)
• Cannabis Sativa
(Marijuana; Pot):
Leaves and flowers of
the hemp plant
– Active chemical:
THC
– Effects: Relaxation,
time distortion,
perceptual
distortions
– Psychologically,
NOT physiologically,
addictive
Some Health Risks of Using Marijuana
• Can cause precancerous
changes in lung cells
• Can suppress immune
system, increasing risk of
disease
• Activity levels in the
cerebellum are lower than
normal in pot users
• Pot may damage some of
the brain’s memory
centers- “Pothead”
Recovery Awaits!