CHAPTER V
CONSCIOUSNESS
You might wonder why people are
not aware of the things that they do when they are drunk. Have you experience
lack of concentration when you felt asleep when studying? How about, incapable
of recalling the details of dreams? You might also heard stories from friends
of friends the effects of taking drugs? The common factor among these questions
reflects is the chain in the mentality of people. All these behaviour involves
consciousness.
The concept of consciousness
arises out of the experience of altered states of consciousness. An alteration
in consciousness involves qualitative change in perceptual and cognitive
aspects. It involves alteration of mediational processes between stimulus and
response. Altered states of consciousness can be induced by over stimulation,
sensory deprivation or by altering body chemistry.
Consciousness
Consciousness has been defined as awareness of everything.
Function of
Consciousness
·
It is the key
difference between human and lower animals
·
It limits what
we observe and we pay attention to
·
It helps us
select and store important stimuli from the flow of all significant
environmental contribution
·
It allows us to
stop, think and consider alternatives based on past information and to imagine
various consequences.
Level of
Consciousness
1. Conscious- according to
Freud, the object or thoughts remains in the field of our awareness.
2. Preconscious- according to
Freud, it contains all those elements that are not conscious but can become
conscious either quietly or with some difficulty (Feist & Feist, 2009)
3. Unconscious-according to
Freud impulses are below threshold of consciousness. It is the reservoir of the
unfulfilled motives. It stores repressed unfulfilled infantile sexual desires
(Sharma &Chandra, 2003).
States of
Consciousness
1.
Waking State/ Waking Consciousness- It is the time where an
individual’s time awake is spent. Waking state is a state in which thoughts,
feelings and sensation of an individual can be reported accurately and there is
a general state of alertness.
2.
Altered State of Consciousness- It is located somewhere between
the conscious-unconscious continuum. ASC
is a radical deviation from the overall pattern of functioning of the mind
during the ordinary waking state of consciousness (Teh & Macapagal,
2007).
Different
Altered State of Consciousness
1. Altered States:
Sleep. It refers to a state with greatly decreased of awareness and activity.
Biologically, psychologists see sleep as an adaptation permitting organism to
conserve, replenish and restore energy. Individual can live without sleep for a
WHILE, but can’t live without it altogether (
Ciccarelli & White, 2009).
Stages of Sleep
Normal sleep
comprises of several stages. Evidences on the different stages of sleep have
been measured and provided by various electronic recording devices; the brain
wave patterns of sleeping person can be augmented and quantified using an
electroencephalograph or EEG. Recording of eye movement; and measure of
activity in the muscle is called Electro-oculugram (EOG) and Electro-myogram
(EMG) respectively.
Central states
of sleep are NREM or non-rapid eye movement, which includes stages 1-4 and REM
or rapid eye movement sleep, which is associated with dreams.
Stage 1 sleep: During this stage there is marked slowing of pulse and
heart rate, muscle relaxation and eyes movement from side to side. The sleeper is easily awakened and if
awakened the person may not be cognizant of having slept at all.
Stage 2 sleep: This stage is characterized by the appearance of bursts
of brain waves called sleep spindles. The sleeping person is quite unresponsive
to external stimuli, and thus is hard to awaken.
Stage 3 sleep: This period is
characterized by greater muscle relaxation, heart rate, respiration rate, blood
pressure and body temperature. The sleeper is difficult to awaken and does not
respond to noise or light.
Stage 4 sleep: During this stage the heart and breathing rates, blood
pressure and body temperature are at their lowest points of the night. The
sleeper has reached deep sleep and is difficult to arouse.
Rapid Eye Movement (REM) sleep: Almost one hour after falling asleep,
the sleeper takes back from stage 4 to stage 1. At this stage, heart rate and
blood pressure moves fast, incapable of movement but the muscle become more
relaxed and the eyes moves rapidly under closed eyelids. This stage is also
associated with Dreaming.
Sleep problems
· Sleep talking: talking while
in the state of sleep, the information given by the sleeper is not necessarily
accurate or correct.
·
Somnambulism or Sleep
walking: person rised from bed, takes place during stage 3 and 4.
·
Insomia: difficulty or inability to fall
asleep or initiating sleep
·
Apnea: is marked by breathing difficulty
and even cessation while in the state of sleep.
·
Narcolepsy: characterized
by the inability to control sleep.
2. Altered States:
Dreams. It is defined as a succession of
images or auditory experiences that occurs during REM sleep. These are content
of consciousness during REM sleep.
Several theories
have been proposed for dream interpretation. Psychologist like Freud, Erickson,
French and Fromm, Perls and Bulatao believe that dreams express personal
meaning.
According to
Freud, dreams are repressed wishes.
Dreams have two kinds of contents; Manifest content (the surface or the
remembered content of the dream) and the Latent (the hidden thought or meaning
of the dreams).
Erickson felt
that dreams reveals much more than disguised wish fulfilment and that its
manifest content was worth taking seriously.
French and Fromm
states that dreams are repeated attempts by the dreamer to solve his problems.
Perls believe
that dreams are significant message about what is missing in our lives, what we
have avert doing or feelings that need to be renowned (Coon, 2008).
Bulatao propose
that dreams take their origin from unconscious (Teh & Macapagal, 2009). To
understand a dream the dreamer can focus on the unconscious area.
3. Altered States:
Hypnosis and Meditation. According to
Bulatao, hypnosis refer to as a state of consciousness which accesses
subconscious memories, ability and other states of consciousness, which then
express themselves spontaneously in conscious experience and action (Teh &
Macapagal, 2009). It seems to be a mechanism to focus attention and involves
two stages; induction and suggestion. Meditation refers to any of several
methods of concentration, reflection or focusing of conscious processes in a
manner unlike that used in everyday circumstances.
4. Altered States:
Psychoactive Drugs. These are
chemical substances capable of changing behaviours, thinking, perceptions and
moods. The resulting alteration in consciousness depends on the specific
biochemical action of the drug on the nervous system and on the tolerance of
the person.
Psychoactive drugs are usually classified as follows:
a. Depressant- it referred to as downers, this are drugs that have sedative effects
which slows down behaviour and cognitive processes. Examples are alcohol,
barbiturates, benzodiazipine and mild tranquilizer
b. Stimulants or referred to as uppers, this are drugs that increase and arouse
functioning of the system which produces feelings of heightened energy.
Example, caffeine, nicotine, amphetamines, shabu and ecstacy.
c. Hallucinogens these are drugs that can distort perceptual experiences by acting on
the areas of the brain responsible for interpretation of sensations. Example,
Lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD)
d. Narcotics. It refers plant or drug that induces euphoria-producing and painkilling
properties. Example
d.1. Cannabis refers to a plant from which
the psychoactive drug marijuana derives. It characterized by general euphoria,
a sense of well-being and relaxation. It is also consider as mild hallucinogen.
d.2.Opiates, this drug is known for their
painrelieving properties. It can reduce physical sensation and the capacity to
respond to stimuli by depressing the central nervous system. Example, morphine
and heroin
METHODS
OF ALTERING CONSCIOUSNESS
Accroding
to Matthew, there is no guaranteed one method that leads to higher states of
consciousness. In fact the `doing-achieving' orientation itself is supposed to
be a block. It is not what you do actually, but the mental state which counts.
The following are some methods identify by Matthew in 2009 for alteration of consciousness.
The physical methods suppose that the
body is almost the same as the unconscious. Free body movement implies free
emotional expression. Every repression is a muscular block.
Energy gets locked up in bodily
tension. Conflicts are contained in and expressed through the body. People who
are mentally tense have physical symptoms like clenched fist, gripping arms,
blinking, mannerisms, gestures,propitiatory smiles, strained voice, shallow
breath and dead hands. Presence of coldness, inability to express anger, etc.
show up through the body. Increasing body awareness is one method of achieving
relaxation.
B. Massage:
Massage is used to treat stress-related
behavior disorders. It is supposed to have a bearing on consciousness. The
theory supposes that personality is reflected in the physical body. Structural
blockage goes with emotional blocks. Attitudes influence structure of body.
Emotions cause change in length and thickness of muscles, change in connective
tissue and immobilization. Massage causes reorganization of muscle function and
reintegration of structure.
The yogic system of exercises
or asanas and kriyas are supposed to stimulate psychic
centers. They produce a feeling of fitness and well being.
Breathing is supposed to be a bridge
connecting the somatic and autonomic nervous systems as breathing is voluntary,
though without deliberate effort it goes on. Deep breathing helps in
relaxation, as there is a connection between breathing rhythm and the mind.
Breathing pattern changes with the state of consciousness and controlling
breath enables a person to control the mind.
E. Expressive Techniques:
Permitting a person to express his
suppressed anger (anger therapy) and other emotions before others as in
encounter groups, helps in tension release and physical and mental relaxation.
People pound a pillow, stamp their feet, bite, shout or scream (primal scream
therapy), venting their emotions and inhibitions. These have an indirect
liberating effect on consciousness. Cathartic methods, however have
to be used with caution. If overdone, they may reinforce the negative emotions
and accompanying aggressive and other undesirable acts.
Getting to know several languages helps
a person to get unstuck form one mode of perceiving reality. Religious
teachings (eg. love thy neighbor, nishkama karma, etc.) help in
altering the mode of social functioning with consequent changes in mental
functioning. Changed social functioning as well as total withdrawal from
society into solitude may help different types of persons at different levels
of personality to achieve changes in mode of functioning.
There is a potential growth situation
whenever people interact. Counseling can have a deeper level effect than is
ordinarily recognized by counselors. In consciousness oriented counseling the
aim is long-term or deep level change rather than solving a specific problem or
removal of symptoms. From this perspective, suffering or maladjustment is
desirable, if that would lead to greater integration or growth or maturity in
the long run.
Freud wrote that the unconscious is omniscient, omni-present and
omnipotent. His main technique was integration through insight. Jung extended
this concept to individuation process to include integration of the elements of
the collective unconscious also. Roberto Assagioli developed techniques of
concentration involving vivid visualization of archetypal symbols to achieve
Psychosynthesis. Meditation, once a technique of various religious traditions
is now being perfected as a psychological technique. Meditation is mind-fasting
or the deliberate attempt to still the mind. It is an easy, effortless and
restful state of alertness. It leads to both physical and mental relaxation.
Though some people speak of concentrative meditation and opening-up mediation,
the general policy is to regard concentration (on an object or idea) as a
preliminary training and meditation proper as reduction of thoughts or
thoughtlessness. Meditation culminates in super consciousness.
Walang komento:
Mag-post ng isang Komento