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Relationship between psychology and health
Relationship between psychology and health
Relationship between psychology and health
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While summarizing the multi-factorial model, many aspects included there can possibly determine different outcomes of people’s health in relation illness. The model shows how biological, environmental, behavioral, personality and social-cultural factors are imperative in relation to some of the leading causes of stress related illnesses. Most importantly, (Hoover, 2000) notes that genetic and lifestyle factors are among a few that simple answers to why some people can maintain their health, while others become ill.
Most people believe that biological factors play a huge role in members of a family becoming ill. We often think that our genetic makeup will ultimately lead our health down the same paths as earlier members of our families that have suffered from illnesses. While this concept may appear to be rather common, genetic factors show likelihood that the possibility is there, but not a certitude. In some cases of cardiovascular problems or cancer, having the genes create predispositions or proneness to a specific type of action; however, to say it would be without a doubt would be a fallacy.
The various ways in which we behave (our behaviors) and the environmental influences can also lead to stress related illnesses. The multi-factorial model breaks down different action in a factor group, if not controlled using a stressor relief system, it can possibly lead to long-term illness. The way in which we express ourselves through our personality can ultimately lead to depression or anxiety, if not both; as well as many other factors within the model in relation to personality. These can all lead to serious illness, possibly fatal illnesses in which we will discuss next within this component.
There are two leading causes...
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... prone to the illness. The role that psychology has played and continues to play, is that of psychological awareness that only the individual can control the outcome, once the process has taken place. The individual person can then control how to continue the journey to recovery.
Works Cited
American Cancer Society (n.d.) Adrenal Cortical Cancer. Retrieved July, 10 2008, from http://www/camcer.org/docroot/CRI/CRI_2_1xasp?dt=71
American Heart Association. (2000). Clinical training in serious mental illness (DHHS Publication No. ADM 90-1679). Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office
National Cancer Society (n.d.) Adrenal Cortical Cancer. Retrieved July, 10 2008, from http://www/camcer.org/docroot/CRI/CRI_2_1xasp?dt=71
(Erickson, Steiner, (2000) Clinical Health Psychology
(Penninx, Salovey (1998, 2000).
(Merluzzi, Martinez .S, (1997)
Everyday interactions with people, the environment, and even minor stressors all pile up, creating an overload of stress for the individual which slowly takes a toll on their overall health.
U.S. Public Health Service.(1999). The Surgeon General’s Report on Mental Health. Retrieved June,5,2000, from http://www.surgeongeneral.gov/library/mentalhealth/home.html
Although gross medical advancements have allowed the human population to live longer and fuller lives without the threat of death from infectious diseases, it is apparent that we are now dealing with a different phenomenon that may be just as harmful to our health. The impact of psychological, social and environmental factors from our daily lives is having a drastic impression on the mental and physical wellbeing of our society. It has been shown in various studies that psychological and neurological factors influence the immune system and can have an effect on our health (Breedlove, Rosenzweig & Watson, 2010). As we allow various stressors, poisonous substances, unhealthy diets and lack of rest to overwhelm our existence, we are inevitably shortening our life span and killing our bodies.
In the past thirty years there have been a significant number of studies done to establish a connection between psychological stress and the development of cardiovascular disease (CVD). CVD refers to the negative change towards the normal process of the heart and blood vessel system (What Is Cardiovascular Disease (Heart Disease)?, online). Psychological stress is defined, but not limited to being a demanding condition in which the normal behavioral conditions are exceeded thus overwhelming the behavioral resources of the organism (Kamarck, 2012). In the world today it has been shown that the impacts of psychological, social, and environmental stressors from daily lives are increasing the physical well being of individuals. Two different types of stressors can attain cardiovascular responses: "acute major life stressors and chronic exposure to continuing stressors" (Dimsdale, 2008). A stressor is any condition which causes stress on an individual. One may be exposed to acute stressors during periods of intense stress that are not regular to one’s lifestyle. Those who are exposed to constant chronic stressors are at an increased risk for hypertension, atherosclerosis, and stroke (Hojt, online). The increased levels of psychological stress present in individuals lives is providing for alarm due to the direct correlation it has with risk for cardiovascular disease.
The purpose of this paper is to define stress and how it effects the body's physiological systems. This paper will include the normal functions and organs involved in the following five physiological systems, cardiovascular, gastrointestinal, respiratory, immune and musculoskeletal. This paper will also include a description of a chronic illness associated with each physiological system and how the illness is affected by stress.
Your genetic information determines the genes you inherit that may cause or elevate your risk of certain medical conditions. My family genogram clearly indicates the risk of developing type 2 diabetes (T2D), heart disease (HD), hypercholesterolemia (HC) and hypertension (HTN). Heart disease is indicated on both maternal and paternal side and even though T2D only shows on my paternal side, the other diseases such as HC and HTN that are on my maternal side are risk factors for developing diabetes. According to Pessoa Marinho et al. (2013), the genetic and environmental risk factors that influence T2D development are: “age, gender, ethnicity, family history, obesity, inactivity, gestational diabetes, macrosomia, hypertension, decreased high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, increased triglycerides, cardiovascular diseases, micropolycystic ovary syndrome, high blood glucose on previous testing, impaired glucose tolerance and glycated hemoglobin ≥5.7%” (Pessoa Marinho et al., 2013, p. 570). Bianco et al. (2013) states, “the maternal influence confirms the hereditary role in the diabetes pathogenesis that women with positive family history to the illness presented...
There are many ways to categorize illness and disease; one of the most common is chronic illness. Many chronic illnesses have been related to altered health maintenance hypertension and cardiovascular diseases are associated with diet and stress, deficient in exercise, tobacco use, and obesity (Craven 2009). Some researchers define the chronic illness as diseases which have long duration and generally slow development (WHO 2013); it usually takes 6 month or longer than 6 month, and often for the person's life. It has a sluggish onset and eras of reduction for vanishing the symptoms and exacerbation for reappear the symptoms. Some of chronic illness can be directly life-threatening. Others remain over time and need intensive management, such as diabetes, so chronic illness affects physical, emotional, logical, occupational, social, or spiritual functioning. Chronic diseases, such as heart disease, stroke, cancer, chronic respiratory diseases and diabetes, all of these diseases are the cause of mortality in the world, representing 63% of all deaths. So a chronic illness can be stressful and may change the way a person l...
Fewer than ten percent of most cancers are thought to be due to strong hereditary factors. Many physicians believe that prevention is the best way to effectively tackle cancer. One of those factors in prevention is the individual knowing their family history so that they can develop an awareness of their families' cancer lineage. Other factors are a balanced diet, not smoking, moderate alcohol consumption and exercise. Strong hereditary factors that increase cancer risk are more likely to be found in families that have:
This model considers other aspects of an individual 's life such as their culture and environment. Unlike the biomedical model, the social model tries to prevent the disease in the first place, so it focuses more on educating people and health promotion. The biomedical looks at an individual’s physical disease but the social model also looks at a person’s well-being. According to Stephan Sutton, Andrew Baum and Marie Johnston (2004) the SAGE Handbook of Health psychology ‘a combination of high psychological demands, such as time pressure and low decision latitude increases the risk of psychophysiological stress reactions and subsequent ill
In the past, mental illness was taboo to discuss and there was fear surrounding the topic. However, remarkable strides have been made in figuring out the causes of the disease and weighing the most effective treatments specialized for each specific disease. According to the American Psychotic Association, “A mental illness is a medical condition that disrupts a person's thinking, feeling, mood, ability to relate to others and daily functioning. Just as diabetes is a disorder of the pancreas, mental illnesses are medical conditions that often result in a diminished capacity for coping with the ordinary demands of life.”
Health psychology is a relatively new concept rapidly growing and could be defined as the biological and psychological influences affect ones behaviour also bringing in social influences of health and illness (MacDonald, 2013). Biological determinants consider genetic and biological factors of an illness whereas psychological determinants focus on the psychological factors such as why people behave the way they do when dealing with issues such as anxiety and stress. Models such as the Health Belief Model and Locus of Control were developed in attempt to try and explain psychological issues around a chronic illness such as breast cancer (Ogden, 2012). Sociological factors can cause an enormous amount of pressure for one to behave in a certain way for example gender roles in society and religious considerations when dealing with health beliefs. Health Beliefs can be defined as one’s own perception to their own personal health and illness and health behaviours (Ogden, 2012). There are also theories and models used to explain pain and coping with diagnosis such as Moos and Schaefer (1984) Crisis theory and Shontz (1975) cycle of grief people go through when being diagnosed with a serious illness.
Studies have also shown that genetics also plays a part in illnesses and diseases that c...
Stress on individuals can bring numerous numbers of health problems, for example; heart disease. Researches have declared that having stress increase heart rate and blood flow, and causes release of cholesterol and triglycerides into the bloodstream. Another example is the Alzheimer’s disease, stress could potentially worsen Alzheimer’s disease causing its brain lesions to form more quickly. Individuals should be aware that being stressed could lead to major problems in the long run, but with the proper care and staying positive could help prevent further damages.
Health psychology has been an appealing subject to me because it is relatable on many levels. Of the topics we have covered in class I think unit 3 have left the deepest impression. Stress is something everyone can relate to but probably understood on the minimum. Stress is a common experience for university students and without an exception I fall victim to it every time an exam or presentation comes up. Learning about this topic, what stress is, what it does to your body, how it affects your behavior has lead me to reflect upon past experiences in a way that I can learn to better cope with the effects of stress.
All in all, the cause of mental illness can be summarised as a complex combination of psychological, social and biological response to environmental stressors, responding behaviour, physiology and connected to social context (Savy and Sawyer, 2009). Mental illness has been developed primarily due to the cause of circumstances around the individual and way of individual’s action to tolerate the situation. Hence, the combination of causes outside and inside the individual results in mental illness. Individual preference such as drug and alcohol use also develops and worsens the mental health problems, in some cases.