From the NYT, a portrait of a malady: Raiding the refrigerator, but still asleep. Shirley Koecheler, 54, has been a sleepwalker for as long as she can remember. But it wasn’t until she got married that she started eating in her sleep, too. She’d wander into the kitchen — eyes open but asleep — and […]
The Los Angeles Times reports on an MIT study that shows a magnetic pulse interfering with basic moral judgments. Sounds made up, but evidently it’s science: With their right temporoparietal junctions scrambled, participants seemed unable to recognize an action as wrong unless it led to harm — a moral judgment that virtually all could make easily when
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A while back, I linked to Louis Menand’s big New Yorker article about the history of depression treatment. Didn’t read it? Here’s a conversation about the piece–The Depression Debate–in a podcast from the magazine’s website. Meds, placebos, Freud, CBT, and depression itself all come under the microscope.
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A Boston University meta-analysis (a study of studies) confirms what you may have already suspected if you’ve ever jogged around the block or done a few sit-ups when anxious, depressed, stressed, or angry–exercise is good for your mental health. “Individuals who exercise report fewer symptoms of anxiety and depression, and lower levels of stress and
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Are you anxious or depressed? Maybe you meet criteria for Bipolar Disorder, ADHD, or an Eating Disorder. PsychCentral aims to let you know with this long list of free psychological tests and quizzes. Test have been “scientifically reviewed,” the page says. Not sure exactly what that means, but they do seem better than your average
Family time is on the rise. Relayed by the NYT: Working parents perpetually agonize that they don’t see enough of their children. But a surprising new study finds that mothers and fathers alike are doing a better job than they think, spending far more time with their families than did parents of earlier generations.
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A study reported at PsychCentral used CBT and bibliotherapy (“read this”) to help reduce binge eating with good results. [Participants were] asked to read the book Overcoming Binge Eating by Dr. Christopher Fairburn…The book details scientific information about binge eating and then outlines a six-step self-help program using self-monitoring, self-control and problem-solving strategies. Participants in
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Help with social anxiety on the web courtesy of Google Health [a discontinued Google arm]. Questionnaires, assessments, information aplenty. The Shyness Home Page – http://www.shyness.com/ Links to resources; information about The Shyness Institute in Palo Alto, California. Social Phobia/Social Anxiety Association – http://www.socialphobia.org/ Non-profit organization, seeking to educate the public about social phobia, the most common anxiety
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Curious about Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and its approach to anxiety? Take a look at this 106-page info and worksheet pack posted by the University of Huddersfield. Lays it out clearly and simply–might be helpful. Here’s the complete packet, “Working to Overcome Anxiety.” (via Therapy Worksheets)
Strong reactions from depression/medication/flying-wary net commenters to a story that the FAA has changed policy and now will allow pilots to take one of four approved antidepressants. The story, from MSNBC: “We need to change the culture and remove the stigma associated with depression,” Babbitt said. “Pilots should be able to get the medical treatment
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