CBT v. Loneliness
Science Daily: Addressing Negative Thoughts Most Effective in Fighting Loneliness
[T]he four interventions that helped people break the cycle of negative thoughts about self-worth and how people perceive them were the most effective at reducing loneliness. Studies that used cognitive-behavioral therapy, a technique also used for treating depression, eating disorders and other problems, were found to be particularly effective.
Just a Coincidence
New at YANSS: The Texas Sharpshooter Fallacy.
The Misconception: You take randomness into account when determining cause and effect.
The Truth: You tend to ignore random chance when the results seem meaningful or when you want a random event to have a meaningful cause.
The fallacy gets its name from imagining a cowboy shooting at a barn. Over time, the side of the barn becomes riddled with holes. In some places there are lots of them, in others there are few. If the cowboy later paints a bullseye over a spot where his bullet holes clustered together it looks like he is pretty good with a gun.
Hillhurst Psychotherapy
Thinking about individual or couples therapy? My primary office is at Hillhurst and Ambrose in Los Feliz (right next to Nature Mart, across from Albertson’s/The Coffee Bean). It’s very easily reached from Silver Lake, Echo Park, Glendale, Eagle Rock, Atwater Village, Hollywood…
If you’re further west or south, I also see people in Beverly Hills, 90211, at an office near Olympic and Robertson.
Call (323) 610-0112 to discuss your situation and make an appointment.
Music Therapy?
PsychCentral: Music Prescription for Depression
Researchers are investigating how the emotionally soothing effect of music can augment the treatment of depression and the management of physical pain…This could make it possible, within a few years, to develop computer programs which identify pieces of music that will influence a individual’s mood (e.g. to motivate them when exercising or when studying for exams), meet their emotional needs and help them cope better with physical pain.
People v. Problems
From Wired: Alcohol can increase longevity…but why?
In recent years, sociologists and epidemiologists have begun studying the long-term effects of loneliness. It turns out to be really dangerous. We are social primates, and when we’re cut off from the social network, we are more likely to die from just about everything (but especially heart disease). At this point, the link between abstinence and social isolation is merely hypothetical. But given the extensive history of group drinking – it’s what we do when we come together – it seems likely that drinking in moderation makes it easier for us develop and nurture relationships. And it these relationships that help keep us alive.
What is CBT?
A new page on the site begins to describe Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and links to the list of Cognitive Distortions and a blank ABCD Thought Log.
For everything–description, Cognitive Distortions, and Thought Log–in one package, click here (pdf).
Interested in trying CBT? Call to discuss and make an appointment: (323) 610-0112.
Postpartum Depression (for Dads Too)
Study: Fathers As Well As Mothers Have Higher Depression Risk During First Year Of Child Being Born
Approximately one-fifth of all fathers and over one third of all mothers experience an episode of depression within the first 12 years of their child being born, with the first year having the highest risk, says a British study
Free Therapy?
Yes, free therapy: The monthly Free CBT Clinic at the Southern California Counseling Center runs again today (Sept. 5, 2010) at 2 – 6pm. No appointment necessary. Just show up, get a free consultation: 5615 W. Pico Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90019. Future dates are announced on the clinic’s Facebook page.
Debt v. Romance
NYT: How Debt Can Destroy a Budding Relationship.
Nobody likes unpleasant surprises, but when Allison Brooke Eastman’s fiancé found out four months ago just how high her student loan debt was, he had a particularly strong reaction: he broke off the engagement within three days…
Walking and Deciding
A pair of studies from Science Daily: