Premium Essay

Sleep - Psychology

In:

Submitted By Devj
Words 1022
Pages 5
INTRODUCTION
Dalai Lama once said “ Sleep is the best meditation”. Sleep is just like a medicine; it can perform wonders, only if it’s given an adequate amount of time. Science has proved that sleep deprivation can cause sleepiness, malaise and a depression of the immune system. The quality and quantity of sleep often go hand in hand. Through this paper I will be evaluating the role of adenosine and melatonin on sleep and will discuss the human sleep stages, in particular, the REM phase, using the sleep log.
ROLE OF ADENOSINE
Adenosine is an inhibitory neurotransmitter believed to play a role in promoting sleep and suppressing arousal, with levels increasing with each hour when an organism is awake. Adenosine makes a person drowsy after a day’s accumulation and recovery after a night’s depletion. On evaluating my sleep log, I realized the effect of adenosine on human sleep. On the 21st of September I had a cup of coffee an hour before I took a power nap at 4:30pm. I was suffering from a slight headache and had a coffee, not realizing it would act against me. The caffeine increased my heart rate and made me feel more energetic. I thought I’d take a power nap so that I could concentrate on my work again. I tried very hard to take a good nap, but I didn’t succeed. I kept tossing from side to side. On doing my research I realized what was happening to me. Caffeine related drinks mask the effect of adenosine, which can prevent a person from feeling drowsy as the day proceeds. A nerve cell reacts in the same manner to caffeine and adenosine, which allows caffeine to bind the adenosine receptors, making adenosine ineffective. Caffeine also causes the brain's blood vessels to constrict, as it blocks adenosine's ability to open them up. So having coffee caused closure of the blood vessels in my brains, relieving me momentarily from my headache. Not getting adequate amount

Similar Documents

Premium Essay

Sleep And Memory Psychology

...The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the correlational method as a means for examining the relationship between REM sleep and memory. I will describe previous research and then investigate how REM and memory are associated in young people and in older people. In some ways, the sleep patterns of these two groups are very similar, but in some ways they are not. 1a. In the normal brain, REM sleep is the stage of sleep during which the body tends to be very relaxed, with little to no movement of the muscles. However, it is possible to observe occasional slight movements, called twitches, while one is in the REM stage of sleep. Despite the observable calmness of the body during this stage of sleep, heart and breathing rates increase during REM...

Words: 1900 - Pages: 8

Premium Essay

Sleep And Memory Psychology

...evaluate the correlational method as a means for examining the relationship between REM sleep and memory. I will describe previous research and then investigate how REM and memory are associated in young people and in older people. In some ways, the sleep patterns of these two groups are very similar, but in some ways they are not. 1a. REM sleep is the kind of sleep that occurs at certain intervals during the night. As REM sleep begins, rapid eye movement occurs and dreaming begins to take place. This kind of deep sleep takes place after the first few hours of sleep, as the brain also then begins to block messages from the brains motor cortex. Compared to older people, younger people go through deep sleep at...

Words: 708 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

Sleep

...| The effect of sleep on the psychology and development of children and adolescents. | | | nj26 | | Contents INTRODUCTION 3 Why Is Sleep Relevant to Psychology? 4 What Is Sleep and Why Is It Important 4 Sleep Regulation 4 The Impact of Sleep on Daytime Functioning 5 Sleep deprivation impairs learning and memory. 5 Sleep deprivation impairs academic success and neurobehavioral functioning. 5 Sleep deprivation impairs emotional regulation. 5 Sleep deprivation impairs health. 5 Sleep deprivation impairs adolescents’ driving ability. 6 Sleep Behaviour Across Development 6 New-borns and Infants (0 to 12 months) 7 Developmental changes in sleep. 7 Behavioural and psychological factors affecting sleep behaviour. 7 Early Childhood (12 Months to 6 Years of Age) 7 Developmental changes in sleep. 7 Behavioural and psychological factors affecting sleep behaviour. 7 School-Age Years 8 Developmental changes in sleep. 8 Behavioural and psychological factors affecting sleep behaviour. 8 Adolescence 8 Behavioural and psychological factors affecting sleep behaviour. 9 Further studies regarding the effect of sleep on the development and psychology of children and adolescents. 9 Sleep and the Body Mass Index and Overweight Status of Children and Adolescents 9 Sleepless in Chicago: Tracking the Effects of Adolescent Sleep Loss During the Middle School Years 10 Sleep, Learning, and the Developing Brain: Early-to-Bed as a Healthy and...

Words: 7748 - Pages: 31

Premium Essay

Developing Schemas

...understand schemas and the effects it has on a person’s life I formed a small case study. To start with, when starting the project, I first asked 10 participants who are in my family as well as my friends to help me in a project for psychology. Secondly I told the participants “I’m going to recite 12 words to you and show you those words at the same time.” The words were: Rest, Tired, Awake, Dream, Snore, Bed, Eat, Slumber, Sound, Comfort, Wake, and Night. After reciting the words I asked each participants what their name, age, and occupation was and when I went back to the list of words it seemed as all the words I recited to them didn’t matter, since they were more focused on the series of questions I asked 30 seconds after reciting the words. Next, I had asked the participants to write all the words they could remember within two minutes, but almost all ten participants had given up within a minute, since they were unable to recall all twelve words. The next thing I did was asked them, “do you recall the word ARDVARK among the series of words?” and many responded no, with the confused expression. I had then followed up with a second question, “did you recall the word sleep?” every individual who was a part of the study recalled the word sleep. Another common mistake that the subjects made,...

Words: 889 - Pages: 4

Premium Essay

Lalala

...* Treatment for Sleep Disorders * Attrian, Hrayr P. Sleep Disorders in Women. New Jersey: Humana Press, 2006. * Thorpy, Michael J. Handbook of Sleep Disorders. New York: Marcel Dekker Inc., 1990. * Pascualy, Ralph. Snoring and Sleep Apnea. New York: Demos Medical Publishing, 2008. * Peters, Brandon. “Treatment of Sleep Disorders.” 16 July 2009. [on-line]. http://sleepdisorders.about.com/od/sleepdisorderstreatment/a/Treatment_Sleep_Disorders.htm. * “Treatment for Dysomnias.” [on-line]. http://www.scribd.com/doc/13378124/rest- and-sleep-. * Pauler, Melissa. Guide to Hepatitis and Liver Disease. New York: Marcel Dekker, Inc., 1990. * “Parasomnias and Treatments.” http://www.depression-guide.com/parasomnia.htm. * Kryger, Meir H. “Treating Insomnia Without Pills.” A Woman’s Guide to Sleep Disorders. New York: McGraw-Hill Professional Publishing, 2004. * Lyons, Douglas. “Good Night’s Sleep.” Ebony Magazine. March 1988. * Sleep Patterns * Epstein, Lawrence et al. Clinical Manual For Evaluation and Treatment of Sleep Disorders. Arlington: American Psychiatric Publishing, 2009. * Pagel, James F. Primary Care Sleep Medicine: A Practical Guide. New Jersey: Humana Press, 2007. * “Rest and Sleep.” [on-line]. http://www.scribd.com/doc/13378124/Rest-and-Sleep-. * Sleep Stages * “NREM and REM.” [on-line]. http://www.cbn.com/health/nutrition/goldfarb_sleepstages...

Words: 591 - Pages: 3

Free Essay

Psy Consciousness

...7: States of Consciousness CHAPTER PREVIEW Consciousness is our awareness of ourselves and our environment. Conscious information processing enables us to exercise control and to communicate our mental states to others. Beneath the surface, unconscious processing occurs simultaneously on many parallel tracks. Our daily schedule of waking and sleeping is governed by a biological clock known as circadian rhythm. Our sleep also follows a repeating cycle. Awakening people during REM sleep yields predictable “dreamlike” reports that are mostly of ordinary events. Freud’s view that dreams can be traced back to erotic wishes is giving way to newer theories, for example, that dreams help us process information and fix it in memory or that dreams erupt from neural activity. Studies of hypnosis indicate that, although hypnotic procedures may facilitate recall, the hypnotist’s beliefs frequently work their way into subjects’ recollections. Hypnosis can be at least temporarily therapeutic and has the potential of bringing significant pain relief. Hypnosis may be an extension both of normal principles of social influence and of everyday splits in consciousness. Psychoactive drugs also alter consciousness. Depressants act by depressing neural functioning. Although their effects are pleasurable, they impair memory and self-awareness and may have other physical consequences. Stimulants act at the synapses by influencing the brain’s neurotransmitters. Their effects depend on...

Words: 3169 - Pages: 13

Premium Essay

The Effect of Sleep on the Psycholology and Development of Children and Adolescents.

... | |The effect of sleep on the psychology and development of children and adolescents. | | | | | | | | | Contents INTRODUCTION 3 Why Is Sleep Relevant to Psychology? 4 What Is Sleep and Why Is It Important 4 Sleep Regulation 4 The Impact of Sleep on Daytime Functioning 5 Sleep deprivation impairs learning and memory. 5 Sleep deprivation impairs academic success and neurobehavioral functioning. 5 Sleep deprivation impairs emotional regulation. 5 Sleep deprivation impairs health. 5 Sleep deprivation impairs adolescents’ driving ability. 6 Sleep Behaviour Across Development 6 New-borns and Infants (0 to 12 months) 7 Developmental changes in sleep. 7 Behavioural and psychological factors affecting sleep behaviour. 7 Early Childhood (12 Months to 6 Years of Age) 7 Developmental changes in sleep. 7 Behavioural and psychological...

Words: 7717 - Pages: 31

Premium Essay

Co-Sleeping

...describes the benefits of co-sleeping by pointing out that night waking’s declined in frequency and duration. It also points out that most children who co-sleep do not need a security object to go to sleep. Another point this article discusses is the benefits co-sleeping have on breastfeeding ease. The article also defines the many terms used when discussing co-sleeping and bed sharing. Wendy A. Goldberg is a professor of psychology and social behavior at the University of Michigan. This article will be helpful in my research because it discusses how co-sleeping benefits and increases the length of breastfeeding. Source #2 McKenna, J. J., & Volpe, L. E. (2007). Sleeping with baby: an internet-based sampling of parental experiences, choices, perceptions, and interpretations in a western industrialized context. Infant & Child Development, 16(4), 359-385. doi:10.1002/icd.525 This article describes how co-sleeping affects the maturation of the central nervous system. It states that co-sleeping creates more robust rhythms than solitary sleeping. It also looks into maternal employment and how it affects the decision to co-sleep. Co-sleeping rates are higher in houses with moms w ho are employed and it is believed to be a way for mothers to bond and make up lost time while at work. Wendy A. Goldberg is a professor of psychology and social behavior at the University of Michigan. This article...

Words: 1402 - Pages: 6

Premium Essay

Mrswww

...The PsychSim5 Activities Psychology’s Timeline Purpose: To provide a more comprehensive synopsis of the origins of psychology, the early history of psychology as a discipline, and the major themes in twentieth century psychology. Summary: This activity will take you on a tour through the history of psychology. You will learn how psychology grew out of philosophy and medical physiology, and will become acquainted with some of the pioneers of psychology as a scientific discipline. Descriptive Statistics Purpose: To describe the common measures of central tendency and variability and demonstrate their use in summarizing a data set. Summary: This activity introduces you to the basic statistics that researchers use to summarize their sets of data. You will learn how to produce a distribution of scores and how to graph the distribution. After descriptions of the measures of central tendency (mode, median, and mean) and variability (range and standard deviation), you will be able to manipulate the scores in a distribution to see how each score affects the descriptive statistics for that distribution. Hemispheric Specialization Purpose: To explain how research on split-brain patients has helped us understand the special abilities of the two halves of the brain. Summary: This activity describes what researchers have learned about the special abilities of the left and right sides of the brain. After a brief review of the way...

Words: 5385 - Pages: 22

Premium Essay

Sleep Study

...PSYC& 100: General Psychology Jan C. Kruper Winter 2012 Homework #3: Sleep Maximum 15 Points Expectation – An essay consisting of about 2 pages: Typed and Double-Spaced (Several paragraphs (5 - 7) with several sentences (4 - 7) per paragraph) Name: Brendon Rittenhouse Due Beginning of Class on: 1/20/2012 My current sleep patterns vary slightly from night to night. I have a lot going on throughout the week, so I am not always able to get to sleep around the same time every night. One night I might be able to get to sleep around midnight which is about average for me, and others its not until around 1 or 2 a.m. due to either restlessness or stress. Even when I am tired throughout the day, one thing or another keeps me awake until I feel I have accomplished all I need to do throughout the day and/or until I feel I will not be needed by any of my friends or loved ones, usually until after they are all asleep. My sleep is heavily affected by work, school, and friends and family. I feel the need to stay up until I feel all my duties and such are accomplished for the day. This includes the possibility of being needed for one thing or another by any family members and/or friends and loved ones. I feel the need to be sure that everyone around me that I care about, even if they aren’t living with me, are settled in for the night and taken care of either via text messaging or phone calls. Until I am assured of this, I am usually pretty restless and my...

Words: 865 - Pages: 4

Premium Essay

Psych 1

...Go, Bryan Psychology 1 Professor Travelbee 23, January 2012 Article Review: Freaky Sleep Paralysis: Being Awake in Your Nightmares Did you ever awaken and find yourself unable to move? Perhaps you sensed a presence in your room or a pressure on your chest. I never knew that it was just a sleep paralysis until Professor Travelbee informed us about the Limb paralysis reflex. It is a common disorder that affects millions of people. Most believe it occurs as we are on the edge of REM sleep. The disorder has been connected with such hallucinogenic events such as alien abduction or an evil presence. Sleep paralysis is an inability to move or speak, occasionally accompanied by hallucinations, for up to several minutes upon awakening or just before falling asleep. I have had this about five times in my life, and I truly believe its Demons! It is the scariest thing you will ever experience in your life! The worst time that it happened was when I slept on my living room couch one night, and sometime around 4am I awoke to hearing footsteps getting closer to me. I could open my eyes, but could not move, no matter how hard I tried. Suddenly, I heard a whispering in my left ear could not make out what it was saying. I could only feel its presence, but not see it. My heart was pounding, and I struggled to get up, but could not, and then I felt it holding me down on my chest, I tried to fight it, but it was too strong. Because it was a deep, dark, cold thing, all I knew to do was...

Words: 1191 - Pages: 5

Premium Essay

Unit 5 Cornell Notes

...Carreno 11-29-13 Period 4 AP Psychology Unit 5 Cornell Notes What do our internal rhythms create? | Our internal biological rhythms create periodic physiological fluctuations | Specifically, What does the circadian rhythms regulate? | The circadian rhythm’s 24-hour cycle regulates our daily schedule of sleeping and waking, in part in response to light on the retina, triggering alterations in the level of sleep-inducing melatonin. | What are the sleep stages? | Another biological rhythm is the sleep stages. | What are the five steps of the sleep stages? | we descend into transitional Stage 1 sleep, often with the sensation of falling or floating. Stage 2 sleep (in which we spend the most time) follows about 20 minutes later, with its characteristic sleep spindles. Then follow Stages 3 and 4, together lasting about 30 minutes, with large, slow delta waves. All these stages are referred to as NREM sleep. Reversing course, we retrace our path, but with one difference: About an hour after falling asleep,we begin periods of REM (rapid eye movement) sleep. | Where does dreaming most prominently occur? | Most dreaming occurs in this fifth stage (also known as paradoxical sleep) of internal arousal but outward paralysis. | Which stage shortens REM sleep length? | During a normal night’s sleep, periods of Stages 3 and 4 sleep shorten and REM sleep lengthens. | What are the harmful effects of sleep deprivation? | Sleep deprivation causes fatigue and impairs...

Words: 1362 - Pages: 6

Premium Essay

Case Study Sleep Walking

...Case Study Week 3 Kristin Parramore-Eaker PSY/410 Abnormal Psychology March 11, 2013 Dr. Kathryn Westbeld Ph.D. Case study week 3 Outline: Sleep Walking Objective: The purpose of this case study is to research and understand the psychological state involved with sleepwalking or somnambulism disorders. The information provided by the patient and his wife examine the functions of the brain while the individual appears to be in non-REM sleep and functioning, while other areas of the brain are in a normal sleep state. The case addresses the episodes following times of severe anxiety to test stress (Meyer, Chapman, & Weaver, 2009). Method: A review of information and history related to sleep disorders and sleepwalking suggests a DSM-IV-TR diagnosis of sleepwalking. Sleepwalking disorder (307.46) in the DSM is the impairing repeated sleepwalking episodes with unresponsivity during the episode; the individual has rapid or quick reorientation, and amnesia for the episodes. This case meets the criteria for this diagnosis (DSM IV TR, 2000). Results: The findings support sleepwalking with stress relating to test anxiety disorder as an explanation of the recurring episodes (Meyer, Chapman, & Weaver, 2009). Conclusions: The research supports the pathology of the disorder and explores treatment plans for the individual to lessen test...

Words: 1256 - Pages: 6

Premium Essay

Biology of Mind Notes

...Chapter 1: Thinking Critically With Psychological Science Textbook: i. The Need for Psychological Science a) Did We Know It All Along? Hindsight Bias i. Hindsight bias = Something has happened makes it seem inevitable ii. Not because common sense is usually wrong, but because common sense more easily describes what has happened than what will happen b) Overconfidence iii. We tend to think we know more than we do c) The Scientific Attitude iv. Curiosity 1. Empirical approach v. Skepticism = persistently asking two questions: What do you mean? How do you know? 2. Scientific attitude: being skeptical but not cynical, open but not gullible vi. Humility = an awareness of our own vulnerability to error and an openness to surprises and new perspectives d) Critical Thinking ii. How Do Psychologists Ask and Answer Questions? e) The Scientific Method vii. A scientific theory explains through an integrated set of principles that organizes observations and predicts behaviour or events. viii. Hypotheses ix. We should be aware that it can bias subjective observations x. Operational functions = a statement of the procedures used to define research variables. For example, human intelligence may be operationally defined as what an intelligence test xi. Replicate – repeat xii. Finally – organizepredictionsrevised...

Words: 4656 - Pages: 19

Premium Essay

Benefits Of Babies Sleep

...I agree with Betsy Brown Braun on this topic--it is not a very good idea. However, it certainly is up to the parents. I just have heard stories from my previous Psychology textbooks that co-sleeping is often more harmful than good. Most professionals recommend having babies sleep in their back with little to nothing inside of their crib. If that is true, then if they are in the parents’ bed they are risk. There are the parents pillows and the blankets--not to mention the parents themselves. It is very natural to move around in your sleep, so adding an infant to a gigantic bed with two other people that are quadruple their size puts them at risk. However, I can understand that there are benefits as well. It helps the mother and child bond at...

Words: 305 - Pages: 2