What is trans-cranial magnetic stimulation? (TMS)
A treatment that involves placing a powerful pulsed magnet over a person’s scalp to alter neuronal activity in the brain.
What are response-based practices?
Response based practices generally look at the person in the micro and the macro social context. It is proficiency based. People are assumed to have the skills needed, they just need help getting unstuck. RBP assumes that people are rational and that when behaviours are put into context, they make sense. They are often collaborative in that the client is central in defining the problem.
What are some of Coates criticisms of conventional treatments and therapies?
(Abnormal psychology, mental illness, mental disorders)Coates criticises conventional therapy as being:
- hyper-individualistic
- taxonomy of symptoms rather than causes,
- and they also say that the problem people face are a result of their own deficiency. (Fundamental attribution error) Context is often not taken into account.
- Therapists provide treatment based on the theory they operate by - diagnoses end up being quite subjective
- They assume that treatment is objective, yet may end up talking or interacting with a client in a way that skews the clients responses.
Why does Coates prefer the phrase “problems with living”?
Coates prefers this term as does not assume a cause. Other titles that we have given to so-called “mental illnesses” suggest a cause even though diagnoses is based on a taxonomy of symptoms. (Very misleading)
What is psycho dynamic therapy?
These are therapies that explore childhood events and encourage individuals to use this understanding to develop insight into their psychological problems. The job of the therapist was to up the client’s own unconscious and bring them to a point of enlightenment. The reason why this therapy may have been so successful may not have been due to the actual techniques used but rather to the strong relationships formed between the therapist and their client. A modern example that has been influence by psycho dynamics is interpersonal psychotherapy.
What is a token economy?
A form of behaviour therapy that involves giving clients tokens for desired behaviours that they can later trade for rewards. (Often used in institutions and schools) (Behavioural technique)
What is cognitive behavioural therapy?
A blend of cognitive and behavioural therapies. It is problem-focused and action-oriented. The client is given specific tasks to do to face their fears.
What does cognitive behavioural therapy assume?
It assumes that people have problems with living due to distorted thoughts about self, others, and the world. The goal is to correct the way they think. (The issue is who gets to decide what correct thinking is?)
What is humanist therapy?
Humanistic therapy approaches assume that we are fundamentally different from animals in that we strive for personal growth and an ideal self. Techniques involve providing unconditional positive regard and helping them to change their thoughts about their real vs. ideal self.
What do MAOI Inhibitors do? (Monoamine oxidase inhibitor)
Its an enzyme that prevents the enzyme monoamine oxidase from breaking down neurotransmitters such norepinephrine, serotonin, and dopamine. (It is an antidepressant)
What do anti psychotics do?
Medications that are used to treat psychotic disorders such as schizophrenia.
1 generation of anti psychotics: Block dopamine receptors and are given for positive symptoms like hallucinations or delusions.
2 generation of anti psychotics: They work on both the serotonin and dopamine receptors.
What do anti anxiety medications do?
They are drugs that help to reduce a person’s experience of fear or anxiety. Examples of these are bezodiazepines, like diazepam (Valium), lorazepam (Ativan), and alprazolam (Xanax). They are extremely fast acting but can have negative side effects liked drug tolerance, drowsiness, and anxiety like withdrawal symptoms.
How is depression treated?
It is treated with antidepressants, drugs designed to lift people’s moods.
- Most common = Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs) which block the reuptake of serotonin in the brain, making more available for longer so that the brain has a better chance of recognizing it. (Developed on the basis that low levels of serotonin cause depression)
- SNRIs - Serotonin and Norepinephrine Reuptake Inhibitors
Tricyclic antidepressants = similar targets but dangerous side effects
What is photo therapy?
A therapy that involve repeated exposure to bright light. It may be used to treat Seasonal Affective Disorder.
What are alternative biological therapies?
Orthomolecular - Individual suffering from imbalance or pathogen such as a virus or chemical/nutrient imbalances, assumes the client has some proficiency, if you give the body what it needs it can heal itself
Individual, vitamins and chemical treatment (Supplement based approach)
Naturopathy - Social/environmental individual suffering from imbalance,pathogen, such as virus or bacteria. Assumes that the client is proficient and just needs help to bring body back into balance, get rid of virus, etc. (They are just missing the things they need so that the body will then be able to fix itself, a very restorative approach.) (Medical system)
What is more effective, talking therapies or medications?
Found that therapy paired with drugs is the most effective way to treat people.
Therapy or drugs?
Canadian study: Therapy can be as effective as drugs or even more effective - Obviously, what is necessary will depend on the CAUSE of the problem. This is why it is so important for us to consider the cause.
Why can therapy outperform medication?
Therapy can even help when someone is dealing with a biological problem - helps you to get your life back
It addresses root causes:
It can identify causes, help us respond to cause
Medication mainly manages symptoms
Lower relapse rates: Studies show patients in therapy are less likely to relapse compared to those on medication alone.
Skill-building: Therapy equips patients with coping strategies, emotional regulation techniques, and problem-solving skills.
Fewer side effects:
Medications tend to have many negative effects, like weight gain, sexual dysfunction, or dependency.
There may be side effects from “trying on” different ideological positions.
Men need to learn how to cry and women need to learn how to get angry - Couple therapy
What are some techniques of psycho dynamic therapies?
Again, it assumes that we are born with aggressive and sexual urges that are repressed during childhood. Techniques involve free association, where the client expresses whatever thoughts or feelings that come to mind. Another is dream interpretation and then an analysis of any resistance that the client displays.
What are exposure therapies?
An approach to the treatment of a client that involves confronting an emotion-arousing stimulus directly and repeatedly, ultimately leading to a decrease in the emotional response. (Behavioural technique)
What are behavioural therapies?
We have learned to associate things and now have faulty behaviors because the wrong things have been associated.
The problem is placed internally as an individual deficiency.
They do recognize that the deficiency is caused by the environment. (Faulty behaviours)
The goal is to recondition maladaptive behaviours into more constructive behaviours through operant and classical conditioning; eliminate unwanted behaviours by promoting desired behaviours.
What is cognitive restructuring?
They want to teach clients to question “automatic beliefs, assumptions, and predictions” because it is believed that they lead to negative thoughts. They want “positive thinking” to be the thoughts that the person does instead.
Homework task - Have an elastic band that they wear on their wrist and snap every time that the person has a negative thought. (This also assumes that they may have the same definition of negative thoughts or assumes that they are capable of identifying these thoughts. Also negative thoughts are not necessarily inaccurate.)
What is mindfulness meditation?
Teach clients to be fully present in each moment; to be aware of his or her thoughts, feelings, and sensations; and to detect “symptoms” before they become a problem. (This is hard to teach to someone who is in survival mode.)
