A social enterprise providing education and information to protect and enhance the mental health of young people
"I hope she doesn't get bullied," I confided to my husband on our daughter's first day of school. "I hope she doesn't bully," my husband replied. The thought that my darling angel could bully another child had never once entered my head. And when I did think about it I dismissed it immediately. I suspect [...]
Giving someone your full attention in conversation isn’t easy, but it is a skill we can practice and hone. Have you ever tried to have a conversation with somebody who wasn’t listening to you? Could you tell? Have you ever seen yourself nodding and smiling during a conversation while in your mind you were landing [...]
Much like a clock on the wall, our cells have their own 24-hour timeline. When they're in sync, our body clock may act as a protective barrier against mental and physical illnesses. But throw in some jet lag, a night shift or a bout of insomnia, and suddenly the clock's hands are spinning out of [...]
By now parents are familiar with the worrisome finding that the thrill-seeking centers of the adolescent brain can readily outmatch the teenage brain’s emerging rational control systems. I count myself among the adults who find this neurological account of adolescent recklessness to be both clarifying and confounding. It helpfully explains why really thoughtful teenagers sometimes [...]
You get all kinds of happiness advice on the internet from people who don't know what they're talking about. Don't trust them. Actually, don't trust me either. Trust neuroscientists. They study that gray blob in your head all day and have learned a lot about what truly will make you happy. UCLA neuroscience researcher Alex [...]
Citizen panels and juries around the world are having their say about how health funding is prioritised and allocated. It’s time this happened in Australia, particularly when it comes to deciding how best to carve up Australia’s limited resources for tackling mental health. This is because constructively engaging with the community this way is fundamentally [...]
The state of the economy, including low incomes, job insecurity, zero-hours contracts, unmanageable debts and poor housing, is putting people at increased risk of suicide, according to a report by the Samaritans. The report, Dying from Inequality, says there is “overwhelming evidence of a strong link between socioeconomic disadvantage and suicidal behaviour”. It says governments [...]
For young adults, social media may not be so social after all. Among people in that age group, heavy use of platforms such as Facebook, Snapchat and Instagram was associated with feelings of social isolation, a study finds. The results surprised study co-author Brian Primack. "It's social media, so aren't people going to be socially [...]
Mental health problems often start in childhood, but opportunities to help are being missed and research spend is lacking. Three in four mental illnesses start in childhood 75% of mental illnesses start before a child reaches their 18th birthday, while 50% of mental health problems in adult life (excluding dementia) take root before the age [...]
The fundamental role of a teacher is not to deliver information but to make kids feel like they are important, and have an adult who will never give up on them. When my first child was born, I didn’t realise I was signing up for Mission Impossible. Even as my daughter grew into a toddler [...]
