Waking, Sleep, and Dreams States of Conciousness

Consciousness Consciousness : awareness of both external and internal stimuli Stream consciousness (James): a continuous flow of changing thoughts and feelings Unconscious thoughts (Freud): a reservoir of unacceptable wishes and thoughts

Consciousness

Forms of consciousness Controlled processes : most alert stages Automatic processes : require minimal attention Daydreaming : low level conscious effort Altered state of consciousness : drugs, trauma, hypnosis

Sleep Do we really need sleep? Gardner: spent 11 days without sleep, suffered hallucinations, vision and speech problems Zy7o

Sleep Sleep Deprivation Mood suffers the most during sleep deprivation Cognitive and physical functions also affected Do you get enough sleep?

Sleep How to improve quality of sleep Do not eat a lot before going to bed Avoid physical exercise Avoid performing non-sleep actives in the bedroom Avoid napping in the evening

Sleep Why do we need sleep Repair theory : sleep restores, replenishes, and rebuilds body Might aid in growing: Growth hormone released Adults need less sleep

Sleep Why do we need sleep? Ecological theory : prevent animals from harming themselves during parts of the day to which they have not adapted

Sleep Average sleep time in animals: Bat: 19.9 Cat: 14.5 Monkey: 9.6 Cow: 3.9 Horse: 2.9

Sleep Circadian rhythm : daily behavioral or physiological cycle Might be linked to pineal glans, secrete melatonin 24 hour sleep/wake cycle Example: Jet lag

Michel Siffre Circadian Rhythm

Sleep Seasonal Affective Disorder: SAD Increase of depression and sleepiness accompanied with shorter days

Sleep 5 stages of sleep: Stage 1: Light sleep, can be awoken easily Stage 2: Eye movement stops, brain waves slow Stage 3: delta waves interspersed with faster Stage 4: almost all delta waves REM: Rapid eye movement

Sleep 5 stages of sleep: Stage 4: almost all delta waves REM: Rapid eye movement

Sleep

What happens during REM sleep? Brain levels reach levels similar to those experiences when awake Stage where dreams happens Amount of REM sleep changes over a lifetime

Sleep Sleep Disorders 1) Insomnia Can mean problem falling asleep, waking to early, or waking during sleep.

Sleep Sleep Disorders Sleepwalking/Talking Occur during stage 3 or 4 of sleep

Sleep Sleep Disorders Night Terrors Can interrupt sleep Frequency often increases with stree

Sleep Sleep Disorders Narcolepsy Overpowering urge to fall asleep Immediately enter REM stage sleep 9pfoE&feature=related

Sleep Sleep Disorders Apnea Individuals stop breathing during sleep Experience numerous, brief awakenings

Dreams What do we dream about? Most take place in familiar settings with familiar people Most dreams (80%) contain negative content Up to 50% of our dreams have content that reflect the previous day

Dreams Why do we dream? 1) Psychoanalytic Theory Freud cited wish fulfillment, gratification of unconscious desires

Dreams Why do we dream? 2)Activation-Synthesis Theory brainstem bombarded with neural activity, cerebral cortex interprets and creates a ‘best fit’ story

Dreams Why do we dream? 3)Problem-solving dreams models dreams can help us find creative solutions to problems