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Impact of early life adversity on reward processing in young adults (2014)

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Re: Impact of early life adversity on reward processing in young adults (2014)

#51
I don't really see how there can be any question that chaos, poverty, moving every year, constantly changing schools, multiple and changing "parent" figures, adults making poor choices over and over, no examples of deliberate planning and saving for the future, screws up kids.

They learn that life is completely unpredictable, that opportunities for reward should be taken immediately because they will not be there later, they never learn to spend extended time on learning anything or saving money for the future because they have never seen anyone in their life do those things.

A few manage to figure it out anyway, but most are doomed to repeat all of that as parents with their own kids. It's sad.

Re: Impact of early life adversity on reward processing in young adults (2014)

#52

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you're thinking about 10 different things in quick succession spontaneously flipping between each without control, your brain can't deliver sustained anticipatory reward for the one thing you actually should be working towards. The brain doesn't magically "know" what is important, presence in consciousness is what determines importance and reward allocation. Normal brains are able to fixate without tremendous effo…

Some of the "Flipping around" might be caused by an inability to discount the reward from the thing you're flipping to - it seems important / rewarding. It's not much different than someone refusing to work on an important thing because they can't stop thinking about this neat thing over here that feels cooler. Just to connect to the subject at hand.

hmmm yes could be that people with adhd,me for example, cant feel the reward of social contact so its hard to listen if not geniunly interested.

sometimes i try to reward myself conscious of something and it works. for example i think conscious about how if i finish a little task it would make me happier. then i kind of force a reward feeling towards the anticipation to have something done. and it works. i feel motivated to do little tasks. and if i do this repeatedly and on bigger and bigger tasks it reduces my adhd symptoms… but then there is suddenly something else to do and then i do this while thinking about the things i should do and what i could do next and suddenly i start 10 things and how the fuck did this happen … where are my keyes? :)

Re: Impact of early life adversity on reward processing in young adults (2014)

#53

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you're thinking about 10 different things in quick succession spontaneously flipping between each without control, your brain can't deliver sustained anticipatory reward for the one thing you actually should be working towards. The brain doesn't magically "know" what is important, presence in consciousness is what determines importance and reward allocation. Normal brains are able to fixate without tremendous effo…

Some of the "Flipping around" might be caused by an inability to discount the reward from the thing you're flipping to - it seems important / rewarding. It's not much different than someone refusing to work on an important thing because they can't stop thinking about this neat thing over here that feels cooler. Just to connect to the subject at hand.

[deleted]

Re: Impact of early life adversity on reward processing in young adults (2014)

#54

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It is stated just above the quoted text. Basically a lower-than-expected response to reward anticipation and a higher-than-expected response upon reward delivery. I.e. the typical ADHD problem of instant vs delayed gratification and how the brain responds to it. Neurotypical people’s brains seem to be better at rewarding in anticipation and not just on actual delivery. IIUC

Yes, the utility behind that behavior is that the brain floods itself with dopamine when task completion feels imminently close in anticipation of the approaching reward. The flooding of dopamine, which is the motivation, does not suggest increased dopamine reception, which is the reward. That utility alone accounts for gambling addiction. Consider that slot machines are a game of random chance against fixed odds. Ev…

could you tell me more about the medication. does it decrease dopamine production or does it increase reception?

Re: Impact of early life adversity on reward processing in young adults (2014)

#58
post #10

"Moreover, a similar activation pattern related to lifetime ADHD may suggest that the impact of early life stress on ADHD may possibly be mediated by a dysfunctional reward pathway." What is a dysfunctional reward pathway?

The brain releases dopamine as a "reward"; it's a feel-good chemical that contributes to positive reinforcement of various behaviors. People with ADHD have limited dopamine response, which can express as a lack of motivation relative to others.

All this just means we need an exceptionally strong signal to be able to pay attention. Most things are far too boring to engage us. Even things which were interesting at some point become boring once we figure them out in our minds and all that's left is the execution, the mechanical performance of the work. Hence the tendency to not finish projects.

Re: Impact of early life adversity on reward processing in young adults (2014)

#59
post #34
post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I was completely sure you were wrong and went and did a bunch of reading on Wikipedia and realized that my understanding of the reward pathway was incorrect. Thanks for educating me a bit today. I thought dopamine was both the anticipatory neurotransmitters and the reward. But the reward neurotransmitters are different, they're your endorphins, endogenous opioids.

It seems this is a sort of trick our brains evolved to play on us that drives us to act- which makes sense. It is the anticipation of a reward that drives strong feelings and behaviors, but the reward itself is usually not as big of a deal- we work hard for something we expect to be great, but when it actually happens we barely notice and immediately move on to thinking about something else. If dopamine only happened…

"Ya get high before ya actually get high, once ya know ya got it"

Re: Impact of early life adversity on reward processing in young adults (2014)

#60
post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Normal brain : The joy of considering future reward is greater than the joy of actual reward. Dysfunctional brain : The reverse. (Which makes me go hmm)

Other brains: No joy in response to future or present rewards. Anxiety on the journey, shame at the destination.

this is literally me irl
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