Attribution Processes

The other day, I overheard a younger high school student talking with some of his peers on the bus. He was telling them about how he had received a failing grade on an assignment, and then got into a fight with the teacher about it. The teacher had said what he had done wrong, but the student told his friends that the reason he failed was because the teacher "didn't know what she was doing". This is a perfect example of the self-serving bias, because the student attributed external factors to his failure on the assignment. However, as an observer, I formed an opinion that it was probably due to some fault on the student's part that he received the failing grade, even though I didn't even know him. This is known as the fundamental attribution error. I didn't even know this person, but I had already formed an opinion about the situation, and determined that he was at fault.

Mental Disorders

After reading the section in chapter 13 about schizophrenia, the part about paranoid schizophrenia caught my attention. My grandmother was diagnosed with dementia a few years ago, and she has always had a problem with anxiety and depression. She is never able to remember anything, which can be a sign of dissociative amnesia. Recently, she was able to acquire medicine to help treat her mental diseases, but she has become paranoid that my grandfather is not giving her the proper doses and is trying to prevent her from getting better. According to the book, this is a symptom of paranoid schizophrenia. She also believes that she is the only one in the family trying to help herself, which is a sign of a delusion of grandeur. By continuously taking her medications and seeking therapy, I hope that her condition will improve, and she can live at peace with herself and the people around her.

The Gambler's Fallacy Heuristic

The gambler’s fallacy is a heuristic in which someone continues to gamble even though the odds are against them. Even after losing, they will continue to gamble, essentially throwing away their money. My roommate exhibits this heuristic perfectly. He is addicted to buying scratch tickets and will not stop. Even when he loses several times in a row, he will continue to purchase more tickets. At times, this will even fuel his addiction as he believes that he is due for a win.

Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder

OCD is a disorder that affects man people today. It is persistent, uncontrollable intrusions of unwanted thoughts, and urges to engage in senseless rituals. For many people it can be in the form of washing there hands multiple times, doing things over and over until they feel it is good, or organizing things One of my best friends suffers from a mild case of OCD, she has to keep her books and cd's in size order, and her closet is color coated. If something is out of place, she has to take everything out and reorganize it again.

The Availability Heuristic

This principle sates that basing the estimated probability of an event on the ease with which relevant instances come to mind. My friend Robert has believed this principle throughout his teenage years. He smokes about a pack of cigarettes a day. But he believes that smoking that much will not affect his health at all, because his grandmother smoked three packs a day since she was fourteen and is still perfectly healthy at the age of seventy. He believes the availability heuristic because his grandmother is an available source that shows that smoking does not affect her health at all, so he believes what is available to him instead of the statistics that he is told.

Risky Decision Making

Thinking and behaving irrationally, and making risky decisions is something everyone comes across in life. Over the summer, a friend of mine took part in very irrationally and risky behavior. She was at a party, and was consuming alcohol, which is the first risky decision she made that night. Her next risky decision was deciding to drive home still slightly intoxicated. Thankfully, her risky decision-making did not end in an unsatisfactory outcome, like a car accident or death, but it could have lead to these. Risking her life was a very irrational behavior and she made a very risky decision when she decided to drive home.

TED Video on Phantom Limbs

The TED conference video on phantom limbs was one of the most interesting videos we watched throughout the class. Vilayanur Ramachandran’s research was incredible, especially they way in which he was able to help amputees by removing the pain they felt. By placing both arms in a mirrored box, the amputees were able to feel as though they were moving their amputated hands or arms. This removed the feeling of a clenched hand which was causing them pain. One of my dad’s good friends had his hand amputated after an accident where he works. He does not feel pain, but he says that every once in a while he can feel his hand as if it was still there. In these brief moments, he will forget that he ever lost his hand. It was interesting learning from the video that it is a common experience, as well as some of the psychology behind it.

Sleep Deprivation

Learning about sleep deprivation this semester was something that particularly interested me, especially since it is present far too often in my life. More specifically, I often experience sleep restriction, or getting less sleep than is suggested. The study in the book showed the drastic effects it can have on your mood and your performance. Subjects who got six hours of sleep a night, which is more than I get many nights, experienced a drastic decline in their cognitive ability over the course of two weeks. Another interesting result was the fact that some people do not need to get nearly as much sleep as others. This is something I have noticed between me and my sister. If I don’t get a solid seven or eight hours of sleep, I am tired and sluggish while she can fully operate with only a few hours.

Physical Appearances

Although we are not entirely conscious of it, we often judge people on how they look. People tend to correlate characteristics such as sociable, friendly, poised, warm, competent, and well adjusted to those who are good looking. For example, recent research has proven that facial features that are similar to infant features influence perceptions of honesty. Blondes tend to be paid more because they are often viewed as more desirable to men. Taller men are proven to be paid more because their appearance indicates strength and power. Although we are not often aware of our tendency to lean towards certain people for specific objectives, our mind whether consciously or unconsciously do so.

Gambler's Fallacy

Gamblers always feel that they know a way to beat the system. This is one of the main reasons why people become addicted because they feel that it is an extremely easy way to become rich. They will play any game because they think that they have gained odds against the house. When people begin to think like this it can become very dangerous. One of my friends fathers had become addicted to roulette because he thought that he could beat the system, he failed numerous times waiting for a color to not come up for awhile and then placing a bet on it. This failed and he lost a great amount of money. He then tried to play the slots and would wait for a machine to not payout for awhile then he would swoop in only to find that it still wasn't paying out. He learned the hard way that the odds dont change and the house will always have the upper hand.

Phobic Disorder

A phobic disorder is marked by a persistent and irrational fear of an object or situation that presents no realistic danger. Although mild phobias are common, people are said to have a phobic disorder when their fears seriously interfere with everyday functioning. A teacher that I had in high school actually had a severe phobic disorder of spiders. We could not decorate the classroom with spiders for Halloween or wear anything with spiders on it. Her phobia was so severe that when she saw a spider-man folder she actually started to experience feelings of anxiety. She in fact had to attend therapy in order to deal with her anxiety.

Virtual Reality Treatment for PTSD

In the video about the treatment for PTSD, or Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, they discussed and showed how they are using virtual reality simulations to help soldiers with PTSD to get better. They said that PTSD is from the person reliving the traumatic situations, but having the memory cut off right at the climax, so they do not know if they are going to survive through the event. But with the virtual reality simulation they are forced to relive the whole memory, and it can't get cut off, so they know that they are going to come out of the event completely fine. I think that this is a great way to help people suffering from PTSD, and from the clip it seems like it is highly likely to work on a majority of people suffering from PTSD.

Technology in Schools

In a recent video shown in class, it talked about how technology is affecting students. Whether it be xbox, cell phones, or facebook, we can all relate to the need for technology. Most people can't go a day without checking facebook and can not leave their house without their cellphones. But it is becoming a huge distraction to learning. Many students text during class, which inhibits them from fully learning what is being taught in class. It has an affect on me in class, as soon as I start to get distracted I reach for my blackberry, either to text someone or to go on facebook. I realize how it can affect students learning because you start to only focus on who you are texting and not what the teacher is saying.

Hoarding

The other day in class we had learned about hoarding after watching a video about it. While watching the clip, I learned that it is an actual disease. I had assumed that it was just made up and that the people just did not care enough to throw certain items out. But watching the clip made me more aware of the toll it takes on a persons life to suffer with this disorder. It had affected the woman so much that she wound up losing loved ones. The clip made me realize that people that hoard have a serious disease.

Effective Study Strategies

Learning about the most effective ways to study this semester was very interesting as it applied so directly to my life. After a year and a half in college, I have taken many tests and prepared for them in different ways. Some strategies have been effective while others have negatively influenced my results. Far too often I find myself cramming for a test late at night a few hours before I have to take it. I always kick myself for doing this because by the time I get to class the next day, I have forgotten or confused much of the information. If, however, I read the material as we review it in class and then begin studying a few days prior, my results are much different. I always feel much more prepared and I can easily recall the information in a methodical way.

DID

Dissociative Identity Disorder is the abnormality which people commonly confuse with schizophrenia. Having multiple different personalities is something which must be very hard to deal with, especially without any control over which personality takes over at certain times and places. In the movie"Psycho" it involves identity disorder in a major way. The main character takes on his mother's personality after her death, and commits brutal murders without being able to remember what happens. Cases as serious as that one have happened, and they put the real struggles of disorders like these out in the open. This disorder is also highly contested, and very little factual evidence has been obtained via research. Much is still unknown about this potentially life destroying mental illness.

Mood disorders

It is interesting that people can suffer from personality disorders that can affect their daily lives in such a significant way. I know that if I suffered from a mood disorder, it would be challenging to be in certain social situations that required me to be nice and friendly, when I know i might not be able to handle it. In a place as socially based as college, I am sympathetic in the utmost way towards anyone with a mood disorder.

Suicide and me

I found it very interesting to read about how 90% of those who commit suicide already suffer from some kind of psychological disorder. I remember in 5th grade when one of my fellow students had to go to a therapist because he had spoken of killing himself. It shows how we cannot take things like that likely, when there is such good treatment out there that could save a life.

Self-handicapping

Today in class we spoke about a persons ability to prevent themselves from succeeding. I actually have a friend that tends to this. I often find her procrastinating and doing other things such as watching TV or going out instead of studying or doing homework. When she feels like a test is too hard, she gives up instead of trying harder. I think that this is her way of avoiding disappointment. She would rather fail because she didn't try than fail and try her hardest. She would rather think that she is just lazy rather than incapable or not smart enough.

Problem Solving

The problem solving section in chapter eight did an excellent job of showing that we do not use our full brain power to solve a problem. One of the examples of the two strings hanging on the ceiling was the main example that caught my eye. I couldn't figure out what to do in order to tie the two strings together. I almost felt dumb after seeing the answer and seeing how simple it was to complete the task. There is sometimes irrelevent information that is thrown into the problem in an attempt to throw the person off. Three objects were on the table and only one could be used. This is an example of how irrelevent information can throw a person off because they get you to think about how you could use objects that in fact have no use at all.

PTSD

In class we briefly discussed Post Traumatic stress Disorder. I have only met three people whom have suffered from PTSD, but each case was more severe than the last. The first person I came in contact with that had the disorder after a traumatic experience was a friend of my mother. She was a nurse and one day working in the ER a patient pulled a gun on the doctor treating him for an unidentified sickness that was a result of too much cocaine. Two weeks after the experience she quit her job and began looking for a job in research that would limit her exposure to new people. She also never wanted to leave the her home, even when the power went out in the winter and was without heat for days. She began seeking therapy after loosing another job because she never wanted to leave her home. She became so paranoid and afraid she wouldn't even let her own family into her home. She has recently began therapy to help with her problem but she serves as an example of how bad PTSD can get if it goes untreated.

Stereotypes

Today in class we watched a video about stereotypes and how physical attractiveness effects peoples confidence and future success. One particular aspect of the video centered on if Blonde's are considered more successful based solely on their hair. It reminded me of the time my older sister and her friend held car washes on the same day. Back home we live in a busy neighborhood and know everyone. So when she and her cheerleader friends decided to have two competing car washes on the same day and same culdesac, they divided the girls up by hair color. Brunette vs. Blonde, my sister was the leader on the Brunette team. Contrary to the belief that blonde's are more successful, my sister and her brunette friends won the contest by about $20. I am sure their were other factors at work in this situation but i found it interesting.

Beauty Equals Success

The video that we watched in class today about beautiful people being more successful in the business world shows how superficial todays American society is. The fact that blondes are preffered over any other hair color showed the typical stereotype about males to be true. I found it to be amazing that the blonde woman made fifty percent more than the brunette that was working beside her. The other fact that intrigued me was that men who are taller tend to make more money than men who are shorter during there teenage years. As history shows though this proves to be true. Most leaders of countries are tall and most major CEO's and other leaders in the business world tend to be tall.

PTSD

Posttraumatic stress disorder involves psychological disturbance from a extremely traumatic event. My father was drafted in the Vietnam War. This is something he did not share with me until recently. Even when he did tell me about it he was very vague. It seemed as if he had details and memories he did not want to bring up. It has been a long time since the Vietnam war and his service in it, however the things he experienced he still dose not feel completely comfortable sharing. I dont think he suffered from PTSD but I do think that the experienced of war is one that no one should have to endure. The violence and trauma associated with war cannot be good for the human psyche.

Attribution Process

When an event occurs the first thing people tend to do is ask why or search for some explanation. This search for an explanation creates a need for the attribution process which is the process of inferring the causes of other peoples behavior. The most easily relate-able story I have of such an event took place last summer. I was behind a car attempting to make a left turn across two lanes of on coming traffic. There was a car coming as the car in front of me attempted to make the left turn with no sense of urgency and was hit by the on coming car. I had no idea why the person would have even attempted to make such a turn but I had inferred that the person was probably older or maybe an inexperienced driver. When the person got out of the car it indeed was an elderly woman about 80 years old. My attribution process was correct in that instance but there have been many other times where I have been wrong.

Jet lag

When I was younger I took a fourteen hour flight from Los Angeles to Sydney, Australia. Sydney is actually 14 hours ahead of us so it took a lot of time for my body to adjust. For the first couple nights I had trouble falling asleep and staying asleep as well as waking up at a certain time. However, after a couple of days my body adjusted and I could sleep somewhat normally. I stayed there for a month and when it came to for me to come home, my sleep cycle became abnormal all over again. It again took about three days to fully adjust to the time change.

Claustrophobic

During a concert that I recently attended I witnessed a person that seemed to be claustrophobic and they began to freak out as people began to swarm around them. This lead me to think of a friend that I had when I was younger who went to therapy for it. He overcame his fear and his therapist from what I understood slowly would increase the number of people in the room with him. He would do this to help him conquer his fear. He also had him say things in his head to calm himself down. This is a great example of how therapy can help a person to overcome there fears.

Levels of Awareness: the preconscious

Freud contrasted the unconscious with the conscious, and preconscious which formed the three levels of awareness. The conscious state consists of being aware at that particular time while the unconscious state consists of thoughts, memories, and desires that are well below the surface of conscious awareness. I found it interesting that we are able to retrieve material, with little to know effort, from our memories such as middle name or what was for dinner the previous night. The act of doing this is preconscious because the material can be easily recalled.

Bipolar Disorder

It was interesting to read about bipolar disorder, manic-depressive disorder marked by the experience of both depressed and manic periods, in chapter 13 because I know someone who deals with the disorder. A person living with the sickness can go from feelings of euphoria for days to a complex negative undercurrent of uneasiness and irritability. Though the book gives an explicit explanation about the disorder, I think one must encounter someone dealing who has bipolar disorder to have a better understanding of the illness.

Hoarding

After watching the video on hoarding, it opened my eyes to a disorder that I did not really have an understanding of. I did not know that it was such a physical and mental problem for people who suffer from it. It is mind-altering to think that people excessively collect items and can not discard them due to something psychological.

Defense Mechanism

A common defense mechanism that I find myself using is taking out my anger on others. With the stress of school work, athletics, a job, and hanging out with friends things can get pretty hectic, especially when my time is not spent getting things I need to do done. Sometimes I will find myself hanging out with my friends instead of doing an assignment that I should be working on. When it gets close to the assignments deadline I begin to stress and cram to get things done. Having to cram in the work because of my poor time management irritates me. Sometimes I will let this irritation get the best of me, and be rude on the phone when talking to one of my parents or lash out at one of my friends in an abnormal way. When I realize what I am doing I am quick to apologize and seem to calm down a little bit after. Letting my frustration get the best of me and diverting my anger onto the people that are close to me is not a habit that I want to repeat doing. Taking responsibility for my actions and approaching my assignments with a calm collective mindset is a tremendous help.

Irrelevant information

Irrelevant information

Irrelevant information surrounds us on a day-to-day basis. However I feel like the majority of the time I am subjected to this useless information is during multiple-choice exams for my classes. I always struggled throughout high school in my math courses. Whenever I saw a word problem it was like my brain would automatically shut down. While reading I would get so caught up in all the information and numbers that didn’t really matter, and by the time I finished reading it I was lost. Although I would try and underline important information needed to solve the problem it seemed like by the time I was done the entire problem would be underlined. Since high school I seem to have progressed in my word problem solving skills that are filled with irrelevant facts and numbers. I am able to look past the gibberish that is there strictly to stump me and successfully solve the problem. Also while reading word problems in math or multiple-choice exams I tend to handle my anxiety levels a lot better. Instead of getting worked up with all the information that is presented to me that doesn’t matter, I can look past it all and into the information I actually do need.

Hoarding

After watching the video on hoarding in class the other day I was surprised to see people who hoard things so much that it actually becomes a problem in their life. They tend to be messier and the things they would keep could actually be a danger to them. Such as keeping leftover meat in the back of the freezer which collects mold and goes so bad it attracts maggots etc. However, humans tend to be hoarding beings as it is. We all to some extent, collect things that we find of value to us but are worth really nothing to anyone else. We keep collections of things, all of the things within our homes, believe it or not that is basically hoarding to some extent. It was just surprising to realize that people almost had a fear of throwing things away, it was pretty interesting to see, but unfortunate for those who have it.

Stereotypes

In chapter 15, we talked about Stereotyping and what stereotyping is, are widely held beliefs that people have certain characteristics because of their membership in a particular group. And in America I think a current issue of this is with Middle Easterners. I recently did a debate in my politics class on the whether racial profiling of middle easterners is ever justified. I do not believe that it is and it is unconstitutional. But, this doesn't mean because it is unconstitutional that it will ever stop. It is something that will always be there. Just like racism and profiling will always be there in every country. It is just a way that people think and ethnic stereotyping is wrong but it is just how the human mind thinks of someone.

Mood Stabilizers

After learning about mood stabilizers and mood swings in chapter 14, I realized that when I was younger about three years ago a family friend was going through some tough times and I was not really sure what the problem was. I was old enough to realize what bipolar mood disorder was and I talked to my parents about our friends situation and my mom told me that she had a mood disorder but that doesn't make her any different than anyone. In this chapter I learned that Lithium can be used to help patients going through this disorder and made me realize that our family friend at the time and currently is probably still using this to help her.

Stress and Illness

In chapter 12, continuing learning about stress, the textbook brought up stress and illness and I suddenly realized that I have seen an incident with this. I can remember every year when my mom is preparing for Thanksgiving dinner, or a big family gathering that will be hosted at our house, she becomes very stressed out and very irritable. She will get all of the preparing done and everything will be done nicely and the dinner will be great. However, I notice afterwards a couple days after my mom will get sick and complain of back pain. Now this could be anything but I thought it was interesting that it was brought up in the text that illness can be caused due to stress. These two symptoms are something that my mom goes through when she is stressed out and I'm sure many other do to.

Stress

In chapter 11, we learned about Stress and the causes of stress. I can relate to this right now especially with exams coming up next week and trying to finish all the work for this semester. The four principles of stress are 1. frustration, 2. conflict, 3. change, 4. pressure. At this moment in the semester I am feeling all four of these principles. Stress is part of my everyday life trying ot manage between school and athletics and also social time. My own struggles with time managment has effected my stress levels as well. I put things off and not get them done until the last minute and it creates stress where it can be prevented.

Defense Coping

We learned that Sigmund Freud originally developed the concept of the defense mechanism. These mechanisms are largely unconscious reactions that protect a person from unpleasant emotions such as anxiety and guilt. I could relate to these defense mechanisms because when I know that I am wrong or realize that something is challenging I will down play the situation and not admit that I am wrong or downplay reality. If there is something that I want to shield and make less intimidating like a test grade that I knew that I did not do well on, I will tell myself it is not a big deal and come up with an excuse for that grade. It is not something I enjoy doing but it is something that I do and I think many other people also do.

Who Seeks Therapy?

I was surprised when learning about different types of disorders and receiving therapy for them. I was surprised that 15% of the US population receives some type of therapy. This to me is suprising because you may not even know that some of your closes friends receive therapeutic help. I can remember that back in sixth grade when one of my closest friends got into a car accident and was traumatized by the entire situation. He later told our group of friends that he had to go to therapy because of the accident and he could not sleep. This was shocking at the time but after learning about different conditions and disorders, I understand that more people than we think need therapeutic help.

Hoarding

After watching the video on hoarding, it opened my eyes to a disorder that I did not really have an understanding of. I did not know that it was such a physical and mental problem for people who suffer from it. It is mind-altering to think that people excessively collect items and can not discard them due to something psychological.

Postpartum Depression

My aunt went through postpartum depression after she had my cousin George. I didn't really understand what it was at the time and my mom tried to explain it to me, but I was young and didn't understand how any mother could have thoughts of harming their newborn baby or not even wanting their baby. For my aunt it only lasted two or three weeks but she was very unhappy the whole time. My mom and all her sisters had to take turns helping my aunt (also her sister) out until she got over the postpartum depression. She never had to seek a lot of professional help, though she did talk with her doctor a lot during that period of time. To my knowledge, I think she was the only one that experienced postpartum depression throughout all the women in my family. I really hope that I don't experience postpartum depression.

Animal Hoarding

I was interested in hoarding, I had heard of it before and had even seen a couple shows about it, but it never really hit me that it was so bad. I decided to look more into hoarding, specifically, I was curious about the different types of hoarding. In the video we saw in class, the lady had a problem hoarding stuff. She just kept all this useless stuff in her house, collecting dust and just sitting there. To her, it had a use, it had a home, it was a part of her, but to anyone else it was just useless junk. I was interested the most in food hoarding and animal hoarding. Food hoarding from my understanding is pretty much when someone does not believe in expiration dates and never wants to give up food because they think it is wasteful and just can't bear to give it up. Animal hoarding is one type of hoarding that I think would be so unbearable to live with. I went on a website www.animalhoarding.com and found out that these people keep many many animals under terrible conditions but they think that they are loving them and helping these animals. One lady, the website says, kept 522 dogs!!!! That is disgusting! Not only is it sad for the poor animals, but wouldn't the house and the people living in it be smelly? it is impossible to be clean and hygienic with that many animals! An excerpt from the Animal Hoarding website: Thousands of animals suffer and some die in squalid surroundings, devoid of adequate food and water, yet, the owners insist nothing is wrong. Standing in three inches of feces, breathing acrid ammonia in the air, and in plain view of dead and dying dogs, one woman said, “I never hurt any dogs, I love my babies. The fact is I protect them.”

Obviously, this can get extremely out of hand and keeping that many animals is unhealthy for both the animals and the humans. THese people need help.

Generalized Anxiety Disorder

In chapter 13, we learned about psychological disorders and one that was brought up was an anxiety disorder. Generalized Anxiety Disorder is marked by high level of anxiety that is not tied to any specific threat. This started to make me think of myself sometimes and how I worry about things that are out of my control. Especially during school I see myself becoming more anxious about tests, papers, and grades. This has come to the for front this past week especially right before exam week. Although I know I do not have it as bad as some people who worry about everything, I realize that this disorder touches many of us in different ways.

Posttraumatic Stress Disorder

When we were recently discussing Posttraumatic Stress Disorder in class it made me think about how this disorder has effected my family. My grandfather fought in the Vietnam War and I remember him telling me how bad things were and some of the things that he saw were things that no human should see. He is completely fine and did not discover any of these symptoms for this disorder but he says he still recalls thing about the war sometimes. It is eye opening that 7-8% of people will suffer from PTSD at some point and with the war currently it may even go up. This disorder thankfully has not hurt my family but it is something that anyone can experience after seeing a traumatic event.

Discussion Groups

In class, we watched a video about a study that showed that women with breast cancer prefer to be educated than participate in peer discussion groups. I found this interesting because usually students in classrooms prefer peer discussions rather than being lectured. I can see why the women would prefer being educated, it is easier to know about what is going on with your body and to learn how to death with your sickness. But with students, it is easier to learn from each other and often students will get bored and will not pay attention in class. With a peer discussion, it keeps them in the conversation, learning and progressing. I find it intriguing that there can be two different sides and opinions about these two learning methods.

Agoraphobia

While watching The Benchwarmers the other day i realized one of the characters has agoraphobia. In the film this reference is extremely funny and put it in a positive light, but in real life i could not see this as being something to joke about or be in anyway funny. What i find most interesting about this situation is how Hollywood can make something that is so sad, so funny. I am not bashing the movie industry but i do find it comical.

Hoarding

The video on hoarding was something I have never seen before. I had no clue it was such a problem for some people. The lady could not throw out a cardboard box because "they don't make them like this anymore." To me that is crazy. I understand the box could be very sturdy, but she is not going to use it, it is just collecting dust in her home. All the stuff to me is ridiculous. I understand it is a mental problem, but what causes that mental problem? Is it observational learning? To me all that stuff was just too much. I can understand saving some things, but she had ridiculous reasons for some of it. I hope she has learned to cope with her problem.

Anxiety

Until the recent lessons on anxiety and phobias, I never realized how much my own personal fears and anxieties impact my everyday life. During the school year, I am always anxious about my school performance and my other responsibilities, such as my job. And then, I am anxious about losing friends or having someone not like me. I am a freshman, and at the beginning at the semester, I was extremely nervous about meeting new people and getting adjusted to my classes, as most new students are. I, like most people with this problem, felt that I would never get over my fears and insecurities about going to a new place. As I become adjusted to college life, my anxieties and fears have decreased, so I do not need professional help. I never went to counseling, but I talked with my friends and family, and I pulled through. I believe that sometimes, in less severe cases, professional counseling is not needed, but the person must learn to feel comfortable with their environment and those around them.

Aversion Therapy

Aversion therapy attracted my eye when we were watching the video of Clockwork Orange. That really stood out to me and was really interesting. People will not want to do what they were doing before if this continues. Pairing their actions with nusua is something that sounds like something a parent would do as a last resort to a kid that was acting up. I think it is an excellent way of stopping a person from acting that way. It is controversial and rightfully so. In some ways it is unethical. The chemicals that are used are often painful and unpleasant. Some people may think it is not right to subject a person to this because of their behavior. I disagree I support this method.

Support Groups

Watching the video on how effective support groups are, and is there a better way was interesting to me. I did not think that putting people in a classroom setting and educating them on it would have more of an affect than people talking. I understand it educates them on what is going on and what is going to happen, so they can see their growth and where they are. Would this work for AA? I know it is a support group, but the use of the drug alcohol and its effects are widely known, would the classroom setting help the members in AA out? I am wondering if the results are just on subjects that people do not know much about. I believe that is the case. I think people are uncomfortable because they do not know what is going to happen. In the class room setting they can find out and really understand what is happening to their body.

Disassociative Disorders

In class we discussed dissociative disorders and the one i find most interesting is Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID) DID is a disorder where a person takes on multiple personalities and each of these are distinct from the other. These personalities have different skills, they have different writing styles, they may even have different accents. This to me sounds like something that is completely impossible but it is true. I have seen this disorder a few times in movies and things of that nature and it always is shown to be something terrifying or dangerous where in real life this may not be the case.

Yesterdays Lecture

During yesterdays lecture I found something to be very interesting. On one slide it said the following "psychic conflicts between the id, ego, and superego ----> (leads to) anxiety ----> (results in) Reliance on defense mechanisms. I found this connection to be extremely interesting and rather plausible. I have noticed that when I am think alot about things or i am nervous for something i am much more likely to get mad at something quicker than usual. I can not say this is to due conflicts between my id, ego, and superego but know that i rely on defense mechanisms much more when i am anxious.

Online Support Groups

In one of the videos yesterday there was a woman talking and she said something that really helped her was online support groups. These groups were anonymous and people were free to say how they feel and talk about their lives. This seems like complete nonsense to me. I do not understand how that woman could go online and in a public forum talk about her problems at home. I myself would not feel comfortable disclosing my personal life to a group of strangers in a place where it will be forever (online). I find it much better to talk to a friends or a family member who is actually close to you rather than people that may not even be who they say they are.