Psychoneuroimmunology to Control the Epidemic of Leukaemia - Research Paper Example

Psychoneuroimmuniology Psychoneuroimmuniology Introduction Psychoneuroimmuniology (PNI) refers to a field of study that focuses on the manner in which the body and mind interacts. Leukaemia refers to a disease that occurs due to over production of immature leucocytes thereby making difficult to produce normal blood cells. Coupled with psychological functions, body systems such as the nervous and immune systems are detrimental aspects of health. The brain serves as the controlling organ for all processes within the body. Secretion of hormones and operations of the nervous system are the two main ways of triggering the immune system. The immune system works hand-in-hand with the brain to control temperature in the body and sleep. Coordination between the nervous and the immune system facilitates communication by initiating the release of certain hormones. The nervous system regulates the release of neurotransmitters thus enhancing the body’s ability to sense danger and provides the necessary response. Scope of the Problem A common issue in PNI is stress, which refers to the increase in undesirable tension that inhibits proper body functioning. It is a known fact that anxiety, depression and issues related to stress have an impact of the immune system of an individual. To put the matter into perspective, health defects for instance arthritis and heart disease are mainly attributable to stress. According to Upton (2013), in the occurrence of stress, the hypothalamus produces hormones that the immune system works on to create energy necessary for quick response. It is important to point out that foods that enhance inflammation contain starch and fats contents. Biologically, starch influences the levels of insulin and glucose in the blood. A high level of insulin does not only increase stress but it also results in depression. Insights from the concept perceive depressed people to be more prone to osteoporosis and myocardial infarction. Troubled association between the immune and the nervous system delays the healing process. Importance of PNI The relevance of PNI stems from the ability to exercise control on stress thereby strengthening the body and mind of a person. As per research, PNI is a promising field that may revolutionize the functioning of the immune system by connecting the mind and the body. Improving the defence mechanism reduces illnesses thereby making health to be stable. Procedures of biofeedback make it possible to treat cases of anxiety and migraine among patients (Maté, 2011). This is because sensors involved in the procedures enable individuals to exercise the relaxation of muscles and the rate of heartbeat. PNI is also useful concerning healing approaches such as psychotherapy. Patients suffering from cancer can benefit from counselling while those with stress can engage in relaxation therapies as a mode of treatment (Upton, 2013). PNI facilitates body growth by controlling inflammatory activities, which weakens the ability of the body to fight diseases. Value to Nursing PNI offers nurses a unique opportunity of generating solutions that will be sustainable to challenges that impair health. Using the initiative, nurses get to learn the impact that stress has on patients. The nurses also get to understand the association between negative emotions, psychological condition and diseases. This is essential in determining the approach to take when dealing with clinical diseases (Maville & Huerta, 2012). Nurses take on a critical role in upgrading both the physical and the mental condition of patients. Depending on the condition, nurses should use skills learnt to give various options of dealing with the defect. To achieve this, the nurses need to match a case of health defect with the appropriate strategies including relaxation because a mismatch may increase stress levels (Morrison-Valfre, 2013). In the pursuit of excellence, nurses require adequate knowledge in the functioning of the mind and the body systems so as to prevent further risks that may interfere with the immune system of a patient. Value to Health PNI provides a means of mitigating against a variety of diseases especially due to stress control. To begin with, the efforts that have successfully lowering the levels of stress have aided the control of chronic illnesses. Cancer is an example of a fatal health defect that PNI has been able to control through chemotherapy sessions that lower stress levels. Other than radiation therapy, imagery has been effective in cancer treatment (Achterberg, 2013). PNI promotes the immune system thereby reducing the vulnerability of patients to disease. In addition, the use of PNI hastens the healing of individuals through the effective coordination of the body and mind processes. If the immune functioning alters neural system, the body will be in a state of sickness (Maté, 2011). The use of PNI in clinical practice is instrumental in generating energy necessary to fight disease through changes in behaviour. Exploiting the immune and nervous systems offers a holistic approach to health improvement. Need for the Study The study examines the influence of PNI on the health outcome of patients. To achieve the mentioned objective, PNI establishes the relationship between the immune body mechanism and the psychology of an individual. It goes without saying that responses that are inflammatory in nature raise the chances of stress, which in turn slows down the functioning of immune mechanism (Irwin & Vedhara, 2007). Shifting the focus to application, the understanding of the coordination between the body systems determines the measures that leukaemia patients can take to promote health. In the event that the immune system is vulnerable, the patients may die. Nurses will engage in stress management practice in the provision of health care. The intervention by nurses will aid in improving the response of the immunity system and control leukaemia from spreading further. Background PNI is the centre of traditional and modern ways of improving health care. Various factors make up PNI namely the mind (Psycho), neurology aspects (Neuro) and lastly, the immune mechanism (Immunology). The concept related to PNI is of the perspective that the mental condition of a patient has an influence on disease and the healing capability (Morrison-Valfre, 2013). Being significant systems of the body, a good relationship between the three components that make up PNI guarantees good health by providing effective response against diseases. Moreover, PNI encompasses relaxation strategies to create a healthy environment, physically and psychologically (Smith & Liehr, 2014). In the past, science dictated that body systems did not have any association with the immune system. On the same matter, the nervous system had or relationship with the immune mechanism. Findings by Robert Ader (2007) changed the principles behind scientific knowledge. Ader (2007) conducted a research that involved providing food to dogs by ringing a bell before providing food. The experiment primarily focused on conditioned and unconditioned stimuli, which is biological in nature. Ader (2007) noticed a close relationship between emotion and body behaviour that had an effect of the functioning of the immune system (Ganz, 2007). Most important was the discovery that individuals could condition the response of the immune system through behaviour patterns. Communication within the body determines the means through which the immune mechanism interacts with the nervous system and an individual’s psychology resulting into a response (Morrison-Valfre, 2013). Nonetheless, pressure either physically or mentally creates a negative effect thereby reducing the ability of the body to fight diseases. Distinguishing between Research, Theory and Opinion As per research, incidences of depression, loneliness have an influence on the health of an individual. Notably, psychology interferes with biological functions precisely the immune and nervous systems. Essentially, research places significance on personality factors concerning immunity. Other studies that used animals as the specimen to determine the impact of body change on health indicated that stress was a major contributor of infection (Maville & Huerta, 2012). For students, stressed related to exams results in a lower level of body defence making such individuals susceptible to infections. Inadequate social support as well as isolation proved to cause depression (Maté, 2011). This is no surprise as isolation increases stress levels, which in turn reduces the coordination between the body and the mind. In the modern day, research assumes the existence of a loop that is bi-direction and controlled by activities of the neuron. The loop is fundamental in managing stress and promoting proper body healing. Theory is of the view that PNI is deductive and inductive in nature. Consequently, PNI is a paradigm that takes into consideration body physiology in maintaining health. The theoretical framework explores the intervention of enhancing immunity through nursing to create a positive outcome on a patient’s well being. Theory declares that food consumption may alter the activities of the brain (Culbert & Olness, 2009). The systems that make up PNI for instance, the immune mechanism serves the purpose of relaying information to the brain in the event of infection. To convey the information, the immune system releases proinflammatory cytokines to the nervous system. This prompts the brain to release additional cytokines thereby enabling the central nervous mechanism to respond appropriately (Irwin & Vedhara, 2007). Experts are of the opinion that the inter-linked transmissions facilitate body adaptation through the regulation of energy output. The deductions of the theory are that the body responds in a similar manner to both infections and stress. Several opinions in the nursing discipline surround the impact of psychological components in protecting or downgrading health. Some health experts support the opinion that the body response in terms of changes in the level of hormones is equal regardless of the factors that cause stress (Smith & Liehr, 2014). Some experts think otherwise on the same issue pointing out that individuals react on a stressful situation using different physiological strategies. In the past, people were inclined to the argument that emotions create coordination between immunity and body psychology. Cognition is arguably part and parcel of health outcomes due to the effect on the immune system (Ganz, 2007). To be specific, if an individual has a negative appraisal concerning the progression of a disease, chances are that the person will have poor health as compared to one with a positive attitude towards recovering. Analysis Emerging disciplines under PNI continue to validate the information provided by research and theories. This means that the studies focusing on the interaction between the mind and the body systems are reliable (White & Truax, 2008). . In as much as the nursing discipline can rely on the research and theory associated with PNI, several knowledge gaps exist. First off, the scope that PNI covers does not indicate why other mechanisms do not play a role (Achterberg, 2013). Given the complexity of biological systems, conducting research of specific parts cannot aid in comprehending the body as a whole. Many are the cases where the researchers have isolated specific mechanisms. Just because the nervous, immune and endocrine systems function together as stated in research, it does not mean the model will work effectively in reality. Implications PNI is a field of interest in the nursing theory especially for cancer defects because it provides comprehensive details about the interaction of body systems and the measures of controlling the defect to prevent death. Nursing theory proposes insights that would enhance practice in Leukemia. In the nursing practice, PNI provides nurses with skills about stress management given the scare about death due to cancer (White & Truax, 2008). The significance of the move is that nurses can promote healing and provide better care to such patients. Future study should establish responses such as shame or humiliation that are emotional in nature (Smith & Liehr, 2014). The researcher should strive to determine whether changes in the marital status of individuals interfere with the behaviour and how the outcomes impair health. This is because the discipline has diversified with time and the society is in the modern day prone to cases of divorce. Conclusion In an attempt to create an impact on the outcome of health, PNI takes on an approach that connects physiological processes of the body. The approach is holistic because it incorporates the immune, nervous as well as endocrine systems. To control the epidemic of Leukaemia, nurses have to work hand-in-hand with the patients to control stress. To control stress, the nurses will have to administer relaxation strategies such as therapies. Stress is a major factor that interferes with the immune system thereby depriving the body the ability to respond to cancer infections. The bone marrow becomes incapable of regulating production of leucocytes. About health, PNI has been instrumental in improving the ability of patients to fight diseases. In practice, nursing intervention is a prime contributor of positive health outcome. References Achterberg, J. (2013). Imagery in Healing: Shamanism and Modern Medicine. New York: Shambhala Publishers. Ader, R. (2007). Psychoneuroimmunology:. Amsterdam: Elsevier Academic Press. Cognetta, A. B., & Mendenhall, W. M. (2013). Radiation therapy for skin cancer. New York: Springer Publishers. Culbert, T., & Olness, K. (2009). Integrative Pediatrics. New York: Oxford University Publishers. Ganz, P. (2007). Cancer survivorship: Today and tomorrow. New York: Springer Publishers. Irwin, M. R., & Vedhara, K. (2007). Human psychoneuroimmunology. Oxford: Oxford Univ. Press. Maté, G. (2011). When the body says no: Exploring the stress-disease connection. Hoboken: Wiley Publishers. Maville, J., & Huerta, C. (2012). Health Promotion in Nursing. New York: Cengage Learning Publishers. Morrison-Valfre, M. (2013). Foundations of mental health care. St. Louis, Mo: Elsevier/Mosby. Smith, M. J., & Liehr, P. R. (2014). Middle range theory for nursing. New York: Springer Publishers. Upton, D. (2013). Introducing Psychology for Nurses and Healthcare Professionals. New York: Routledge Publishers. White, B. S., & Truax, D. (2008). The nurse practitioner in long-term care: Guidelines for clinical practice. Jones & Bartlett Publishers Read More