A social enterprise providing education and information to protect and enhance the mental health of young people
Pixabay Images When you and I were young it was unlikely we ever had to support a friend who was self-harming, simply because self-harm was not as widespread. I consider this is a huge ask for any 14 year old. It can create an incredible amount of stress for young people who genuinely [...]
Pixabay Images The multibillion-dollar supplement industry spews many dubious claims, but a new study suggests that some nutritional supplements, including omega-3 fatty acids and vitamin D, may boost the effectiveness of antidepressants. If so, the supplements might help relieve symptoms for the millions of people who don’t immediately respond to these drugs. The [...]
Pixabay Images It took two-and-a-half years of intense joint pain for Maddison O'Gradey Lee for doctors to take the teenager's concerns seriously. The pain was "agony", Ms O'Gradey Lee, 18, said. Her doctors said it was a byproduct of her anxiety disorder. "One doctor actually said, 'It's all in your head'," she said. Convinced she had fabricated her affliction, [...]
Pixabay Images Taking work to the extreme may be a sign of deeper psychological or emotional issues. Whether this reflects overlapping genetic vulnerabilities, disorders leading to workaholism or, conversely, workaholism causing such disorders, remain uncertain. In wait for more research, physicians should not take for granted that a seemingly successful workaholic does not [...]
Pixabay Images Meditation is just one strand of new “positive education” methods starting to build momentum and gravitas in schools. The key idea is to teach good practices such as mindfulness and gratitude that will promote resilience and, it is thought, help children lead healthier psychological lives. Until recently, these might have been [...]
Pixabay Images A long line of research links poverty and depression. Now, a study by Duke University scientists shows how biology might underlie the depression experienced by high-risk adolescents whose families are socio-economically disadvantaged. The study, published May 24, 2016 in the journal Molecular Psychiatry, combined genetics, brain imaging and behavioral data gathered [...]
Flikr Images Facebook recently updated an important tool designed to help users support friends expressing suicidal thoughts and behavior. The product, now available to every Facebook user, dispels the pervasive and dangerous myth that people who experience suicidal feelings are beyond help while also showing bystanders exactly how they can make a difference. Though Facebook is [...]
Pixabay Images The majority of antidepressants do not work on children and teenagers and prescribing them could do more harm than good, a major study in The Lancet has warned. A review of clinical trial evidence found that of 14 antidepressant drugs only one, fluoxetine - marketed as Prozac - was better than placebo [...]
Pixabay Images On a recent sodden weekend walk, I tried to cheer myself up by thinking: it’s not so bad. Not the slugs or the sky or the rain making its way down a gap between neck and waterproof. But I couldn’t do it. Losing heart, I turned back. Glump, glump, glump through the [...]
Getty Images Having worked with police forces in Australia and the United Kingdom identifying those who sexually prey on children, people are always asking me how you can tell a paedophile from everyone else. Well, I can tell you one thing – they don’t have horns and tails. They look and act like [...]
