The State Of Mind: The Three Major States Of The Minds

705 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Altered state of consciousness

State of Consciousness
Essay Day 3

There are three major states of the mind; consciousness, waking consciousness, and altered states of consciousness. Consciousness is our awareness of various cognitive processes, such as sleeping, dreaming, concentrating, and making decisions. Waking consciousness is the mental state that encompasses the thoughts, feelings, and perceptions that occur when we are awake and reasonable alert. Lastly, altered states of consciousness is the mental state that differ noticeably from normal waking consciousness. Humans spend one third of their lives sleeping which is a natural state of rest characterized by a reduction in voluntary body movement and decreased awareness of the …show more content…

REM is rapid eye movement which in sleep stage characterized by eye rapid movement and increased dreaming. Nom-REM is non rapid eye movement stages of sleep that alternate with REM stages during sleep cycles. Going to sleep means losing awareness and falling to respond to a stimulus that would produce a response in the waking state. At least 50 million Americans suffer from chronic, long term sleeping disorders and 20 million other Americans have regular sleep problems. The scientific study of typical sleep patterns has yielded further insights into several sleep disorders such as; sleep talking, sleepwalking, nightmares, night terrors, insomnia, apnea, and narcolepsy. Nightmares are frightening dreams that occur during REM sleep stage and usually are remembered. Night terrors are frightening and terrifying dreams that occur during NREM sleep state that which a person is difficult to awaken and doesn 't remember the content. Insomnia is a sleep disorder characterized or remaining asleep throughout the night. Apnea is a sleep disorder characterized by breathing difficulty during the night and feelings of exhaustion during the day. Narcolepsy is a hereditary disorder by suddenly nodding off during the day and sudden loss of muscle toe following movements of emotional

Show More
Related

  • Mind Over Matter: An Epic Struggle

    1019 Words  | 3 Pages

    In the struggle of mind over matter, an individual needs to have courage to use the knowledge that he or she possess. By using the knowledge available to us, we as individuals have the ability to overcome opposing forces in our lives which seem to keep us from progressing (mentally and emotionally), and which can seem larger than life. In Homer's epic The Odyssey, The use of cunning to disguise and deceive and to ultimately overcome the godlike opposition that manifests itself many times throughout the book, and makes Odysseus' return home possible. Without the ability to deceive, Odysseus' brute strength alone would have exhibited a futile display of power in the presence of the gods of Ancient Greece. Much like the lives of individuals, if we do not use our cunning and wit in a most effective manner, and rely on strength instead knowledge, we are destined for a life of failure and/or mediocracy . If Odysseus hadn't had the courage and cunning to return home his destiny would have consisted of spending the rest of his life on an island with Calypso, miserable.

    Read More

  • Ap Psychology Chapter 4

    1064 Words  | 3 Pages

    Chapter 4 discusses the several states of consciousness: the nature of consciousness, sleep and dreams, psychoactive drugs, hypnosis, and meditation. Consciousness is a crucial part of human experience, it represents that private inner mind where we think, feel, plan, wish, pray, omagine, and quietly relive experiences. William James described the mind as a stream of consciousness, a continuous flow of changing sensations, images thoughts, and feelings. Consciousness has two major parts: awareness and arousal. Awareness includes the awareness of the self and thoughts about one's experiences. Arousal is the physiological state of being engaged with the environment. Theory of mind refers to individuals understanding that they and others think,

    Read More

  • Defining the Conscious State

    974 Words  | 2 Pages

    I have been asked to answer the following questions; how do psychologists define conscious states? How can these conscious states be measured?

    Read More

  • Circadian Sleep Essay

    1023 Words  | 3 Pages

    So for an average sleep time of eight to ten hours, we go through this sleep cycle four to five times a night. In stage one of the sleep phases, we are in a light sleep that lasts anywhere from five to ten minutes. In this stage, our eyes are still moving slowly and our muscles are slowing down, but may still have sudden muscle contractions like as if we were being startled or as if we were falling down. People in this phase may not feel rested if they are awakened, and might not of felt like they were even asleep at all. In stage two of the sleep cycle, you have successfully fallen into a light sleep. During this cycle your heart rate has slowed down, and your body temperature has dropped. You no longer have eye movement, and your body is finally resting the parts it has used through out the day. The next stage, which is stage three is also combined with stage four of the sleep cycle. These two cycles together are known as the delta sleep or the deep sleep stage, and is a very important part of the sleep cycle. During these cycles your body repairs and re-grows tissue, strengthens the immune system and builds bone and muscle. In these cycle it may be very hard to wake a person up, and if woken they may feel droggy or “out of it” for several minutes. In these stages is when most people have night terrors, experience sleep walking, or sleep talking occurs. In an adults average time of sleep this takes up about fifteen to twenty five percent of the time of sleep. Lastly, there is the REM cycle, which is also known as paradoxical sleep. During this cycle is when most of your muscles are paralyzed, your eyes are moving rapidly, and your breathing, heart rate and body temperature are not regulated. Vital signs show that during this stage, the arousal and oxygen levels

    Read More

  • Mind State Vs Consciousness State Essay

    842 Words  | 2 Pages

    There is a great question on whether or not our conscious thoughts are something greater than a physical state: this question has two responses which state that yes, consciousness state and brain state are two separate states (dualism) and no, brain state and conscious state is one in the same (physicalism). I will be arguing that brain state and conscious state are the same by presenting scientific evidence and theories that support a physicalist view. This evidence will clearly state why the physical stance is supported while the dualist stance is not.

    Read More

  • Sleep, Dreams and REM Sleep Behavior Disorder

    1428 Words  | 3 Pages

    The discovery of rapid eye movement (REM) sleep suggested that sleep was not, as it was thought to be, a dormant state but rather a mentally dynamic one. Your brain is, in fact, very active in this state, almost to the level at which it is when a person is awake. Yet during this active stage in which most dreams occur, the movements of the rest of the body are completely stilled. To imagine this paralysis during dreams not occurring is a frightful image, since in many cases dreams are violent and active. When the neurotransmitters that control the movement of the body do not work properly the person develops REM sleep behavioral disorder (RBD).

    Read More

  • The Origin Of Sleep Paralysis

    873 Words  | 2 Pages

    According to the history, Sleep Paralysis was classified as nightmare, a term that evolved into our modern definition by Samuel Johnson. It was widely considered to be the work of the demons, which were thought to sit on the chest of the sleeper. Various forms of magic and spiritual possession were also advanced as causes. But Sleep Paralysis can occur in the state between REM sleep, where dreaming occurs, and waking up. During REM sleep, the brain paralyses the body in order to keep us away from carrying out our dream-actions that could harm ourselves somehow. At times, our brain does not put off these dreams or the paralysis that comes along with them, resulting in a potentially terrifying experience. Sleep paralysis had been linked to disorders such as migraines, anxiety disorders, and obstructive sleep apnea. But when linked to another disorder, sleep paralysis commonly occurs together with the neurological sleep disorder called Narcolepsy. David McCarty, a sleep researcher at Louisiana State Health University, explained that in sleep paralysis, two of the key REM sleep components are presen...

    Read More

  • Substance Abuse Counselor Career

    905 Words  | 2 Pages

    Renner, T., Feldman, R., Majors, M., Morrissey, J., & Mae, L. (2011). States of Consciousness. Psychsmart (pp. 99-107). New York: McGraw-Hill.

    Read More

  • Theory of Mind

    1083 Words  | 3 Pages

    Describe what evolutionary psychologists mean when they employ the term ‘theory of mind’. Use examples and research studies from Book 1, Chapter 2 to show why this theory is important in evolutionary psychology.

    Read More

  • The Nature Of The Mind: The Computational Theory Of Mind

    1237 Words  | 3 Pages

    For years philosophers have enquired into the nature of the mind, and specifically the mysteries of intelligence and consciousness. (O’Brien 2017) One of these mysteries is how a material object, the brain, can produce thoughts and rational reasoning. The Computational Theory of Mind (CTM) was devised in response to this problem, and suggests that the brain is quite literally a computer, and that thinking is essentially computation. (BOOK) This idea was first theorised by philosopher Hilary Putnam, but was later developed by Jerry Fodor, and continues to be further investigated today as cognitive science, modern computers, and artificial intelligence continue to advance. [REF] Computer processing machines ‘think’ by recognising information

    Read More

  • Parasomnia

    1529 Words  | 4 Pages

    Fisher, C.J., Byrne, A., Edwards, and Kahn, E. (1970) REM and NREM nightmares. In E. Hartman (ed), Sleep and Dreaming. Boston : Little Brown

    Read More

  • The Movies: A Loss Of Consciousness

    965 Words  | 2 Pages

    Observing what goes on in these states can further clarify the two components of consciousness, and consequently the concept as a

    Read More

  • Philosophy of the Mind

    1337 Words  | 3 Pages

    One can say or try and dissect the brain and try to figure what’s going on inside of it and that’s what Philophers today try to do that. Why is that why must the brain be dissected? This question is raised for the simple fact that Philophers really want to know why whats going on the human brain. This can also go back to “knowing” and believing in something. We will also take a look into emotion with a emphisis on facil expressions. Reading the human face could be a difficult task. Last but not least I will talk about the Philosphy of life and why it is important to have an outreach like that in life, futhermore this has an emphese on belief. Learning a lot this busy semester the topics above will be though out and discussed so that we can get a better understand of each of them.

    Read More

  • Psychology: The Five Levels Of Consciousness

    864 Words  | 2 Pages

    “Consciousness is defined as everything of which we are aware at any given time - our thoughts, feelings, sensations, and perceptions of the external environment. Physiological researchers have returned to the study of consciousness, in examining physiological rhythms, sleep, and altered states of consciousness (changes in awareness produced by sleep, meditation, hypnosis, and drugs)” (Wood, 2011, 169). There are five levels of consciousness; Conscious (sensing, perceiving, and choosing), Preconscious (memories that we can access), Unconscious ( memories that we can not access), Non-conscious ( bodily functions without sensation), and Subconscious ( “inner child,” self image formed in early childhood).

    Read More

  • Sleeping and Dreaming

    4847 Words  | 10 Pages

    Sleeping and Dreaming Despite the large amount of time we spend asleep, surprisingly little is actually known about sleeping and dreaming. Much has been imagined, however. Over history, sleep has been conceived as the space of the soul, as a state of absence akin to death, as a virtual or alternate reality, and more recently, as a form of (sub)consciousness in which memories are built and erased. The significance attributed to dreams has varied widely as well.

    Read More

More about The State Of Mind: The Three Major States Of The Minds

Open Document