There are two consonant concepts - irritability and irritation. These are terms related to the same science, but differing in their meaning. Although they are directly related. However, about everything - in order.
Terminology
So irritation is action. Which turns out to be various forms and manifestations on the body, its cells, tissues and organs. Those, in turn, are called irritants. They differ in their classification and characteristics, but more on that later.
Irritability, in turn, is the body's ability to respond to certain influences coming from the environment. It is expressed in a change in physico-chemical parameters. That is, irritability is a consequence of irritation. And this is a universal manifestation of the vital activity of each biological system without exception. Its presence is the norm. Precisely according toto him the living differs from the inanimate. And, by the way, the phenomena of irritability in animals and plants are similar. Let the forms of manifestation differ.
Excitability
This term is directly related to the topic under discussion, so it is impossible not to pay attention to it. Excitability is the ability of a living organism to respond to a stimulus. This is, in fact, the process of generating a nerve impulse. And excitation is a complex of processes of response to the action exerted by the stimulus. All of them are manifested in changes in metabolism and membrane potential.
Tissues that are excitable (muscle, nerve and glandular) are distinguished by their ability to conduct excitation. It is most pronounced in the nerves, which is logical. And also in skeletal muscles.
The cause of all reactions
As mentioned earlier, annoyance is an action. Which turns out to be on us all the time, albeit imperceptibly. These lines, read by a person, visually irritate him. And accordingly, they are irritants.
This term refers to any factor of the internal or external environment that affects living tissue. But there is a classification, and a detailed one.
Irritants are primarily divided by nature. They can be:
- Physical. This is what surrounds us everywhere: sound, light, electricity, etc.
- Chemical. Acids, s alts, hormones, alkalis … even substances that enter the body with food. That theyassimilated, they carry out complex metabolic and splitting processes. Accordingly, the notorious substances have a certain irritation on the body, since it does this.
- Physico-chemical. It's a little more complicated here. This class includes osmotic and partial pressure of gases.
- Biological. In short, this category includes everything that we take inside (water, food) and the people around us (parents, friends, lovers).
- Social. Yes, conversations, speech, words, communications are all irritants too.
Power of impact
It is impossible not to say about such a thing as the threshold of irritation. This is physiology, and every aspect is interconnected. The classification of influences according to the nature of origin was mentioned above. So, there is also a division of stimuli according to strength. But in order to understand what it is about, you need to know about the notorious threshold of influence. In simple terms, this is the minimum force exerted on the body by an irritant, which is sufficient to cause excitation. Of course, fresh bread right under a person's nose has a distinct aroma, but even the subtle smell wafting from the bakery across the street is enough to activate the olfactory analyzers.
So, stimuli can be subthreshold. That is, not to cause any response. Their strength is too weak for that. Thresholds are the golden mean. Irritants of minimal strength (as in the case of a bakery), causing arousal. Andthe third category is superthreshold impacts. Those whose strength is above the threshold (shown in the example of bread).
How does it work?
Well, irritation is physiology, and everything that concerns it proceeds in accordance with certain laws. And this case is no exception.
There is such a thing as reobase. It denotes the minimum force possessed by an irritant that causes excitation over a long time period. Which is unlimited.
This is where the concept of useful time comes from. This is the minimum period during which the stimulus, which has the power of one reobase, affects the body. In simple terms, the time it takes to get aroused.
And the last, third component is chronaxia. This term is used to denote the minimum time period during which an irritant having the strength of two rheobases has an effect on the body. The conclusion follows: the shorter the chronaxia or useful time, the higher the excitability will be. On the contrary, this principle also works.
Turning to psychology
Well, the above was about what is a physiological strong irritation. This is a more or less clear topic. Now you can pay attention to the psychological aspect.
Everyone knows that irritation is a feeling. What a person experiences when he is affected by an unpleasant person,action or phenomenon. In general, anything. But most importantly, it is necessarily connected with the personal perception of a person. Suppose a man is not going to get married. He wants to do business, because he sees himself in the business field, it brings him pleasure and joy. But his entire large family is firmly convinced that he needs to find a lover, get married and “twist a nest”. And no one is embarrassed to regularly remind him of this in an obsessive form. Accordingly, an emotion of irritation arises in his soul. It `s naturally. Which entails, as a rule, a sharp response. Which is understandable.
Special occasions
One more nuance is worth noting. Irritation is a concept in psychology that has another meaning. It often means a tendency to inadequate reactions to quite ordinary processes and phenomena. True, it is more correct to call it irritability. Which is explained by psychologists as folded aggression.
People deal with it in different ways. And it is necessary to fight this, because irritability spoils life. How can a person who is "brought to a boil" by the aroma of a colleague's perfume, a friend's minute lateness to a meeting and the laughter of other people be happy? But it does happen. In people with increased irritability, the world, as a rule, exists in black colors.
Well, in that case, you need to try to get everything under control and start resolving the problem. Because the buildup of irritation does not bode well.
