A social enterprise providing education and information to protect and enhance the mental health of young people
If your child spends long hours playing video games, you might be worried they’re addicted. “Gaming disorder” is real, and has now been classified as a disease in the World Health Organisation’s International Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems (ICD). The new ICD will be adopted in 2022. If you are worried about your [...]
When Celina Pereira watches videos of people slurping food and drinks, tapping their nails and whispering into a microphone, she breaks out into goosebumps and a chill travels down her spine. It might sound bizarre, but she's experiencing ASMR – an autonomous sensory meridian response – and she's not alone. There are now more than [...]
One year ago, 13-year-old Shamanii avoided other kids and suffered such severe anxiety she didn't want to go to school. Now, in the words of her mother Alma, Shamanii is "loving school, absolutely loving it". "She’s putting herself out there, auditioning for productions. She’s made a whole lot of new friends." All because of a [...]
Every Friday morning in the small Queensland town of Gin Gin, a group of students with special needs are learning how to train and handle alpacas at the local high school. It is a unique animal-assisted therapy program unlike any other in Australia. "We're trying to create an opportunity for these students to overcome some [...]
Young people with depression should be reassured that their poor concentration and memory are often part of the illness and don't mean they're "dumb", says an expert in mental health. An Australian study has revealed widespread cognitive functioning difficulties among teens and adolescents with depression. The findings, published in the journal Neuropsychology Review, have prompted [...]
Many of us struggle to treat ourselves with kindness. For some reason we're often nicer to others than we are to ourselves. Good self-care isn't that different from effective parenting. As parents we want to balance clear expectations for our kids with an understanding that they're human and imperfect. In the same way, looking out for ourselves means holding ourselves to standards [...]
Horses are being used as mental health aids for humans, with equine therapy taking psychology sessions out of the office and into the paddock. Psychologist Sam Tassini is so enamoured with horses that she has incorporated them into her work and converted a functioning horse float into an office. She practices equine therapy - a [...]
People with depression are counseled to see a therapist, but in-person therapy isn't always an option. A new chatbot app, Woebot, could be an alternative. Treating Depression According to the World Health Organization (WHO), depression affects nearly 300 million people around the world. People of all ages can experience depression, a mental health disorder that not [...]
A device which sends tiny electric shocks to the brain to stimulate neurons could one day be at least as useful to people with anxiety and depression as antidepressants, Curtin University researchers hope. The university's Patrick Clarke said small electrical currents were being used to directly stimulate underperforming parts of the depressive brain and numb [...]
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 [...]
