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Tackling fears 'while you sleep'
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US researchers suggest smells could be used to calm fears - while people sleep. People were trained to associate two images, linked to smells, with fear. During sleep they were exposed to one of those smells - and when they woke they were less frightened of the image linked to that smell. A UK expert praised the study and said it could help treat phobias and perhaps even post-traumatic stress disorders. People with phobias are already commonly treated with "gradual exposure" therapy while they are awake, where they are exposed to the thing they are frightened of in incremental degrees. This study suggests that the theory could be extended to therapy while they are in slow-wave, or deep, sleep. This is the deepest period of sleep, where memories, particularly those linked to emotions, are thought to be processed. The researchers showed 15 healthy people pictures of two different faces. At the same time they were given a mild electric shock. They were also exposed to a specific smell, such as lemon, mint, new trainers, clove or wood. Later, when they were awake, they were shown both faces - without the scents or shocks. They showed less fear when shown the face linked to the scent they had smelt while asleep than when shown the other face. Their response was measured through the amount of sweat on the skin and fMRI (functional magnetic resonance imaging) brain scans. People were in slow-wave sleep for between five and 40 minutes, and the effect was strongest for those who slept for longest. Dr Katherina Hauner, of the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, who led the study, said: "It's a novel finding. We showed a small but significant decrease in fear. "If it can be extended to pre-existing fear, the bigger picture is that, perhaps, the treatment of phobias can be enhanced during sleep." She said phobias would be the most obvious area to pursue, as cues tended to be relatively simple, compared with the more complex post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). And she said much more research was needed to fully understand the effects this therapy could have. "This was just one day. We really need to see if it can last weeks, months or years." Jennifer Wild, consultant clinical psychologist at the King's College London Institute of Psychiatry, said: "The sleep study is excellent and has implications for treating phobias and stress disorders, such as post-traumatic stress, where there are a whole range of cues. "Many people who have survived traumatic events, such as fires or road traffic accidents, have a physiological fear response to triggers of their memories. "Triggers often include smells, such as smoke, petrol, antiseptic smells and alcohol. Infusing these smells during periods of slow-wave sleep could help to extinguish the fear response." Dr Wild added that the theory could perhaps be extended by exposing people to subtle sounds linked to phobias or traumatic memories during their sleep. |
美國(guó)研究人員發(fā)現(xiàn),在睡眠過(guò)程中,我們可以借助氣味來(lái)緩解恐懼不安的心情。 研究人員讓實(shí)驗(yàn)者將兩種和氣味有關(guān)的影像與恐懼聯(lián)系在一起。 在睡眠過(guò)程中,研究人員讓實(shí)驗(yàn)者嗅到一種令人恐怖的氣味,而當(dāng)他們睡醒的時(shí)候,對(duì)于那種氣味的恐懼感則會(huì)下降。 一位英國(guó)專家對(duì)此發(fā)現(xiàn)贊賞有加,并聲稱這將有助于幫助治療恐懼,以及事故后期殘留的精神混亂等病情。 當(dāng)前,恐慌癥患者在意識(shí)清醒的狀態(tài)下接受“逐步暴露”治療,即逐步接受那些讓他們感到恐慌的事物。 此項(xiàng)研究可能幫助患者實(shí)現(xiàn)在短波、或深度睡眠間的治療。 在深度睡眠的過(guò)程中,大腦對(duì)記憶,特別是那些影響人的情緒的記憶,進(jìn)行加工。 研究人員向15名健康的人一邊展示不同的畫(huà)面,一邊釋放例如檸檬、薄荷、新跑鞋和丁香等味兒,同時(shí)對(duì)他們進(jìn)行輕微的電擊。 當(dāng)這些人醒來(lái)后,再向他們展示之前的畫(huà)面。這一次,沒(méi)有氣味、也不實(shí)施電擊。 實(shí)驗(yàn)表明,與之相關(guān)氣味的作用下,人們對(duì)于圖片的恐懼相對(duì)減少。與之相對(duì)的,不曾聞到氣味的人對(duì)于圖片的恐懼明顯要多得多。 而人們的這種恐懼反應(yīng)死通過(guò)對(duì)體表汗液和大腦皮層的功能感應(yīng)反映圖像對(duì)比測(cè)得。 對(duì)于那些睡眠時(shí)間在5~40分鐘的人來(lái)說(shuō)影響不大。睡眠時(shí)間越長(zhǎng),這種反差更明顯。 這項(xiàng)研究的負(fù)責(zé)人,芝加哥西北大學(xué)博格藥品研究分院的凱瑟琳博士說(shuō):“這是一項(xiàng)嶄新的發(fā)現(xiàn),我們發(fā)現(xiàn),人們的恐懼情緒大大降低。” “若將此項(xiàng)研究推廣,我們很有希望在患者睡眠中對(duì)其進(jìn)行恐慌治療,” 她還說(shuō),較之更復(fù)雜的病癥,恐慌癥病情簡(jiǎn)單,從而很有可能成為最有研究前途的領(lǐng)域。她表示,若想全面了解這項(xiàng)研究的影響還需作進(jìn)一步的研究。 “當(dāng)前的結(jié)果只是我們做一天的實(shí)驗(yàn)得出的。我們還有待考證,這一結(jié)果在幾周,幾個(gè)月,甚至是幾年之后是否依舊正確。” 倫敦理工大學(xué)的醫(yī)療顧問(wèn)生理學(xué)家波奇璀說(shuō):“這一睡眠研究很不錯(cuò),它將推動(dòng)如事故后遺癥造成的恐慌和精神壓力的治療,有很大的研究空間。” “對(duì)于很多在諸如火災(zāi)、道路交通事故等不幸中幸存下來(lái)的人來(lái)說(shuō),記憶帶給他們不盡的后續(xù)傷痛。 “而導(dǎo)致這些痛苦回憶的誘因有很多,包括濃煙、汽車燃油。防腐劑和酒精的氣味等。如若在他們熟睡之間釋放這類氣體,將緩解他們的恐慌。” 沃爾德博士還指出,我們還可以就此延伸,研究在深度睡眠過(guò)程中,與記憶相關(guān)的別的因素,如氣體,是否對(duì)緩解人們的恐慌心理是否同樣奏效呢? (譯者 淺輒@翻譯 編輯 丹妮) |
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