Sleep Deprivation v. Depression
From the NYT Opinionator section, In Sleepless Nights, a Hope for Treating Depression–post-partum depression, at least. (Since when did new moms get a lot of sleep anyway?)
Sleep deprivation used as a treatment for depression is efficacious and robust: it works quickly, is relatively easy to administer, inexpensive, relatively safe and it also alleviates other types of clinical depression. Sleep deprivation can elevate your mood even if you are not depressed, and can induce euphoria. This throws a new light on insomnia.
But don’t try this at home:
[P]rolonged sleep deprivation is not exactly a desirable state; it leads to cognitive defects, such as reduced working memory and impaired decision making. Finally, depression recurs after the mother, inevitably, succumbs to sleep, even for a short nap.
Sleepeating
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 binge on junk food…
Magnet v. Moral Compass
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 their brains were not being magnetically scrambled. It seems that when unable to infer the motives and actions of another, they had to rely only on outcomes to tell them if their own actions were ethical.
The Depression Debate
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.
Exercise v. Depression and Anxiety
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 anger,” Smits says. “Exercise appears to affect, like an antidepressant, particular neurotransmitter systems in the brain, and it helps patients with depression re-establish positive behaviors. For patients with anxiety disorders, exercise reduces their fears of fear and related bodily sensations such as a racing heart and rapid breathing.”
Psych Tests
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 magazine psych quiz.
Family Time Increase
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.
Help for Binge Eating
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 the study attended eight therapy sessions over the course of 12 weeks in which counselors explained the rationale for cognitive behavioral therapy and helped participants apply the strategies in the book.
Social Anxiety Resources
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. |
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| Social Phobia/Social Anxiety Association – http://www.socialphobia.org/ Non-profit organization, seeking to educate the public about social phobia, the most common anxiety disorder. |
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| Shake Your Shyness – http://www.shakeyourshyness.com Tips for overcoming shyness, recommended reading, links, and treatment resources for children and adults. |
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| Berent Associates Center For Social Therapy – http://www.social-anxiety.com Informational pages and self-assessment tools regarding shyness, social anxiety, social phobia, panic attacks, selective mutism, self-esteem and related problems. |
| The Social Anxiety Network – http://www.social-anxiety-network.com Defines, describes, and provides treatment alternatives for social anxiety disorder (social phobia). Articles, self-help books, audio tapes, a mailing list, a chat room, and therapeutic information is provided. |
CBT for Anxiety
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)