Isolation, social

Reduced strength and exercise capacity Defective sweating Psychological problems ° Low self-esteem ° Depression ° Fatigue/listlessness ° Sleep disturbance ° Anxiety ° Social isolation... 

Although it has received the most attention, CBT is not the only form of psychotherapy that is effective for depression. Other psychological treatments include interpersonal psychotherapy, short-term psychodynamic therapy and non-directive supportive therapy. Interpersonal psychotherapy focuses on problems that arise in interpersonal relationships, such as marital conflict, the loss of a loved one and social isolation.20 Short-term psychodynamic therapy focuses on acquiring insight and understanding of unresolved conflicts arising from the person s childhood. It is based on Freud s psychoanalytic theory, but requires only months, rather than the years it takes for a full psychoanalysis.21 Non-directive supportive therapy provides a warm, supportive atmosphere in which the depressed person can explore life issues... 

Negative symptoms include alogia (poverty of speech), avolition, affective flattening, anhedonia, and social isolation. 

The hypothesis that stress can modulate MMP expression is also supported by studies in mice. Using social isolation as a stressor, the mRNA levels of MMP-2, MMP-9, matrix-type matrix metalloproteinase-1 (MT1-MMP), and urokinase-type plasminogen activator were higher in the tumor and liver tissues of the isolated mice than in control mice.91 Furthermore, a recent study has shown that restraint stress causes an increase in expression of the plasminogen activator inhibitor-1, another key player in the plas-minogen/plasmin enzyme system in mice.92 As these enzymes have been described to have functions besides their role in ECM remodeling,93 studies on stress-related effects on MMP/TIMP balance have implications in the relationship between stress and cancer initiation and progression.. 

Wu, W. et ah, Involvement of TNF-alpha in enhancement of invasion and metastasis of colon 26-L5 carcinoma cells in mice by social isolation stress, Oncol. Res., 11, 461, 1999. 

The expression of emotions in inappropriate ways can cause a vicious cycle for a person. For example, expressing emotions inappropriately can cause problems with interpersonal relationships. If a person is perceived as emotionally awkward or volatile, others may go out of their way to limit contact with that person. The result maybe increased social isolation, which in turn may reinforce the belief by many clients with drug problems that they are social misfits (recall the earlier discussion about environmental risk factors). In addition, the disinhibiting effects of drugs may exacerbate emotional dysregulation, potentially making the dys-regulation that much worse. 

Here we have a case of impoverished terminology. One might use the term love, but that would exclude the pleasure of friendship and of general companionship. It may be best to consider this emotion as comprising several subtypes, such as friendship, filial love, parental love, love for other kin, romantic love (see Jankowiak Fischer, 1992 on its universality), and desire for companionship not limited to other humans (cf. the extreme distress of prolonged social isolation). However, the similarities among these sub-types may outweigh the differences. All other dyadic social bonds may have evolved from the primordial mother-infant bond. 

Majonoside-R2, a saponin found in Vietnamese ginseng restores the deficit in pentobarbital sleep caused by the stress of social isolation (Nguyen et al. 1997). This effect appears to be mediated by the neurosteroid receptor on the GABAA receptor. 

Studies in mice have shown a hypericum extract to increase exploration in an unfamiliar environment, prolong sedative sleep time, and antagonize the effects of reserpine. Other antidepressant-like effects are found on the water-wheel test, and chronic administration decreased aggression in socially isolated male mice (Okpanyi and Weischer 1987). 

Nguyen TT, Matsumoto K, Yamasaki K, Watanabe H. (1997). Majonoside-R2 reverses social isolation stress-induced decrease in pentobarbital sleep in mice possible involvement of neuroactive steroids. Life Sciences. 61(4) 395-402. 

The effect of nicotine on anxiety is sexually dimorphic, and specifically in adolescence. Nicotine increased social interaction following social isolation in both male and female rats, indicating an anxiolytic effect. This effect was more... 

Leading up to the first break, most individuals with schizophrenia go through a prodromal phase of illness. This prodrome is a departure from the patient s usual behavior, but patients seldom seek treatment during this phase. The prodromal symptoms are usually limited to negative symptoms of apathy or social isolation or to lesser variants of the positive symptoms taking the form of eccentric beliefs or a... 

The patient with a SPD is also alone and socially isolated. However, it does not result from a fearful and hostile pushing away of others so much as it does from having no or minimal interest in pursuing relationships with others. The schizoid person simply does not want to be around other people however, the schizoid person is not troubled by the paranoia of the person with a PPD. 

Formal study of the newer, atypical antipsychotics in the treatment of STPD is limited to a pilot study of risperidone (Risperdal). This study suggested that risperidone, given in low doses (0.5-1.0mg/day), is well tolerated by patients with STPD and helps reduce the paranoia and social isolation of the disorder. Despite this limited formal study, atypical antipsychotics are increasingly used on an empirical... 

Feelings of isolation were common among interviewees at both historically black colleges and universities and historically white colleges and universities. In instances where the chemists were the only persons of color in the department or perhaps the first ones ever appointed to a faculty position in chemistry, many became discouraged and sometimes very depressed. Benjamin (1991) posits that the social isolation faced by many upwardly mobile African Americans often leads to stress, which can manifest itself in physiological disorders, such as hypertension, behavioral disorders, and even suicide. One Cohort V interviewee offered the following comments ... 

Autism is an interesting model for the study of consciousness. The combination of social isolation, language impairment and restricted, repetitive interests and behaviours together with idiosyncratic patterns in attention, concentration and interpersonal behaviour offer opportunities for the exploration of certain aspects of consciousness ... 

If there is an association between the extent or severity of abnormal neurotransmitter functioning and the global measure of severity of autism, the direction and mechanism of causality may still be unclear (as has been discussed in mental retardation). However, neurotransmitter correlates of specific aspects of autism, such as social isolation or obsessional behaviour, are likely to be more revealing and of greater relevance to the study of consciousness. 

The accrued stigma associated with the drug problem particularly concentrated around issues of childcare. It tainted everyone in the family and so was part of the dynamic by which families became socially isolated. 

Sanchez, M.M., Aguado, R, Sanchez-Toscano, F., and Saphier, D. (1998) Neuroendocrine and immunocytochemical demonstrations of decreased hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal axis responsiveness to restraint stress after long-term social isolation. Endocrinology 139 579-587. 

Prairie vole young show high levels of stress in response to social isolation, while montane vole offspring show minimal behavioral or physical response to separation (Insel et ah, 1997). Prairie voles are much more vocal than montane voles during social separation (Winslow et al., 2000). It is suggested that this difference is related to diversity in OT receptor distribution across vole species. This phenomenon is an interesting parallel to the differences in pup vocalization (and therefore socialization) seen between OT knockout pups and their wild-type counterparts. 

Insel, T.R., and Winslow, J.T. (1991) Central administration of oxytocin modulates the infant rat s response to social isolation. Eur J Pharmacol 203 149-152. 

Deroche, V, Piazza, P.V, Le Moal, M., and Simon, H. (1994) Social isolation-induced enhancement of the psychomotor effects of morphine depends on corticosterone secretion. Brain Res 640 136-139. 

Social isolation Available and engaged in social activities... 

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