The influence of colors on the human psyche. The impact of color on the psychological state of a person

Many of us love to listen to music without fully understanding its impact. Sometimes she overstimulates - becomes obsessive. Whatever our reaction, music has a mental and physical effect. To better understand how music heals, we need to understand what it does.

When we know this, we will be able - regardless of the level of our musicality - to change the load on our "sound channels" as quickly and efficiently as we switch ...

Psychedelic drugs in general, and LSD in particular, can profoundly affect the functioning of the human psyche. Their action can be both extremely useful and destructive, depending on what kind of person takes them, in what company and in what environment.

For this reason, from the very beginning of experimenting with psychedelics, researchers have been trying to find ways to predict how these substances might affect the person who takes them.

Trying to discover a prediction method...

The psyche is the Unconscious, which controls its three hypostases: Transconsciousness, Subconsciousness and Consciousness. At the same time, the Transconsciousness controls the Subconsciousness, and the Subconsciousness controls the Consciousness.

The subconscious is the Mystic, the Energy, the Integrity, the Process that governs the structure or the result. This is the sensory perception of the world.

Consciousness is Logic, Matter, Duality, Diversity, Structure or Result, subject to a mystical contradictory process of development. This is a rational perception of the world ...

How hard it is for us sometimes with our loved ones! How often it seems to us that they demand too much from us! Attention, care, more attention, money, so that we don’t say anything, so that we at least say something ... and so on ad infinitum!

In this we will consider the importance of family and tribal relations, their impact on our lives from the point of view of system constellations.

Family relationships are a necessary condition for life

We build relationships, we avoid relationships, we leave relationships, we hold on to relationships...

Perhaps this happens not only with me, when there is a feeling that all the information that surrounds you in life directly or indirectly relates to a single topic. So it happened this month, which turned out to be subordinated to one phenomenon - the influence of research in the field of psychophysiology of the brain on psychotherapy.

The connection turned out to be something like this, traditional in scientific psychology are the ideas that the psyche is the result of the work of the brain, a materialistic view. Scientists located...

The American psychologist and sociologist J. Baldwin was one of the few at that time who called for studying not only cognitive, but also emotional and personal development. The social environment, along with innate prerequisites, was considered by him as the most important factor in development, since the formation of a system of norms and values, a person's self-esteem takes place within society.

Baldwin was one of the first to note the social role of the game and considered it as a tool of socialization, emphasizing that it ...

In all approaches of body-oriented psychotherapy, there is an emphasis on the benefits of relaxed states of tension and the desire to reduce the usual tension in the body. All these systems agree that we do not need to learn something completely new or develop new muscles.

The most important thing is to unlearn the bad habits that we have in childhood and later, to return to the natural wisdom, coordination and balance of the body. Here the body is not seen as a house of residence...

We have already said that games are intimately connected with fantasy. Attributing fantasy to the emotional sphere once again draws our attention to the fact that games also develop under the auspices of this element of our psyche. Games in their inner course.

Regardless of the biological function that externally favors their development, they serve the tasks of the emotional life of the child: in them this life seeks its expression, in them it seeks solutions to its problems and questions. The plot in the game is not random...

“All our leaders,” a high-ranking patient tells me, “now think only about one thing - how to steal more money and how to spend it with pleasure.”

This very thing “with pleasure” more and more often means: at a lower social level - with vodka; on a social level higher - with cocaine.

“There is my friend, a high-ranking official in...,” the same patient continues, “in...

Any disease affects the psychological or mental state of the patient. A disease caused by a lack of the hormone insulin is no exception. Diabetes mellitus is also characterized by the presence of its own psychosomatic deviations from the norm of development, which lead to a variety of disorders.

There are two types of diabetes: non-insulin dependent and non-insulin dependent. Their symptoms are similar to each other, as well as the course of the disease, however, the treatment tactics differ significantly.

Mental disorders occur due to malfunctions in the internal organs, including the circulatory and lymphatic systems.

Psychosomatic causes of illness

The psychosomatics of any disease that affects the endocrine system is hidden in serious disorders of nervous regulation. This is evidenced by clinical symptoms, including shock and neurotic states, depression, and so on. However, these conditions can also be the main cause of the development of type 1 and type 2 diabetes.

In medical science, the opinions of scientists on this matter vary greatly from each other. Some consider psychosomatics basic, while others completely refute this theory. An unhealthy person can be immediately recognized. As a rule, it is given out by peculiarities of behavior, as well as a tendency to unusual manifestations of emotions.

Any dysfunction of the human body is reflected in its psychological state. That is why there is an opinion that the reverse process can completely exclude the possibility of developing any disease.

People with diabetes are prone to mental disorders. Additionally, prescribed sugar-lowering drugs, stressful situations, emotional overstrain and instability, and negative components of the external environment can additionally stimulate mental illness.

This is due to the fact that in a healthy person, hyperglycemia quickly subsides as soon as the stimulus ceases to act. However, this is not the case for diabetics. Therefore, according to the concepts of psychosomatics, people who need care and who have not received maternal affection often suffer from diabetes.

As a rule, this psychosomatic type of people does not want to take the initiative, it is considered passive. From a scientific point of view, this list includes the main causes of diabetes.

Features of the psyche of diabetics

When a patient is diagnosed with diabetes mellitus, he begins to change not only externally, but also internally.

The disease negatively affects the work of every organ, including the brain, which suffers greatly from a lack of glucose.

Type 1 and type 2 diabetes can cause mental disorders. Among them are the main ones:

  1. Binge eating. The patient begins to rapidly seize problems that will become more acute for him. A diabetic, trying to improve his condition, strives to eat as much food as possible, among which there are few healthy foods. Violation of the diet leads to the fact that the patient is emotionally anxious when the feeling of hunger comes.
  2. The patient is constantly in a state of anxiety and fear. Each part of the brain is affected by the psychosomatics of diabetes. The appearance of unreasonable fear, anxiety, a state of oppression becomes the cause of depression of a protracted nature, which is difficult to treat.
  3. More severe cases are characterized by the occurrence of psychoses and schizophrenia, which is a pathological condition that is a complication of diabetes mellitus.

Thus, the process of treatment is accompanied by the emergence of all kinds of deviations of a psychological type, starting with insignificant apathy and completing the list with serious schizophrenia. That is why patients with diabetes need psychotherapy to help identify main reason and then eliminate it in a timely manner.

How does diabetic behavior change?

Scientists increasingly began to think about how diabetes affects the patient's psyche, what mental changes in their behavior are manifested and what causes them.

A significant role here is played by the anxiety of the relatives of such patients who talk about a change in family relations. The severity of the problem depends on the duration of the disease.

Statistics indicate that the risk of developing a disorder in diabetes mellitus depends on the complex of syndromes and can range from 17 to 84%. The syndrome complex is a set of symptoms that describe the meaning of the syndrome. Three types of the syndrome can be distinguished, which can manifest themselves simultaneously or independently. Psychology distinguishes the following syndromes:

  1. Neurotic syndrome in patients. During diabetes, neurotic disorders are often observed, including Bad mood, lack of joy, confusion, unpleasant anxious tic, instability of emotions, and so on. Such diabetics are touchy, sensitive and irritable.
  2. Asthenic syndrome is manifested by excessive excitability, which is characterized by aggressiveness, conflict, anger, dissatisfaction with oneself. If a person had to suffer from this syndrome, he is likely to experience problems with sleep, that is, it is difficult to fall asleep, wake up often, experience drowsiness during the day.
  3. Depressive syndrome often becomes a component of the first two varieties, but in rare cases it also occurs on its own.

Depressive psychological characteristics of patients with diabetes mellitus
expressed by the following symptoms:

  1. there is a feeling of loss, depression and despair;
  2. there is a deterioration in mood, a feeling of hopelessness, meaninglessness;
  3. it becomes harder for a diabetic to think, make decisions;
  4. anxiety;
  5. lack of aspirations of desires, indifference to oneself and others.

In addition, vegetosomatic symptoms of depressive syndrome may become more pronounced:

  • lack of appetite, weight loss,;
  • regular migraines, aggression, sleep disturbances;
  • Women often miss their menstrual cycle.

As a rule, symptoms that signal depression are usually not taken into account by others, as patients talk about complaints that are solely related to the physical condition. For example, about excessive lethargy, fatigue, heaviness in the limbs, and so on.

All possible changes in the psyche of a diabetic are due to a number of factors:

  1. lack of oxygen in the blood, provoked by damage to the cerebral vessels, leads to oxygen starvation of the brain;
  2. hypoglycemia;
  3. damage to brain tissue;
  4. intoxication provoked by damage to the kidneys and liver;
  5. psychological and social nuances

Of course, all patients are different. For the occurrence of mental disorders, the features of the personality prototype, the presence of vascular changes, the severity, and the duration of the disease period are important.

The first symptoms of mental disorders are the right reason to contact a psychotherapist or psychologist. Relatives should be patient, because in this state, a diabetic needs close attention. Lack of communication and deterioration of the psycho-emotional background will only aggravate the condition.

The effect of diabetes on the brain

A number of symptoms indicating the effect of the disease on the brain appear with some delay. The symptoms associated with a high level of glucose in the blood are especially delayed. It is noted that over time, the patient's vessels are damaged, including small vessels that permeate the brain. In addition, hyperglycemia destroys white matter.

This substance is considered an important component of the brain involved in organizing the interaction of nerve fibers. Damage to the fibers leads to changes in thinking, that is, a diabetic can become a victim of vascular dementia or cognitive impairment. Therefore, if a person had a chance to get sick with sugar, he must carefully control his well-being.

Any patient is at risk of getting cognitive vascular disorders, but there are also a number of factors that speed up or slow down the process. With age, the risk of vascular dementia increases significantly, but this applies mainly to patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus, which is better controlled.

It is noteworthy that patients with type 2 diabetes are more prone to all kinds of vascular complications, as they suffer from poor metabolism, high triglycerides, low levels of good cholesterol, and high blood pressure. Excess weight also leaves its mark.

Plasma glucose levels should be carefully monitored to reduce the risk of brain-related complications. It is worth noting that the initial stage of treatment is the intake of various sugar-lowering drugs. If they do not have the desired effect, they are replaced with insulin injections. The main thing is that such experiments do not drag on for a long time.

In addition, diabetes has been shown to inhibit the production of cholesterol, which is essential for the optimal functioning of the brain, which produces its own substance. This fact can adversely affect the functioning of the nervous system, including the receptors responsible for controlling appetite, memory, behavior, pain and motor activity.

Methods of psychological support

Most physicians initially suggest that a patient experiencing endocrine problems may need psychiatric help. For example, a timely course of autogenic training helps a patient with a disease of varying severity.

When the disease has just begun to develop, psychotherapeutic exercises can be used to influence the psychosomatic factor. The personality-reconstructive training is carried out exclusively by a psychiatrist in order to identify potential psychological problems.

The influence of flowers on the human psyche was noticed in ancient times by various shamans, healers and sorcerers. They can cause joy and grief, bring comfort or irritation, having amazing capabilities.

colorful life

Everyone noticed the impact of color when they put on a red jumper, attracting the eyes of others. For Western society, people dressed in black will look gloomy, but the snow-white dress of the bride speaks of a solemn moment and the purity of the event. If you are interested in the psychological impact of color, then you will find answers to many questions in the presented article.

Why is this happening?

Everything that is incomprehensible attracts a person, kindling cognitive interest. The influence of colors on the human psyche is due to the emission of electromagnetic waves by each color. These waves, due to their length, have different effects. They have healing properties, because we not only see color with our eyes, but also feel electromagnetic radiation with our skin. By choosing the "right" colors specifically for themselves, a person can feel healthier and more cheerful.

The psychological impact of color lies in the fact that it is a kind of "emotional food", and, accordingly, in order to function normally, our body needs various shades in different proportions. They can help restore a person's mental balance and even some aspects of physical health. Food, clothing items, make-up, surrounding furniture affect the human condition. Thanks to many studies, we now know a sufficient amount of information about the effect of color on the human psyche. In this regard, you can combine tones and improve mood and overall well-being.

What do red and yellow tell us?

Elements of the surrounding world of red color cause excitement in the psyche and are a kind of compulsion to activity. Thanks to him, the muscles are tensed and movements are accelerated, and this leads to an increase in efficiency.

Being in a room where there is red lighting, people show the highest performance. But over time, as the body adapts to this hue, performance levels drop and problem solving becomes more difficult. This is due to color fatigue.

If you need to overcome difficulties, be more determined and resilient, then we advise you to use red in your life.

To stimulate brain activity, awaken intellectual abilities, increase the level of visual perception, use yellow. Contraindications: neuralgia and overexcitation of the cortex. Well, if you are accompanied by disappointments and disappointments, then yellow is just right.

What are green and blue for?

The color of spring greens ensures the normalization of blood and eye pressure, respiration, pulse, an increase in the sharpness of perception, concentration and intellectual potential. If you want peace, relaxation and rest - feel free to use green, because it will give you what you need. The impact of color plays a huge role in our Everyday life.

Deep Blue colour, constantly affecting the psyche, can lead to high levels of fatigue or even depression in some cases. But if a strong shock has happened to you, then this color can restore strength. It reduces tension in muscle tissue, dulls pain, will weaken the pulse and have a calming effect on spontaneous impulses in an ardent personality.

Influence of purple, blue and brown

Violet color has a contradictory effect on the human condition, as it can both increase stamina and reduce performance, suppress intellectual capabilities, or even lead to depressive states.

To reduce anxiety, lower blood pressure and relieve pain, use things blue color. But do not overdo it, because the long-term influence of this color leads to fatigue and inhibition of some of the functional capabilities of the human body.

Brown tells us about the need for relaxation, bodily comfort. Therefore, if you feel such needs, then think about how to bring this color into your life and get a little distracted from working moments.

Contrast black and white

For lovers white color characterized by a need for freedom, breaking burdensome ties and a desire to start from scratch. If you want to forget something and free yourself from the shackles of memories, surround yourself with white.

The black tone characterizes a person who rebels against his own destiny. This color has important healing properties, as it absorbs other shades and has a rather positive effect on the body.

By determining your color preferences, their persistence or volatility, you will be able to recognize your own emotional and physical reactions, general well-being and mood.

The influence of color on the psyche of children

Children are constantly surrounded by different colors, they learn about the world, and you should be smart about the color scheme of children's rooms, furniture, toys and clothes. There is no doubt that the influence of color on the psyche of a child is one of the most topical issues for young parents. According to Norwegian scientists, young children registered with the internal affairs bodies, or juvenile delinquents opted for black. People who are suicidal also choose this tone.

The influence of colors on the psyche of a person, especially a small one, is based on several principles. Firstly, the daily life of a baby should be filled with a large number of different shades, one thing is important - their competent combination.

Secondly, the walls and ceiling in the children's room should be either white or light, but not dark, as this will affect both the emotional state of the baby and his cognitive abilities.

Thirdly, use the blue color, and it will help save you and your baby from stressful influences, relieve pain.

Fourthly, a stable state of the nervous system will provide you with green shades and white-blue colors. Green color, taken separately, will be able to adjust the pressure and relieve fatigue.

Fifthly, psychologists argue that the influence of color on the psyche is also expressed in the impact on the development of speech. Therefore, association games will become relevant in the period from one to three years (for example, strawberry-red, sun-yellow).

Sixth, if your baby has lethargy, poor appetite, lethargy and mood swings, then the use of red, yellow and orange will help you.

Knowing the intricacies of color exposure, parents and educators will be able to stabilize the mood, if necessary, calm or cheer.

Some color tricks

To feel the influence of colors on the human psyche, you do not need to put on things of only one tone, because a stylish red scarf or bag will already make a difference and increase your life potential. The main thing is to focus. You can "scatter" bright elements in the room, such as pillows or toys, and then the energy of color will fill the room.

In the living room or bedroom, you can use light bulbs or lamps of different colors. Colorful stickers for window glasses have a similar effect, because not every person can afford multi-colored stained-glass windows.

Scientists advise changing the color of the bedroom, if you have a bad dream, to calm shades (pale purple, pink, light blue).

Yellow sunflowers and an orange dress will perfectly cheer up and work. A wonderful option for filling everyday life with bright colors is decorative crystals and jewelry from precious (or not so) pebbles.

Having received such information at your disposal, knowing your needs, you can make bouquets that will emit exactly the colors that are needed for you. To feel light after eating, add more colored foods, because they are easier to digest.

Also, with the help of color, you can send signals to people around you, so use cosmetics (varnishes, shadows, lipsticks) wisely. At home, you can use lavender or geranium aromatic oils, because they emit blue and red, respectively.

Conclusion

The above information is quite useful, because the influence of color on the psyche is huge. And if your mood has deteriorated or you feel unwell, you can easily adjust it with the help of colors, bright and saturated or pale and calm.

“Mens sana in corpore sano” (a healthy mind in a healthy body) is an ancient saying. But greatest master of the paradox, Bernard Shaw argues the opposite: “A healthy mind in a healthy body” is a meaningless saying. A healthy body is the product of a healthy mind." These statements are opposite, but not contradictory. They are both true, they reflect two sides of the same thing - the unity of the body and spirit.

The first of these statements seems more obvious. The influence of the body on the psyche is well known to all. Probably everyone, even from their own personal experience, knows how difficult it is to keep a “cheerful spirit” when your teeth hurt. Long-term chronic diseases of the internal organs can lead to distinct changes in character (it is not for nothing that they say about the "bilious character").

But what Bernard Shaw writes is also true: "A healthy body is the product of a healthy mind." And this has been seen for centuries. Since the Middle Ages, the poetic "Salerno Health Regulations" have been preserved, which then withstood a lot of printed editions and translated into a number of languages. His introductory verses read: “The Salerno school seeks with these lines to communicate health to the English king and indicate the need to keep the head free from care, and the heart from contrition; do not drink much wine, eat lightly, get up early, do not sit long after eating, use only three doctors: the first doctor - rest, the second doctor - fun and the third doctor - diet. So, not to be distressed and to be cheerful is one of the main recommendations for maintaining health...

In the 19th century, the discovery of microbes as the cause of contagious diseases and the development of pathological anatomy for a time reduced the respect of physicians for such advice.

And yet doctors noticed that sometimes the first signs of the disease refer to the time of serious life failures and difficult experiences; that in a patient who has lost faith in recovery and interest in life, the course of the disease often takes on a catastrophic character; that to please, to encourage the patient, to give him confidence in recovery is sometimes more useful than to give him medicine. Voltaire said that "the hope of getting well is half of getting well."

Excellent Russian clinician early XIX century M.Ya. Mudrov said: “In case of a general illness, soldiers should not allow the sick to “fear”, because an unpleasant feeling disposes the body to accept infection.”

In O. Tenri's story "The Last Leaf", a girl with pneumonia and having lost the will to live decided that she would die when the last leaf fell from the ivy outside the window. The wind rips off leaf after leaf, and the girl's condition gets worse and worse. “I'm tired of waiting. I'm tired of thinking,” she says. “When my patient begins to count the carriages in his funeral procession, I discount fifty percent of healing power medicines,” says the doctor treating her. The sick girl is saved by an artist who painted a leaf on the wall in front of her window that the gusts of autumn wind could not pluck.

Scientists specifically studied the influence of the psyche on the internal organs. It turned out that in a state of hypnosis it is possible to change the amount and chemical composition of gastric juice, suggesting to a person that he is eating broth, bread or milk. An X-ray study of the stomach showed how, under the influence of suggestion, a pronounced picture of spastic phenomena of the stomach and intestines, a picture of atony and prolapse of the stomach, arises. It was possible to observe how the lowered stomach, under the influence of suggestion, returns to its normal place. When the subject was told that he was eating tasteless, disgusting food, the stomach on the X-ray screen took the form of a flaccid bag without any peristaltic movements. When the idea of ​​tasty, favorite food was instilled, the stomach contracted sharply and peristalted vigorously. If a person was told that he had drunk a lot of water (at the same time he was given an empty glass), then this led to an increase in the amount of urine excreted and such changes in the composition of the blood, which usually occur after heavy drinking.

The influence of emotions on the state of blood vessels and blood pressure is widely known. With fear, blood pressure rises, and under the influence of grief and mental depression, the increase in pressure can become persistent. Conversely, favorable effects on the psyche contribute to lowering blood pressure.

A major therapist-clinician R.A. Luria observed a number of cases of jaundice that arose under the influence of mental trauma. He explains the occurrence of jaundice in such cases by the fact that the innervation of the sphincters (muscle sphincter) that regulate bile secretion is disturbed.

R.A. Luria distinguishes between external and internal pictures of the disease. The external picture of the disease is everything that the doctor manages to obtain with the methods of research available to him, everything that can be described and recorded in one way or another. The internal picture of the disease is everything that the patient experiences and experiences, the whole mass of his sensations, his general well-being, his ideas about his illness and its causes - all inner world sick.

In the general course of the disease, its internal picture occupies a very large, sometimes dominant place. Sometimes it is much easier to eliminate a real microbe in the patient's body than to evict an imaginary microbe from his psyche. In such cases, the impact on the psyche of the patient, psychotherapy, may be the most important method of treatment.

There are also cases when only psychotherapy in a state of hypnosis frees the patient from the “suggested” illness and returns him to work. Sometimes the cause of the disease (or its exacerbation) may be a word carelessly spoken by someone and misunderstood by a person.

Any disease is a complex process that captures many body systems. The activity of various organs in the fight against the disease is coordinated by the nervous system. Its influence on the course of the disease is confirmed by many observations and studies.

HELL. Speransky believed that the disease occurs at the meeting point of the disease-causing beginning with the nerve ending sensitive to this beginning. The place of influence of the poison predetermines the deployment, and sometimes the fate of the process. Research carried out in the laboratory of A.D. Speransky, confirm his assumptions. It turned out, for example, that the lethal dose of streptococcus is different depending on which vein of the rabbit the culture of this microbe is injected into: the poison affects different nerve endings differently.

Experiments have shown that if, before an animal is infected with tuberculosis, bismuth is applied to the nerve endings located in the chest cavity, then the tuberculous process proceeds much more benignly. With the help of similar methods, A.D. Speransky managed to improve the condition of patients with certain diseases: the infection continued to nest in their body, but the altered nervous system of the patient became insensitive to it.

In the study of M.K. Petrova in dogs with prolonged overstrain of the nervous system, various degenerative diseases (eczema, chronic, ulcers, furunculosis) often occurred, and the appearance of these diseases was always preceded by nervous breakdowns. In the absence of such overvoltage, dystrophic processes occurred in dogs much less frequently. In some dogs, nervous strain has led to benign and malignant tumors.

The experiments of A.I. Valley. The dog was injected with morphine under the skin, always accompanied by a gurgle of water. After repeated repetition of this procedure, a conditioned reflex formed in the dog: the introduction of water (instead of morphine), accompanied by gurgling, caused in her a picture of morphine poisoning. Then they began to repeat the introduction of water frequently, accompanied by gurgling and ringing. In this case, the poisoning picture did not occur: the bell became a differentiating stimulus, it inhibited the poisoning reaction (which occurred in the absence of the bell). A dog thus prepared was once injected with morphine, accompanied by gurgling and ringing. The result was amazing: there was no poisoning! Acting through nervous system the inhibition of symptoms of poisoning (bell) turned out to be stronger than the effect of a strong poison - morphine.

Using a similar method (method of conditioned reflexes), it was possible to obtain conditioned reflex leukocytosis, a very important mechanism for fighting infection.

The highest function of the nervous system - mental activity - also strongly influences the course of disease processes. This influence can be both positive and negative.

If, in a state of hypnosis, you touch the skin and suggest that you have touched a red-hot iron, then after a while a blister appears in this place, as with a burn. The body reacts as if the burn really took place.

Belief in one remedy or another often greatly improves the effect of that remedy. This, in particular, explains the cases of “miraculous” healings on the relics of saints, cases of healings by healers, and by grandmothers “talking” diseases.

In the officers of a victorious army, wounds heal faster than in an army that is in defeat. This is, of course, not only best care but also the best morale of the wounded.

The impact on the psyche is a powerful factor. However, in the wrong hands, it can also have a harmful effect. As already mentioned, a poorly spoken word by a doctor can instill unnecessary anxiety in the patient; he may even show signs of a suspected illness. Suggested illnesses are not uncommon. There are even cases of suggested pregnancy, where all the external signs of pregnancy were present and labor pains began in the ninth month.

The influence of the psyche leaves its mark on the course of a disease in a person. The doctor cannot be limited to the framework of biology. Psychological and social factors of the disease should always be in the field of his attention.

Mental processes affect the work of internal organs and the course of disease processes in them. And vice versa - painful processes in various organs affect the psyche. One of the strongest factors of this influence is the feeling of pain. Pain signals occupy a special place among the signals that the brain receives from various organs and uses to control. They can come from almost any part of the body and carry little information about the physical properties of the stimulus. And wherever they come from, they are always unpleasant.

Why are they? Does the body benefit from the fact that there is a feeling of pain? At first glance, even the question itself seems strange. In fact, pain gives us so much suffering. It may seem that a person would become happier if he lost the ability to feel pain ...

If you want to look for such "lucky ones", you will find them in neurological clinics. In these people, syringomyelia disease has destroyed the nerve pathways in the spinal cord that carry pain signals to the brain. The patient loses pain sensitivity in a certain part of the body, while tactile sensitivity - the ability to feel touch - is preserved. One of the symptoms of syringomyelia is scars from burns, the occurrence of which did not cause a feeling of pain and therefore was not noticed by the patient in a timely manner. In the burn department of the surgical clinic, a large number of patients who received burns while intoxicated, when sensitivity to pain is reduced, is striking.

Thus, the ability to feel pain is useful. It protects the body, forces it to take protective measures as soon as the damaging effect begins.

Pain is a signal of a threat to the well-being of the body. It is the most valuable acquisition of living organisms in the process of evolution. If any kind of animal were deprived of the ability to perceive pain, then it would be doomed to extinction.

Pain is a very unpleasant feeling. And it's useful. After all, pain requires an immediate reaction of the body. It is no coincidence that people chose the alarming and drowning out other sounds of the howl of a siren, and not some pleasant, melodic sound, as a fire danger signal.

But pain is useful only for the time being. It becomes harmful when, having already fulfilled the role of a danger signal, it continues to “sound” in the body, disorganizing its work. The disorganizing effect of prolonged pain is very great. It can cause palpitations, narrowing of blood vessels, dysfunction of the nervous system, digestion, and respiration. With pain, the content of various substances in the blood can change, blood clotting increases, pain can cause anuria - urinary retention.

Protracted pain negatively affects the human psyche. Everyone knows how difficult it is to focus on anything during pain. Pain can cause feelings of fear. In some cases (for example, with pain in the heart caused by a spasm of blood vessels supplying blood to the heart muscle), fear and anxiety can become extremely strong. Very severe pain can cause pain shock - a sharp decrease in blood pressure, loss of consciousness. It can even lead to death.

This means that one must be able to manage pain, to be able to relieve it when it does not serve as an alarm signal useful for the body. Without the ability to manage pain, modern surgery would be impossible. To eliminate a painful focus (for example, a tumor), the surgeon has to violate the integrity of the living tissue. And in the entire history of living beings, preceding the appearance of civilized man, damage to living tissue was a signal of danger. Therefore, in the process of evolution, a pain signal was developed in response to such damage. In the conditions of modern surgery, the operating wound does not pose a danger, and the pain from it is only harmful to the body.

The study of pain has its history, its heroes.

One of the pioneers in the study of pain in the last century was the English neurologist Head. The experiments needed to study pain cannot be painless, so Head decided to do them on himself. So, at his request, one of his colleagues performed an operation on him - he cut the branch of the radial nerve at the base of the thumb. This operation allowed Head to study how sensation in the finger is restored as the damaged nerve regenerates (repairs). The study took five years. As a result, Head found that sensitivity is restored in two stages - first pain, then tactile. The fibers that conduct the feeling of pain recover faster than the fibers of tactile sensitivity.

The idea that pain sensitivity is a special kind of sensitivity was also confirmed in the observations of other scientists. When examining the skin under a microscope, several types of receptors were found - formations at the ends of nerve fibers that perceive various stimuli. Along with the receptors for cold, heat, touch, pressure, free nerve endings were also found that perceive stimuli that cause pain.

Pain signals go to the brain along their own pathways, separate from those of tactile sensitivity. In order for a person to feel pain, nerve impulses traveling through the conductors of pain sensitivity must come to the corresponding centers of the brain. If these pathways are disrupted (as is the case with syringomyelia), pain does not occur, although irritated pain receptors send appropriate impulses.

Pain plays an important role in the diagnosis of many diseases. It is not for nothing that the first question of a doctor is often the question: “Where does it hurt you?” Pain signals can go to the brain not only from the skin, but also from the internal organs, which have their own receptors (they are called interoreceptors). Excitation of interoreceptors occurs under the influence of changes in the state of internal organs or the composition of the internal environment of the body. Impulses from the internal organs enter the same parts of the spinal cord, which receive impulses from certain areas of the skin. Therefore, in diseases of the internal organs, pain can be localized in certain areas of the body surface. The fact that certain internal organs correspond (in this respect) to certain zones of the skin surface has great importance for diagnostics. It is known, after all, that heart patients often go to the doctor complaining of pain in the left shoulder.

We have already said that if the paths of pain sensitivity are disturbed somewhere and do not pass impulses to the brain, then damaging effects on the corresponding part of the body will not cause pain. But it happens otherwise. The conductor of pain may be irritated not at its origin, but in some other area. From the place of irritation, impulses go to the nerve centers. And the arrival of impulses in these centers is perceived as pain in the organ where the corresponding (going to this center) nerve fibers begin. And a person localizes pain not where the focus of irritation is really located, but where the receptors are located, on the way from which irritation arose.

A typical example of this phenomenon is the so-called phantom pains (from the French fantome - a ghost), i.e. pain in the missing organ. For example, after amputation of a leg, a scar in the stump begins to irritate the circumcised nerve, the fibers of which carried sensitivity from the amputated organ. The signals coming to the brain are perceived as pain in the foot, which has been amputated.

Pain signals that have come to the central nervous system are not perceived in isolation, but in interaction with signals from other types of sensitivity. Exacerbation of pain sensations after operations associated with transection of nerve trunks, in a period when tactile sensitivity has not yet recovered, L.A. Orbeli explained precisely by the fact that normally tactile sensitivity weakens pain.

The interaction of pain sensitivity with tactile sensitivity is also manifested in the ability to accurately localize the site of pain irritation. Orbeli very ingeniously investigated this in experiments on a cat. If a healthy cat is put on a tail clamp, then it bends its head and tail so that the clamp can be reached with its teeth and drops it. Same experience L.A. Orbeli and M.A. Pankratov was carried out on a cat in which the posterior columns of the spinal cord, through which signals of tactile sensitivity are transmitted to the brain, were cut, while the lateral columns, along which signals of pain sensitivity are transmitted, were preserved. If such a cat is put on a clamp on its tail or hind paw, then its reaction to pain manifests itself more violently than before the operation - the cat scratches, squeals. But her attempts to remove the clamp with her teeth remain ineffectual: the cat, deprived of tactile sensitivity, cannot localize the site of pain irritation.

Localization of pain stimulation is possible only if tactile receptors are excited simultaneously with pain receptors. Pain arising from irritation of internal organs without concomitant tactile irritation is often perceived as diffuse, not strictly localized.

The interaction of pain sensitivity with other types of sensitivity is also clearly manifested in causalgia - excruciating pains of a burning nature that sometimes occur after nerve damage. Prolonged irritation of the damaged nerve leads to the fact that a persistent focus of excitation appears in the nervous system, which is perceived as pain. Light, sound, smell, taste irritation sharply increase the pain. These irritations seem to be summed up with persistent pain irritation.

We have already said that pain can affect various processes in the body, including the mental state of a person. But mental processes can also affect the feeling of pain. In a state of fear, anxiety, the sensation of pain can occur under the influence of stimuli that usually do not cause pain. Engaging in something can reduce or even temporarily eliminate the feeling of pain. When falling asleep, weak signals from the internal organs can reach consciousness. Therefore, sometimes in the initial stage of the disease of any organ, the first symptom that the patient notices is a dream about the disease of this organ.

In a state of hypnosis, a person can be suggested the absence of pain, while pain stimuli (injections, burns) are applied to the skin. A person who has been instilled with analgesia (painlessness) of a certain area of ​​the skin during hypnosis ceases to feel pain. This can be judged by the fact that he does not react in any way to the injection (when other areas of the skin are injected, he withdraws his hand). However, at the moment of pain irritation of the "insensitive" area of ​​the skin, the biocurrents of the brain clearly change. This means that signals from the receptors of this area continue to flow to the brain.

The change in the biocurrents of the brain in the absence of a subjective sensation of pain can be explained on the basis of the modern concept of signal paths from receptors to the cerebral cortex. As mentioned in the essay On the Brain, signals from different receptors are sent to different areas of the cerebral cortex: from visual receptors to the occipital lobes, from auditory receptors to the temporal lobes, from skin receptors to the parietal lobes. The receipt of signals in these areas of the cortex causes the corresponding sensation. But, in addition, branches depart from each specific path to the reticular, or reticular, formation - an accumulation of nerve cells located in the medulla oblongata and midbrain. From the reticular formation, however, signals arrive in all areas of the cortex (from whatever receptors - visual, auditory or skin - these signals begin their journey). The arrival of signals to the cerebral cortex along this non-specific pathway causes a change in the biocurrents of the brain - depression of the alpha rhythm.

Thus, if the sensory pathway is blocked below (i.e., closer to the receptors) than the point of branching to the reticular formation, then irritation of the receptors will not cause either sensation or depression of the alpha rhythm. If the central part of the specific pathway is blocked, above the branch to the reticular formation, then there is no sensation, but the depression of the alpha rhythm sets in (since the non-specific pathway is preserved). Experiments with pain stimulation in a state of hypnosis show that during hypnotic suggestion of painlessness, the central section of a specific pathway is blocked.

Modern medicine has a large arsenal of effective means of dealing with pain. Reliable methods of local anesthesia and general anesthesia have been developed. Anesthesiology has developed so much that it has separated from surgery into an independent specialty. But in order to successfully use painkillers (stopping or reducing pain sensations) and painkillers (preventing pain sensations), it is necessary to know the nature of pain well: to know what it comes from in each case when it is our enemy, and when it is a friend.

Pain causes not only "internal" changes in the body - heartbeat, narrowing of blood vessels, etc., it also causes "external" changes - in movements, in facial expressions, in the timbre of the voice, in crying. These outward expressions of pain are present in both man and animals. And they perform an important role - they inform other individuals of this species that one of them is in danger, that he needs help, that he himself must take measures against the impending danger.

External expressions of pain are addressed to others, they contain hope for help from impending danger. And in hope - and a drop of relief. The pain is less excruciating "if there are friends who are ready to help. This is what the verses with which I want to end the essay are about:

When a person is in pain And he will scream in pain and someone will hear him And he will clench his hand into a fist, It is easier then for a person, It is easier to deal with pain, It is easier - because someone is nearby Life is arranged like this ...

Feigenberg I.M. BRAIN PSYCHE HEALTH ACADEMY OF SCIENCES USSR
Series "Problems of modern science and scientific and technological progress".
- M.: "NAUKA", 1972

The influence of horror films on the psyche of adolescents

scientific work

1.2 The influence of horror films on the human psyche

In order to determine the impact that watching horror films has on a person, it is necessary to consider different views on this problem. Scientists' opinions are divided into two expected types: negative and positive. As an example of the positive impact of horror films, the following article is offered: “... high-quality horror films are good training for human nerves. The leader of the study, Professor David Rudd, argues that when watching horror movies, we get a kind of pleasure, as our brains adequately assess the reality of the threat. Realizing that in reality there is no danger, the viewer experiences an exciting sensation of adrenaline rush. Professor Rudd also argues that repeatedly repeating a similar fear causes a certain "habit" in the brain, and it stops responding to it as a threat. According to the Texas scientist, this fact can provide indispensable help in the treatment of phobias and other mental disorders.

But there are other facts confirming the negative impact of watching horror films on a physiological level. For example, consider the following article: “Biochemists at the University of Washington found that watching violent action movies and horror films triggers the body's self-destruct program. According to scientists, such pictures have a detrimental effect not only on the psyche, but also on human physiology. During the experiment, a group of volunteers were offered to watch several films - a melodrama, a documentary and a violent action movie. After each of the screenings, blood samples were taken from the participants. According to its results, melodrama and documentary did not affect the composition of the blood in any way, while the militant made the blood of the subjects “boil”. The subjects had an increased production of antibodies. These cells are usually produced in response to a virus or infection entering the body. However, sometimes antibodies can attack healthy cells in the body, further damaging and destroying normal tissues.

Scientists explain this destructive behavior body by the fact that strong fear and internal stress of a person when watching a film saturated with cruelty are a signal of danger for the body. But since a person does not try to stop this stress and react in accordance with the natural program of self-preservation, the body believes that the stressor is inside. Antibodies are sent to search for the internal enemy, which begin to destroy healthy cells of the body.

Consider also the article from " Russian newspaper”, in which the director of the State Scientific Center for Social and Forensic Psychiatry named after V.P. Serbsky tells us about the true influence of horror films: “...Unfortunately, not only films, but also life around is such that a child sees too many horrors, not only on TV. Growing up, he turns from a victim of violence into a criminal. After all, he adopted such a norm of behavior from his stepfather, mother or mentors at school.

Films, of course, play not the first, but an important role here. One of the most serious crimes that passed our examination was related to vampire films, which, in my opinion, do the most harm. 14-year-old boys committed the murder of their classmate: they lured her into the forest, forced her to dig her own grave, cut her throat and drank warm blood. It's all taken from the movie. And the examination showed that they were all mentally healthy, sane. Moreover, one of them - the leader - was more fond of films about vampires than the others, and the rest - the followers - were forced to drink blood. They choked, but they couldn't help but do it. After all, the law of the pack is the specificity of adolescence.

Based on the foregoing, we can conclude that horror films affect a person at a physiological and psychological level, while it is both negative and positive. Namely, because of watching movies, uncontrollable reactions occur that affect the mental state of a person, his behavior, his actions. In addition, experiencing emotions of fear, horror, anxiety together with the characters of the film, he has the opportunity to overcome them, "rise" above them, "subdue" them and cope with his fear. In other words, the situation of watching a movie creates a comfortable environment for the viewer: the events on the screen cannot cause real harm, create a real threat, no matter how frightening they may be. The viewer is in a situation of complete safety.

Comfortable conditions when watching a movie, absolute protection from danger - the tip of the iceberg. In reality, our body reacts to an unrealistic danger as realistically as possible, adversely affecting our health. But still, over time, there is an “addiction” to cruelty and violence. There is also no empathy for the suffering of another being, and it becomes quite easy to overstep the ban on aggressive behavior.

In this regard, the term "aggression" should be introduced.

Aggression is a manifestation of aggressiveness in destructive actions, the purpose of which is to harm a particular person.

Aggressiveness is a personality trait that consists in the willingness and preference to use violent means to achieve one's goals.

Aggressive behavior is most often understood as motivated external actions that violate the norms and rules of coexistence, causing harm, pain and suffering to people. However, when dealing with aggressive behavior, it is necessary to remember other aspects of the manifestation of aggression. The emotional component of an aggressive state is feelings, and above all anger.

The most common types of aggression are:

physical - manifested in specific physical actions directed against a person, or damaging objects (a person breaks, throws objects, etc.)

verbal - expressed in verbal form (a person screams, threatens, insults others)

indirect - indirect aggression (a person gossips, sneaks, provokes, etc.).

But aggression is not always accompanied by anger, and not all anger leads to aggression. Emotional experiences of hostility, anger, revenge also often accompany aggressive actions, but they do not always lead to aggression.

Thus, the need for security in people from the so-called “group of horror movie fans” manifests itself in an increased interest and desire to experience their frightening moments in a safe enough environment, which gives them the opportunity to cope” with the threat, at least in imagination, and more successfully adapt to such imaginary or real threatening situation. These aspirations remain, as a rule, unconscious; only interest in films of this genre is realized.

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