Physiological and Psychological Aspects of Perceptual Functioning - Research Paper Example

Anosmia Outline I. Introduction Olfactory system allows people to become more aware of our environment as well as helps in determining whether foods consumed are palatable or not. This system enable human beings to detect and avoid dangerous circumstances such as natural gas leaks that might result in harm coming to the body either through fire of even suffocation Thesis Statement: This paper seeks make a study of the physical and psychological characteristics of the olfactory disorder anosmia and how these affect those individual that have been developed it II. Physiological Anosmia is normally caused by the death of the olfactory receptor neurons Involves either a temporary or permanent loss of smell or this is at times difficult to determine The physiological causes of anosmia have at times come to be associated with genetics Some sprays tend to cause vasoconstriction in the microcirculation of the olfactory system III. Psychological Development of anosmia is often accompanied by varied psychological effects and these depend on the individuals that have been affected At times anosmia occurs in individuals from an early age. However, children, after noticing that others have a sense of smell choose to remain silent about their problem The fear of embarrassment or being out of place motivates both children and adults to keep their loss of a sense of smell to themselves An individual suffering from anosmia is always plagued by anxiety Anxiety leads to stress and depression IV. Case example Study of an John: A patient with anosmia Physical effects Psychological effects Treatment V. Conclusion Anosmia is a serious condition that is often ignored There are psychological consequences such as individuals having low self-esteem More research on anosmia has to be conducted Introduction Olfactory system is one of the most important parts of the human body because it allows us to become more aware of our environment as well as helps in determining whether the foods that are to be consumed are palatable or not. Through this system that human beings are able to detect and avoid dangerous circumstances such as natural gas leaks that might result in harm coming to the body either through fire of even suffocation. It is also essential in the interaction between mothers and infants because the latter cannot communicate directly with their mothers due to a lack of speech. This paper seeks make a study of the physical and psychological characteristics of the olfactory disorder anosmia and how these affect those individual that have been developed it. Physiological Anosmia is normally caused by the death of the olfactory receptor neurons which leads to a situation where the individual involved loses his sense of smell (Gillyatt, 1997). This is normally a situation that is not recognised immediately and might take a while before the individual becomes aware of it. It has been found that anosmia involves either a temporary or permanent loss of smell and this is at times difficult to determine. Under normal circumstances, a anosmia occurs in a situation where an individual suffers from a broken nose and because the loss is only temporary, it comes to an end as soon as the nose heals. However, more permanent losses occur when olfactory receptor neurons die, as described above, and this creates a situation where an individual does not have a sense of smell indefinitely. This is normally not recognised by most individuals and for many of them, life goes on as usual. The physiological causes of anosmia have at times come to be associated with genetics because in a family where an individual is found to have a disorder, one will also find that a significant number of members of the same family suffer from the disorder as well (Vowles, Bleach & Rowe-Jones, 1997). Moreover, other than genetic factors, there are certain types of nasal spray that might bring about the death of receptor neurons and eventually lead to a permanent loss of smell. These are sprays tend to cause vasoconstriction in the microcirculation of the olfactory system and if used over a long period results in a loss of a sense of smell. In some cases where anosmia occurs naturally, it might be as a result of the development of a degenerative brain disease that might become more prominent at a later time in the life of an individual. This is especially the case where an individual might be developing Parkinson’s or Alzheimer’s disease. Psychological The development of anosmia is often accompanied by varied psychological effects and these depend on the individuals that have been affected. There are times when anosmia occurs in individuals from an early age and this tends not to be noticed because both the child and all individuals around them assume that their sense of smell is fine (Toller, 1999). For most children affected, there is a belief that their condition is quite normal and since they assume that all others are like them, it does not become a big issue until such a time as they are older. There are also certain circumstances where children, after noticing that others have a sense of smell while they do not, choose to remain silent about their problem and this creates a situation where their disorder is not recognised until much later. Thus, children affected by anosmia might pretend to sense different smells but only do so in imitation of others and because of this, their parents do not take notice of their disorder. The fear of embarrassment or being out of place tends to be one of the biggest motivators among both children and adults to keep their loss of a sense of smell to themselves and this is detrimental for them because they are not able to focus properly in their day to day lives (Vowles , Bleach & Rowe-Jones, 1997). They are always worried that a situation might occur where they need their sense of smell badly to keep from being physically harmed, especially in a condition where they are not able to smell a natural gas leak. Under these circumstances, the individual suffering from anosmia is left in a terrible state where he is always plagued by anxiety, either fearing that he might be in danger without knowing it or he might be rejected or discriminated against as a result of not having a sense of smell. This anxiety normally further leads to stress and depression and this might lead to an individual no longer being able to enjoy life as he used to. Case example A study that was conducted on John, a young man of 20 who has anosmia showed that for the most part, he tend to feel isolated or cut off from the rest of the world. When he discovered his condition, he end up feeling socially vulnerable because of his fear of victimisation that he expected if others in his society find out that he did not possess a sense of smell. This vulnerability is extremely difficult for John because he come to believe that his lack of smell might lead to his being treated differently. Moreover, there were instances where John, because of his condition, would end up feeling left out because he could not detect the pleasurable smells that came from eating good food and these resulted in his loss of appetite which eventually led to weight loss (Tafalla, 2013). This did not usually go on for too long and there were also instances where John would end up eating too much in a bid to ensure that he satisfied his need for taste and this created a situation where he would have difficulty in controlling his weight gain. It was his doctor who advised him that gaining too much weight might lead to a situation where he became obese. The doctor warned that such conditions were extremely difficult for individuals with anosmia because they might lead to their developing serious medical problems that might be harmful to their health. Furthermore, an issue that arose for John as a result of anosmia was his safety because there were situations where his life might have depended on his sense of smell, which he did not have. This was especially the case where there might be a risk to his life because he could not smell fire and this meant that he had to make adjustments in his physical environment so that he could be able to avert any crises that might be related to such places as his home catching fire. The recognition that he was in constant danger and the anxiety related to it led to John seeking medical and psychological help so that he could not only get the treatment necessary, mostly through acupuncture, not only to improve his situation, but also be able to cope with his condition without necessarily reducing his quality of life (Michael, 2003). Conclusion Anosmia is a serious condition that is often ignored by many individuals since more attention is given to the senses of hearing and sight. Thus, very little research has been conducted on this disorder and it has led to there not being enough proper studies concerning how it can be cured. The discussion above has shown that anosmia is normally caused by the death of the olfactory receptor neurons which leads to the individuals affected losing their sense of smell. Furthermore, there are psychological consequences for this disorder such as individuals having low self-esteem or constantly suffering from anxiety or depression. Therefore, more research concerning anosmia has to be conducted so that effective cures for this condition can be developed while at the same time ensuring that those affected by it are able to get the necessary psychological help so that they can live their lives as normally as possible. References Gillyatt, P. (1997). Loss of smell: when the nose doesnt know. Harvard Health Letter, 22, 6-8. Michael, W. (2003). Anosmia treated with acupuncture. Acupuncture in Medicine, 21(4), 153. Tafalla, M. (2013). A world without the olfactory dimension. Anatomical Record, 296(9): 1287–96. Toller, V. (1999). Assessing the impact of anosmia: review of a questionnaires findings. Chemical Senses, 24(6), 705-712. Vowles, R.H., Bleach, N.R., & Rowe-Jones, J.M. (1997). Congenital anosmia. International Journal of Pediatric Otorhinolaryngology, 41(2), 207–214. Read More