A social enterprise providing education and information to protect and enhance the mental health of young people
Schizophrenia is a serious mental illness characterised by disturbances in a person’s thoughts, perceptions, emotions and behaviour. The illness affects around 26 million people across the world. Despite being a treatable disorder, more than 50% of people with schizophrenia cannot access adequate treatment, and 90% of people with untreated schizophrenia live in the developing world. [...]
Antidepressant use among Americans is skyrocketing. Adults in the U.S. consumed four times more antidepressants in the late 2000s than they did in the early 1990s. As the third most frequently taken medication in the U.S., researchers estimate that 8 to 10 percent of the population is taking an antidepressant. But this spike does not [...]
Robin Williams’ death earlier this week has unleashed an outpouring of grief. It’s undeniable that Williams brought much joy and laughter to the world, but he also talked openly about his depression and problems with alcohol and cocaine. Depression, alcohol and drug dependence are killers – and they’re indiscriminate killers. It doesn’t matter how wealthy, [...]
Mental illness is not a communicable disease, but there’s a strong body of evidence that suicide is still contagious. Publicity surrounding a suicide has been repeatedly and definitively linked to a subsequent increase in suicide, especially among young people. Analysis suggests that at least 5 percent of youth suicides are influenced by contagion. - Margot Sanger-Katz [...]
A group of New Orleans researchers found that children exposed to domestic violence are at risk for mental and physical illness due to a breakdown in their DNA. Dr. Stacy Drury, director of the Behavioral and Neurodevelopmental Genetics Laboratory at Tulane University, and Dr. Katherine Theall, a Tulane School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine epidemiologist, led [...]
Mental illness and substance abuse are the leading causes of non-fatal illness in the world, according to the latest part of major research into the global burden of disease. And the issues are second only to musculoskeletal diseases as causes of disability in Australia, according to the study led by University of Queensland Professor Harvey [...]
Research reveals some parents go through a grieving process when their child is diagnosed with a mental illness, and it often goes unnamed. Shannon Chapman talks about her experience, and how you can move through the process in a mentally healthy way. Just over a year ago, my son experienced severe anxiety around going to [...]
This is an edited extract of a blog post by Polly Chester. Read the full piece here. I’ve learned that knowledge of mental health practice can give us a dangerous and false sense of galvanization against what we advocate for. The conversation I had with the previously unknown general practitioner who recently assessed me said [...]
Consider this: almost twice as many Australians die from suicide each year than die in traffic accidents. Countless more struggle daily with their self-medication and prescribed treatment for mental illness. via Ian Thorpe, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Matthew Reilly and a very tough day.
Mental health problems and substance abuse cause the most disability and poor health across the world, according to a report published in The Lancet. A team of researchers looked at the premature mortality and the years lived with a disability for more than 200 diseases in 187 countries. Professor Harvey Whiteford, from the University of [...]
