What would a bio-psychologist suggest to be the causes of OCD? How might this influence their attempt to treat the disorder?

We are learning about... We are learning how to... We need to use... Drug therapy for anxiety disorders Describe treatments Evaluate treatments Compare and contrast treatments Reasoning

Neurotransmission Brain activity depends on neurons (brain cells) being able to communicate with each other. This communication occurs at synapses.

Neurons Source: science photo library Neuronal cell bodies Synapses occur at the junctions Axons

Vesicles release neurotransmitter into synaptic cleft

Neurotransmitter binds to receptors & activates them

Enzymes are released to break down the neurotransmitter

Excess neurotransmitter is taken up by the pre-synaptic neurone

Vesicles are replenished with new & reused neurotransmitter

In OCD, synapses in some parts of the brain don’t fire often enough. How could we interfere with the process of synaptic transmission to make them fire more often?

In groups of 3-4, assign the roles of: A patient – Your job is to present symptoms of an anxiety disorder and then ultimately choose a treatment One or two drug reps – Your job is to ‘sell’ an appropriate drug treatment One or two psychologists – Your job is to explain the drawbacks of this treatment and then suggest an alternative therapy

Let’s evaluate drug treatments Remember TEARS... – Time – Effectiveness – Acceptability – Relapse – Side effects