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Having access to nature during COVID-19 lockdowns is important for mental health. Researchers in Europe found that those living in European countries with strict COVID-19 lockdown policies were more likely to have symptoms of anxiety and depression. [More]

Levels of anxiety among young people in Britain doubled during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic and first lockdown. Researchers say the findings could have implications for young people around the world grappling with the same challenges during COVID-19. [More]

Americans living in a state that favours the losing candidate of the US Presidential election might experience a decline in their mental health. A study from researchers at UC San Francisco and Duke University used data from 500 thousand people during the 2016 Presidential election to examine mental health indicators. Americans who lived in states that favoured Hillary Clinton experienced an extra half-day of poor mental health on average during the month after the election. [More]

Americans are overwhelmed with multiple sources of stress. According to the American Psychological Association (APA), the United States is facing a national mental health crisis that could have consequences well into the future. [More]

A new study looked at the treatment of insured children (average age 12) after they experience a first mental health episode. Most of these children were experiencing anxiety or depression. “We looked at the treatment of these children received in the three months after the incident and focused on whether they had received any follow-up care in that interval, whether they received any therapy, and the types of drugs they received if they received drugs,” study author Janet Currie told us. [More]

Infertility is defined as a person not being able to conceive or become pregnant after one year of unprotected sex. About one in six couples in Canada experience infertility. According the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in the United States, about 12 per cent of women aged 15-44 have difficulty becoming pregnant. Mental health struggles can follow a couple’s journey of attempting to become pregnant. Studies have shown that after one year of infertility, a woman is twice as likely to become depressed. Research has also shown that high anxiety can deter a woman’s changes of becoming pregnant. A new study published in PLOS One looked at the psychological impact of fertility treatment suspensions during the COVID-19 pandemic. [More]

A new memoir by environmental journalist Jeremy Leon Hance, incorporates travel, humor and mental illness. “I didn’t want to write a book about mental illness that was a downer or defeating, but rather I wanted to tell the story of how people actually live with chronic mental illness day by day, because so many of us do,” author Hance told us. “And sometimes, especially when you’re ten thousand miles from home, chasing endangered species through rainforests, it can be funny. I don’t shy away from some of the dark places our mental health struggles can take us, but try to tell a story of how a person moves forward, even if hesitantly, and does what’s important to them.” [More]

A study from researchers at the University of Toronto found that those with suboptimal mental health died earlier than their counterparts with excellent mental health. Those who were in excellent mental health when the study started in the mid-1990s lived almost five months longer than their peers who were in poorer mental health. [More]

According to a recent study, long-term use of antidepressants can create physical dependence and severe withdrawal symptoms for patients who want to stop their treatment. This is a concern for people who wish to stop their antidepressant use and the physicians who prescribe. [More]

About 55 million women in the United States use oral contraception and 98 per cent of U.S. women have used birth control at some point. Most women use oral contraception as their method of birth control. The World Health Organization (WHO) considers oral contraception as an essential medicine. Some women stop taking birth control because it affects their moods. A new study recently published in Scientific Reports aimed to look at the effects of oral contraception on hormones and how that may affect mood. [More]