A social enterprise providing education and information to protect and enhance the mental health of young people
Hugh Johnson for the Guardian The siblings of those with anorexia or other eating disorders are often overlooked. The UK’s leading eating disorder charity, Beat, has described siblings as the “forgotten victims”. In one report on the charity’s website, eight teenagers with anorexic sisters were interviewed about their experiences. All were negatively affected, [...]
Pixabay Images Data released late last week reveal Australia’s gambling habit is growing as fast as ever. The Australian Gambling Statistics for 2014-15 show adult Australians, on average, lost A$1,242 a year on gambling. The amount varies dramatically by state: in New South Wales the average loss was $1,518; in Tasmania, $762. Most [...]
Flickr Images People convey meaning by what they say as well as how they say it: Tone, word choice, and the length of a phrase are all crucial cues to understanding what’s going on in someone’s mind. When a psychiatrist or psychologist examines a person, they listen for these signals to get a [...]
Flikr Images If a young person you care about has been injuring themselves, it’s important to seek the assistance of a mental health professional. Sometimes, there can be a waiting period to see a psychologist or psychiatrist, and even if you are able to access treatment quickly, it can take a little while [...]
Pixabay Images Once upon a time, the future of mental health treatment was drugs. The advent of Prozac and whole class of similar medication in the 1990s gave doctors an easy option and big pharma easy money. But 20 years on, the problems have not gone away. In fact, mental illness is much more [...]
Pixabay Images Australian scientists believe they have found evidence for a potential suicide marker they hope will lead to new tests and treatments for depression. “We have known for a long time that people who attempt suicide have markers of chronic inflammation in their blood and spinal fluid,” Professor Guillemin said. “Commonly used [...]
Flikr Images A recent study from the United Kingdom found a simple form of therapy called behavioural activation (BA) is as effective in treating depression as more complex psychological treatments and even medication. So, how does BA work and what is the relationship between behaviour and emotions? What we do affects how we [...]
Flikr Images For some it starts with chest pains and a shortage of breath. For others, worried thoughts and images repeatedly flood the brain. The symptoms of anxiety are profound and diverse but they each have a common theme -- the ability to interfere and stop a person from living a normal life. [...]
Pixabay Images When it comes to mental health, the global health community has failed. Mental, neurological, and substance-use disorders are among the leading causes of the global burden of disease. By 2020, depression will be the second leading cause of disability. Suicide is a leading cause of death among adolescents. People with severe [...]
Flikr Images Anxiety can be a masterful imposter. In children, it can sway away from the more typical avoidant, clingy behaviour and show itself as tantrums, meltdowns and aggression. As if anxiety wasn’t hard enough to deal with! When children are under the influence of an anxious brain, their behaviour has nothing to do [...]
