Tagged: Mental health

Mental health in public life: Is the experience of politicians and how we make policy intertwined? - The Psychology Report

Sarb Johal • Sep 03, 2018 •

• Mental health,
• policy,
• politics

Many societies are experiencing significant increases in those reporting mental health difficulties and illnesses, but face systemic obstacles in helping their communities’ to deal with these problems. The WHO report on Mental health: New Understandings, New Hope identified mental health as possibly posing the most difficult and acute health care challenge of the twenty-first century. The report goes on to … Read More

Explainer: what is lupus and how is stress implicated? - Guest Work

Guest Author • Apr 13, 2018 •

• antibodies,
• arthritis,
• cytokines,
• donor organ,
• genetic studies,
• hormones,
• immune suppressant drugs,
• immune system,
• infection,
• inflammation,
• inheritance,
• interferon,
• lupus,
• Mental health,
• Psychology,
• PTSD,
• stress,
• Viruses,
• wellbeing

Eric Morand, Monash Health This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article. Thanks to Selena Gomez and Dr House, most of us have heard of lupus. But most of us don’t know what it is, and until recently, none of us were sure whether stress could be a risk … Read More

Mental health disorders among leading causes of children’ illness - News

Jean Balchin • Apr 13, 2018 •

• anxiety,
• children,
• Depression,
• Diabetes,
• Europe,
• hallucinations,
• Health,
• Infectious disease,
• Mental health,
• Panic attack,
• panic disorder,
• paranoia,
• Psychology,
• Schizophrenia,
• social anxiety disorder

According to a study published in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Mental Health, although global rates of mental disorders in children have remained stable over time, the decline of infectious diseases will place mental disorders among the main causes of disease in children aged 4-15 years. In the study, Marie-Laure Baranne and Bruno Falissard at INSERM, France describe the prevalence of mental … Read More

Menopausal mood swings can signal more serious mental illness - Guest Work

Guest Author • Apr 12, 2018 •

• anorexia,
• anxiety,
• binge eating,
• bipolar disorder,
• bulimia,
• delusions,
• Depression,
• dopamine,
• episode,
• food intake,
• hallucinations,
• hormonal changes,
• hunger,
• irritability,
• menopause,
• menstruation,
• Mental health,
• mood swings,
• neurological changes,
• oestrogen,
• psychotic,
• puberty,
• satiety,
• Schizophrenia,
• weight gain,
• women

Tania Perich, Western Sydney University This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article. Most women expect to experience the effects of hormonal changes when they come to menopause and many anticipate increased irritability and mood swings. But mood swings that can be just an annoyance for some women can develop into something … Read More

Gene-based tests may improve treatment for people with bipolar disorder - Guest Work

Guest Author • Apr 04, 2018 •

• anti-epileptic,
• antipsychotics,
• bipolar affective disorder,
• catatonia,
• Depression,
• hallucinations,
• lithium,
• mania,
• manic episodes,
• medical assistance,
• medication,
• Mental health,
• mood symptoms,
• paranoia,
• Psychiatry,
• relapses,
• sodium valproate

Klaus Oliver Schubert, University of Adelaide and Bernhard Baune, University of Adelaide This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article. Bipolar affective disorder (BPAD) affects around 2% of the world’s population, leaving them with bouts of severe depression and episodes of what is commonly referred to as “mania”. A … Read More

Opinion: The importance of hearing the stories behind the statistics - Guest Work

Jean Balchin • Mar 23, 2018 •

• anxiety,
• Depression,
• electroshock therapy,
• energy,
• eugenics,
• intellectual,
• lobotomies,
• Martin Luther,
• Mental health,
• overmedicating,
• psychotic,
• Schizophrenia,
• strength

On Saturday night, I had the immense pleasure of watching the Suitcase Theatre perform Mental Notes as part of the Dunedin Fringe Festival. Rarely have I encountered such an uplifting and touching take on mental health. Mental Notes, is at its heart, an exploration of mental health, a sustained conversation with many different voices. Over the course of … Read More

Why mental health treatment is not an easy solution to violence - Guest Work

Guest Author • Mar 21, 2018 •

• anxiety,
• bipolar disorder,
• Depression,
• Florida,
• gun violence,
• Mental health,
• mental illness,
• Psychiatry,
• Psychology,
• Schizophrenia,
• screening,
• stigma,
• United States

Sarah L. Desmarais, North Carolina State University This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article. In the wake of mass shootings and other tragedies, a frequent refrain is: Why don’t we get those dangerous people off the streets? And, just as frequently, people suggest that mental health treatment is the answer. Read More

Opinion: Mike King on NZ’s suicide rates - Guest Work

Jean Balchin • Mar 15, 2018 •

• childhood,
• government,
• healthcare,
• help,
• Mental health,
• New Zealand,
• Psychiatry,
• Psychology,
• suicide prevention,
• teenagers

Last week, I was fortunate enough to interview comedian and suicide prevention advocate Mike King about his work. Over the month of March, Mike and a bunch of mates are riding Suzuki 50cc scooters from one end of the country to the other. Along the way they’ll stop at around 45 schools and community halls and talk to … Read More

Meta-analysis finds antidepressants ARE probably effective - News

Jean Balchin • Feb 22, 2018 •

• antidepressants,
• citalopram,
• clomipramine,
• Depression,
• drug,
• fluoxetine,
• fluvoxamine,
• generic,
• Mental health,
• metaanalysis,
• mirtazapine,
• paroxetine,
• Patent,
• Placebo,
• SSRI,
• The Lancet,
• trazodone,
• Treatment

A major meta-analysis study comparing commonly used antidepressants has concluded that all are more effective than placebo for the short-term treatment of acute depression in adults, with effectiveness ranging from small to moderate for different drugs. What is depression? According to the American Psychiatric Association, depression “is a common and serious medical illness that negatively affects how you feel, … Read More

Preventing falls can be very cost-effective in NZ - Public Health Expert

Public Health Expert • Feb 06, 2018 •

• AI,
• Chinese,
• elderly,
• exercise,
• Falls,
• government,
• Health,
• Medicine,
• Mental health,
• Mortality,
• New Zealand,
• Psychiatry,
• Robot,
• symposium,
• TAIZO

Prof Nick Wilson, Dr Giorgi Kvizhinadze, Dr Linda Cobiac, Prof Tony Blakely We have just published a modelling study on exercise programmes in NZ to prevent falls in older people. This work suggests that this approach (home-based or group-based exercise) is good value for money for the NZ Government. In this blog we consider these results alongside other fall prevention … Read More