Conscious Definition
Conscious is a word that has been adapted from the Latin word conscius which is translated to mean self-knowledge. Consciousness can be said to be a state of alertness and awareness. A conscious person will be one that is at a wakeful state and one that is able to recognize oneself. Consciousness is usually defined by the ability of a person to be alert and how he or she responds to internal and external stimuli. The flip side of consciousness is being in a state of sleep or in a comma. Wakefulness entails the awareness of various things like dreams, moods, thoughts and perceptions (Farthing, 12).
Levels of Consciousness
There are three levels of consciousness namely the conscious, the subconscious and the super conscious. The subconscious level is the dimmest level of consciousness and is the place where dreams emanate from. Psychologists refer to it as the reservoir of all the experiences that one has gone through. Even though we may not realize it each thought, experience, gain or los and impression that we get through our personal encounters is believed to influence to a very large extent our thought patterns, our cognition and our decision making.
Many rimes, the subconscious has the ability of tricking people to think they have inspiration into a new way of solving an issue while the truth is that they are merely replaying the experience that was stored somewhere in their subconscious mind. There is usually a thin line between the subconscious mind and the super conscious mind since in both cases; there is no intrusion from the external stimuli. When one is asleep and is dreaming, he is said to be at a subconscious level (Sangha).
The conscious state is the place from which guidance to act comes from. It is a place of rationalization where the individual will often weigh the options and think through before making a decision. The conscious level is therefore subject to intrusion of the internal and external stimuli. This level is the problem oriented level of consciousness.
The highest level of consciousness is the super conscious level. The super conscious is not subject to the analytical limitations characteristic of the conscious state. As Sandra observes, the super conscious level is described as “unitive” since it sees everything as interconnected. The implication is that if there is a problem to be solved, both the solution and the problem will be seen as a part of the whole.
Ludwig Arnold observed that a person that was perceived not to be operating normally in any way could be said to be at an altered state of consciousness. The deviation from the normal is often as a result of a mental interference and it is seen to be a temporary thing. The altered state can be realized through two main ways; intentional and accidental. People often practice religious practices like meditation and prayer which might alter their sate of consciousness. Accidents include sleep derivation and other sicknesses like fever that are known to interfere with the consciousness of a person (Sangha).
Circadian Rhythms
This is the twenty four hour cycle found in every living thing consisting of various things that happen during the time frame. The rhythms are known to affect the consciousness of man. For instance, the best way to sleep is when the body temperature is at a moderate low. Research has also established that the degree of alertness greatly decreases between 2.00pm-5.00pm as well as between 2.00am -7.00am (Hamilton 4).
The sleep cycles are different across different age sets. The younger ones tend to sleep more whereas the older ones tend to sleep less. Sleep can be categorized either as NREM (Non Rapid Eye Movement) or as REM (Rapid Eye Movement). The younger people tend to have more REM in their sleep. REM is associated with fast heart beats, vivid dreams and a general relaxing of most of the muscles. The NREM is associated with less vivid dreams; slower hear beats and a slower brain activity.
Sleep ideally goes through four stages. In the twilight stage, one is usually drowsy. At this stage, there is a general relaxation of muscles but one can easily be aroused by slight disturbance. The second and third stages of sleep are where there is an increase in amplitude of the brain. The body temperature and the blood pressure usually drop at these stages. It is not easy to arouse somebody form this stage of sleep (Hamilton 3).
Stage four results in an even lower body temperature and a slower heart beat. After about one hour of sleep, the stages will repeat in reverse from stage four through to sage one. Depriving one of sleep usually has been known to result into interference with the memory. Disruption of sleep especially during the REM stage can cause one to loose some memory. Students who stay up the whole night reading for an exam the following day risk loosing memory of all they read the previous night (Farthing, 12).
People often resort to meditation as a way of altering their consciousness. Mediation is somehow related to sleep. It can in fact be said to be the initial stage of sleep. During meditation, a person will usually experience a decrease in the pulse rate. The pressure of the blood goes down which leads to more blood in the legs and arms. A person will therefore experience a relaxation similar to what one experiences during sleep. Psychoactive drugs have also been used to alter consciousness. These drugs usually interfere with the normal mental operations and the person using them will experience a change in mood, perception as well as thought. The biggest concerns in the use of these drugs are dependency and tolerance. A dependant is someone who has gotten addicted to the drugs and can not do without them. A tolerant is someone who due to excessive usage has become resistant to the drugs and will need excessive dosage for the drugs to have any effect (Farthing 12).
Works Cited
Farthing Gloria. The Psychology of Consciousness. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1992.
Hamilton Karen. States of Consciousness- Chapter 4. 2001.
Sangha Ananda. Consciousness. 2002. Web.