March 29, 2022
by Elizabeth Pratt
Stress in the United States is at an all time high, according to a poll conducted on behalf of the American Psychological Association (APA).
The poll showed that top sources of stress for people in the United States were an increase in prices due to inflation, issues with the supply chain, global uncertainty and Russia invading Ukraine.
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February 28, 2022
by Elizabeth Pratt
A significant number of people who die by suicide may have undiagnosed autism.
Researchers from the University of Cambridge’s Autism Research Centre and the University of Nottingham found in a study that a notable number of people who die by suicide have evidence of autistic traits at elevated levels.
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February 27, 2022
by Elizabeth Pratt
Those living with disabilities during the COVID-19 pandemic are experiencing high levels of depression and anxiety.
Researchers from Yale, Oregon State University, Olin College of Engineering, Hiram College and Macalester College found that there has been a significant increase in the number of people with disabilities living with depression since the start of the pandemic.
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February 15, 2022
by Patricia Tomasi
March 5th is Dissociative Identity Disorder Awareness Day. Dissociative Identity Disorder or DID for short, is the body-mind response to chronic childhood trauma. When a child experiences abuse or other forms of trauma on a regular basis, often perpetrated by caregivers or loved ones, he/she has no escape and unconsciously draws on this coping strategy. A new memoir titled, Crazy: Reclaiming Life from the Shadow of Traumatic Memory, by author, Lyn Barrett, looks at her life identifying and healing from DID. Barrett is a retired school teacher, principal, and pastor.
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February 8, 2022
by Patricia Tomasi
A new study published in PLOS One looked at depression, anxiety, and happiness in dog owners and potential dog owners during the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States. “Our study is about the role dogs may have played on owners’ psychological wellbeing when most of the USA was under lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic,” study author Francois Martin told us. “We wanted to know if dog owners would show less signs of depression and anxiety, and if they would report a greater sense of wellbeing.”
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February 1, 2022
by Patricia Tomasi
A new study published in the Lancet Planetary Health Journal looked at a global survey on climate anxiety in children and young people and their beliefs about government responses to climate change. “We know from smaller studies that young people around the world experience climate anxiety and we also know that young people can feel betrayed by those in power who are failing to act on the climate crisis,” study author Elizabeth Marks told us. “However, large scale research was lacking and we wanted to know how widespread these experiences are.”
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January 31, 2022
by Elizabeth Pratt
Botulinum toxin is a medicine that is often used for wrinkles, to help ease migraines, for muscle spasms, and to assist with incontinence.
Now research published in Scientific Reports has found that people who had botox injections across four different areas of the body reported less anxiety than their peers.
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January 18, 2022
by Patricia Tomasi
Carter Weinstein is a freshman at Georgetown University and the author of Conquering Fear: One Teen's Guide to Overcoming Anxiety. Weinstein believes so many teens have anxiety currently because of increasing stress due to the pandemic. “Teens today have an unprecedented amount of stress due to an immense amount of schoolwork, social pressure, and academic competition and college preparation,” Weinstein told us. "Teens are prone to have anxiety already, thus the pandemic (restricting them from seeing their friends, secluding them behind a screen, etc.) has only made matters worse.”
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December 21, 2021
by Patricia Tomasi
New research presented at the 59th Annual European Society for Paediatric Endocrinology Meeting looked at the link between an increased risk of heart disease and stress hormone sensitivity. The study has been published in the Journal of Hormone Research in Paediatrics. “In clinical practice, healthy subjects are characterized by differences in glucocorticoid sensitivity that may influence the therapeutic outcome and any adverse effects of synthetic glucocorticoids,” study author Nicolas C. Nicolaides told us. “Thus, it would be very helpful for clinicians to have a fast and accurate methodology that would enable the classification of individuals based on their tissue sensitivity to glucocorticoids."
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December 16, 2021
by Elizabeth Pratt
Despite global upheaval during the COVID-19 pandemic, suicide rates in the United States fell during 2020.
The downward trend in suicide rates mirrors what occurred in the Spanish Flu pandemic in 1918-1920. But researchers are warning that challenges still remain in addressing the impacts of COVID-19 among disadvantaged communities.
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