Unipolar depression
- Created by: isobel
- Created on: 15-06-13 09:52
View mindmap
- Unipolar depression
- symptoms
- the Dsm lists 9 symptoms and 5 or more must be present during thesame 2 week period and must include either a depressed mood or loss of interest
- -extreme lethargy -disturbed sleep -feelings of despair and hopelessness -loss of interest in usual activities
- Explanation- Monoamine hypothesis
- A group of transmitters called monoamines, which include noradrenaline, dopamine and seratonin, exist in lower levels in the brains of depressed patients.
- without the correct levels of seratonin you will feel anxious and will have a lack of energy and sleep disturbances
- without thecorrect levels of dopamine you will lack motivation and feel despair and wont beable to stimulate your reward pathway, so wontfeel pleasure.
- ifyou lack noradrenaline you will lack motivation and concentration and would struggle to get over things.
- Evaluation of Monoamine hypothesis
- Antidepressants are an effective treatment and work by raising levels of monoamines
- however antidepressants dont work for everyone suggesting there must be another cause
- Bunney et al- Urinary levels of norepinephrine decreased as patients became depressed
- however using urine doesnt give a direct reflection of levels of neurotransmitters in the brain, could come from anywhere in the body.
- Delgado et al- used a special diet to reduce seratonin levels in remitted depresed patients and found that 67% of patients experienced a return of symptoms
- comparison-cognitive approach states its faulty thinking patterns not neurotransmitters
- symptoms
Comments
No comments have yet been made