Media Reports
Links to transcripts of relevant print, television and radio reports (mainly Australian based). Where full text transcripts are not available a summary may be provided.
Survival: Melissa Lucashenko
Date Published: Tuesday, 23rd September 2008
Source: ABC - Life Matters
Full story: online here
If you were told you were a 'great survivor', would you see that as a compliment? But what if you told someone you were 'just surviving'? That's something different.
The idea of survival is explored in a lecture being given this week by writer Melissa Lucashenko, the author of the novel Steam Pigs, about urban Aboriginal Australia. She has also written award-winning books for young people. She says 'survivalist thinking' is a scourge.
The guards' story
Date Published: Monday, 15th September 2008
Source: ABC - Four Corners
Full story: online here
Woomera and Baxter detention centres, pitched in desert to confine thousands of people from across the seas, have outlived their idea. But the tragic accounts of severely damaged asylum-seekers were widely reported in the media. Not so those of the men and women who ran the centres, whose job was to keep order in tense, often overcrowded conditions among traumatised people from alien cultures.
The detention centre guards, frequently ill-fitted to the task and tormented by a past they cannot escape, are forgotten casualties.
Workplace incivility
Date Published: Thursday, 11th September 2008
Source: ABC - Life Matters
Full story: online here
Do you work with nice people? Christine Pearson, from the Thunderbird School Of Global Management in Arizona, has been researching the effects of the opposite of 'good' behaviour at work - incivility.
Workplace incivility is 'lower key' than bullying or harrassment but its cost - both personal and business - are significant.
Helping your loved one overcome depression: Lucy Brogden and Graeme Cowan
Date Published: Tuesday, 9th September 2008
Source: ABC - Life Matters
Full story: online here
When someone you're close to is suffering from depression or another mental illness, they can be hard to love. Graeme Cowan, a depression sufferer, has written a new book for carers of people with depression based on surveys and hundreds of interviews.
Richard Aedy speaks with Graeme and someone who knows about the importance of a partner's role, Lucy Brogden, the wife of John Brogden, former NSW Liberal Opposition leader. She speaks about the changes she noticed in her husband, what she learned about depression and how she tried to help him.
Daughters and their Dads
Date Published: Tuesday, 2nd September 2008
Source: ABC - Life Matters
Full story: online here
Dr Bruce Robinson is co-leader of the Fathering Project team at the University of Western Australia. He says fathers can do a great deal to develop their daughters' confidence, career choices and successful relationships with men. And he says fathers need to learn to listen to their daughters.
Let's get to work
Date Published: Thursday, 21st August 2008
Source: ABC - Life Matters
Full story: online here
The latest research on helping people with mental illness to get a job shows there are specific strategies that really work. The Mental Health Council of Australia believes this is a group of people in the community whose skills are simply being wasted by current employment policies.
The wealthy healthy: wellbeing's social determinants
Date Published: Friday, 15th August 2008
Source: ABC - The National Interest
Full story: online here
What makes us healthy, and what keeps us well? And can societies be made healthier? In this special broadcast from the 2008 Fulbright Symposium in Adelaide, the National Interest explores the social factors underpinning health. So, we're examining how things like public transport or housing policy, the tax system or education spending, can all add up to improve our health.
Prolonged grief disorder
Date Published: Tuesday, 12th August 2008
Source: ABC - Life Matters
Full story: online here
When someone we love dies, words often can't express the sadness and loss we feel, sometimes for a long time afterwards. There are now studies showing that 10 to 15 per cent of people who experience prolonged grief suffer from it in a way that makes them withdraw socially and become depressed or even suicidal. It's called prolonged grief disorder.
A team of researchers at the University of NSW in Sydney believe there's evidence to show that cognitive behavioural therapy can help people recover.
Post traumatic stress disorder
Date Published: Monday, 11th August 2008
Source: ABC - Health Report
Full story: online here
A special feature about post traumatic stress disorder, which is very timely after the arrest of Radovan Karadzic, the Bosnian Serb leader. It's an extraordinary story of the lessons learned from the war in Bosnia, treating the psychological trauma in adolescence.
Being your own therapist - Buddhist style
Date Published: Saturday, 9th August 2008
Source: ABC - All in the Mind
Full story: online here
Venerable Robina Courtin, acclaimed Australian Tibetan Buddhist nun, has excavated the suffering mind at its greatest depths of despair. Founder of the Liberation Prison Project, she's helped thousands of inmates release themselves from the prison within (their mind) using Buddhist techniques. We can all be our own therapist is their powerful claim.
Coping with chronic disease
Date Published: Thursday, 31st July 2008
Source: ABC - The Pulse
Full story: online here
Half of all Australians over 65 have a chronic illness. What makes some succumb to despair, and others adjust and even improve their lives?
Work life balance still elusive
Date Published: Tuesday, 29th July 2008
Source: ABC - Life Matters
Full story: online here
A report released today shows that work life balance still eludes most of us. In a survey of nearly three thousand people, more than half felt rushed for time, and a quarter felt they didn't have enough time for family and friends.
Holding men
Date Published: Wednesday, 23rd July 2008
Source: ABC - Life Matters
Full story: online here
Brian McCoy is a a Jesuit priest who's worked in indigenous communities for many decades. He believe that the indigenous concept of 'holding men' or Kanyirninpa - supporting and nurturing them through childhood and adolescence - is vital in improving health outcomes and 'closing the gap'.
Attachment and childcare
Date Published: Tuesday, 22nd July 2008
Source: ABC - Life Matters
Full story: online here
A pilot project aimed at enhancing the relationship between at risk parents and their young children is claiming major success. 'Through the Looking Glass', a Commonwealth funded project, operated through five childcare centres across Australia. Its evaluation found that as well as enhancing the attachment between parent and child, it also improved both the mothers' and children's wellbeing.
Michael Marmot: health inequities.
Date Published: Saturday, 12th July 2008
Source: ABC - Radio National Saturday Extra
Full story: online here
Professor Marmot is a leading international researcher on health inequities. Poor health outcomes are 'not confined to people in poverty'; many factors like chances in early life, levels of education and housing, and quality of work also play a part.
When grief goes beyond the blues
Date Published: Thursday, 10th July 2008
Source: ABC - News in Science
Full story: online here
For most people the passage of time helps rebuild lives after losing a loved one, but for others it may takeover their lives and need specific treatment, say Australian researchers. Researchers from the Traumatic Stress Clinic at the University of New South Wales (UNSW) and Westmead Hospital are testing a new way to deliver cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT), a type of psychotherapy known to be effective for depression and anxiety.
Being bipolar
Date Published: Tuesday, 8th July 2008
Source: ABC - Life Matters
Full story: online here
Louise O'Connor has gone from a position of helping other people get their lives back on track to desperately needing help herself. Louise talks about the experience of having bipolar disorder, how it was first diagnosed, how it affects her daily life and the importance of support from family and friends, exercise, routine and minimising stress.
Tackling stress in the workplace brings rewards
Date Published: Monday, 7th July 2008
Source: Press Association (via Mental Health Foundation)
Full story: online here
Work-related stress is a major cause of occupational ill health and businesses which do not tackle this serious health and safety issue are likely to see a high level of sickness absence and staff turnover and a poor performance level. The UK Health and Safety Executive says that research carried out in this area suggests that work-related stress accounts for more than one third of all new incidences of ill health and that each such case of stress, depression or anxiety leads to an average loss of 30.2 working days.
NAIDOC Week and the health of Aboriginal men
Date Published: Sunday, 6th July 2008
Source: ABC - Speaking Out
Full story: online here
The program features Ben Mitchell, (interim co-Chairman of the National Committee) talking about this year's theme and what to expect in Canberra. Jesuit Priest and medical anthropologist, Brian McCoy discusses his book "Holding Men -Kanyirninpa and the health of Aboriginal Men" which explores how Aboriginal men of the Kimberley Western Desert understand their lives, health and culture. And George Lee, the Director of the Balgo Men's Health Project talks about the challenges facing Aboriginal men's health in the region and why Indigenous men want to be listened to when it comes to their well-being.
What's happening to our girls?
Date Published: Thursday, 3rd July 2008
Source: ABC - Life Matters
Full story: online here
There's a very hot debate these days about sexualisation and the targeting of young women by popular culture and marketing. Writer Maggie Hamilton spent two years talking to experts and has done interviews with more than a hundred young girls about the pressures facing them. She believes this generation is being 'overstimulated, oversold and oversexed'.
Mobile monitoring: am I depressed?
Date Published: Wednesday, 2nd July 2008
Source: ABC - Life Matters
Full story: online here
When you've been through one -- or more -- episodes of debilitating depression, the possibility of relapse can be a niggling (even frightening) fact of life. But what if help, through constant monitoring of your wellbeing, was available...compliments of your mobile phone? A system under development at the Black Dog Institute aims to make this form of early intervention possible.
Children of depressive mothers suffer development delays
Date Published: Friday, 27th June 2008
Source: Press Association (via Mental Health Foundation)
Full story: online here
Research from the UK suggests that children whose mothers suffer depression in pregnancy are 34% more likely to experience delays to their development. The authors (from the Centre for Child and Adolescent Health at the University of the West of England) said they found an association between "persistent depression during pregnancy and developmental delay, with a 50% increase in the odds of developmental delay associated with persistent antenatal depression". The findings could better inform health workers treating pregnant women.
Confident kids, healthy adults
Date Published: Thursday, 26th June 2008
Source: ABC - The Pulse
Full story: online here
Kids with high levels of confidence and self-control are more likely to be healthy in adulthood, say UK researchers.
Do you get annoyed when your child refuses a goodnight kiss, claiming they're too old? When they say it's their room, and you're trespassing? A child like this, who oozes self-confidence and self-control, is more likely to be fit and well in middle age - the time when he or she begins to realise just what a good parent you actually were all those years ago.
Working
Date Published: Monday, 23rd June 2008
Source: ABC - Perspective
Full story: online here
Whilst Australia's unemployment levels are at an almost record low, there remains one group of people in the community for whom the rate of unemployment stands at a staggering 75%. They are people who suffer from a mental illness.
Social investment: Robert Salter
Date Published: Tuesday, 10th June 2008
Source: ABC - Perspective
Full story: online here
People are disadvantaged by a host of factors - mental illness, disability, childhood neglect, domestic violence, addiction to substances, failure at school, long-term unemployment, homelessness, involvement in crime, or just plain poverty. The list is familiar. But in every one of these categories there are proven solutions that enable people affected by these circumstances to turn their lives around. And if they do, we all benefit.
This interview with Robert Salter, social policy researcher working in conjunction with the Salvation Army and the University of Melbourne's McCaughey Centre, shows how social investment pays off for all of us. For the full transcript go to ABC - Perspective, 10th June 2008
Separated men and 'presenteeism'
Date Published: Tuesday, 10th June 2008
Source: ABC - Life Matters
Full story: online here
The impact of relationships breaking down isn't often measured in terms of the impact on business bottom-line.
Dr Nick Foster from Mensline, a specialist men's telephone counselling service, wants to raise awareness of absenteeism and 'presenteeism' in the male workforce, caused directly by the depression that many men develop when their relationships end.
Asylum process 'causing new mental health condition'
Date Published: Thursday, 29th May 2008
Source: ABC - News
Full story: online here
A team of Australian psychiatrists has identified what they believe is a new mental health condition in asylum seekers.
The researchers say they're seeing a unique combination of depression, psychoses and anxiety in asylum seekers, and say the cause has less to do with the trauma of fleeing from a home country and more to do with the lengthy process of obtaining asylum in Australia.
Under pressure: Carl Honore on hyper-parenting
Date Published: Wednesday, 21st May 2008
Source: ABC - Life Matters
Full story: online here
We've had slow food and slow living and now there's a call for "slow parenting".
Carl Honore, author of "In Praise of Slow" has now written "Under Pressure" to highlight the culture of hyper-parenting.
He's challenging the pressure of modern parenting, it's a pressure he's all too familiar with himself.
The science of happiness
Date Published: Saturday, 17th May 2008
Source: ABC - All in the Mind
Full story: online here
The pursuit of happiness is a global obsession. But can science investigate its slippery, subjective nature? Five world leaders in the field join Natasha Mitchell in conversation: neuroscientist Richard Davidson, Buddhist monk Matthieu Ricard, Buddhist scholar B. Alan Wallace, psychologist Daniel Gilbert and philosopher David Chalmers.
To be or not to be (Part 1)
Date Published: Saturday, 17th May 2008
Source: ABC - Philosophers Zone
Full story: online here
Suicide has been a focus of philosophical examination in the West since at least the time of Plato, and for good reason. It raises a lot of difficult questions. What makes behaviour suicidal? Is suicidal behaviour rational and - the question that has obsessed philosophers down the ages - is it morally permissible? This week, the first part of a two-part investigation of this enigmatic and disconcerting phenomenon.
Faith and depression
Date Published: Sunday, 11th May 2008
Source: ABC - Encounter
Full story: online here
Are you allowed to be depressed while you're sitting in church? What might happen to someone's depression as they sit in church? Is there a possibility that religious faith could help people who are depressed, or does religion only make people more depressed? Sharmini Kumar presents an Encounter exploring themes of faith, depression, and the interaction between the two.
Daniel Fisher: recovery through uniting voices
Date Published: Wednesday, 7th May 2008
Source: ABC - Perspective
Full story: online here
Recovery faces a crisis in its transition from philosophy to reality. It runs the risk of being redefined by those who seek to maintain the status quo as mere remission and rehabilitation. From Daniel Fisher, Executive Director of USA's National Empowerment Centre.
Calls for better eating disorder prevention programs in schools
Date Published: Saturday, 3rd May 2008
Source: ABC - AM
Full story: online here
There are calls for high schools to run better programs to prevent girls developing eating disorders. A survey of Australian girls found that that 10 per cent of those aged between 15 and 17 show symptoms of a serious eating disorder.
The genetically modified smile
Date Published: Thursday, 1st May 2008
Source: ABC- The Pulse
Full story: online here
Half all happiness is in the genes, say psychologists. But genes are only half of the story. People with negative personality characteristics who are naturally unhappy can improve their levels of happiness by actively adopting the positive traits: by making an effort to be sociable and conscientious.
Studies show, for example, that when people set themselves goals and work towards achieving them, their happiness levels quickly rise.
2020 Summit - health strategies
Date Published: Monday, 21st April 2008
Source: ABC - Health Report
Full story: online here
Norman Swan talks with Professor Michael Good, Head of the Queensland Institute of Medical Research and chair of the National Health and Medical Research Council. Professor Good was the co-chair of the 2020 Summit health section.
Prognosis: consensus for health forum
Date Published: Saturday, 19th April 2008
Source: ABC - AM
Full story: online here
What the priorities are for health and where the money should be spent is the focus of this group at the 2020 Summit...some opinions aired included:
"There's no health without mental health. We've got to get the health idea and debate right"..."We have to remember that health is about wellness as well illness. And we need to ensure that people remain well. But also need to treat those people that are ill, which is the main function of the health system. That means looking after the people who need the help but also the people that do the caring".
Youth homelessness prevention
Date Published: Wednesday, 9th April 2008
Source: ABC - Life Matters
Full story: online here
A key recommendation of 'Australia's Homeless Youth', the major report released yesterday, is that an early intervention program called Reconnect be trebled.
Reconnect works with young people and their families when the young person is thinking of leaving home, or has recently done so.
Angels and demons
Date Published: Monday, 7th April 2008
Source: ABC - Enough Rope
Full story: online here
Andrew Denton visits the TheMHS Conference and interviews participants about their experiences with mental illness. Full transcripts, videos and forums available online.
Eat healthy, walk more: the difference between knowing and doing
Date Published: Thursday, 3rd April 2008
Source: ABC - Life Matters
Full story: online here
"If governments spent more on preventative medicine, future health costs will be reduced". How many times have you heard this argued?
Jeremy Sammut from the Centre For Independent Studies disagrees. He's been studying reports of the outcomes of public health campaigns and has concluded that there's a big difference between knowing what to do and doing it.
Cyber-bullying project
Date Published: Wednesday, 2nd April 2008
Source: ABC - Life Matters
Full story: online here
Most schools now have anti-bullying programs. But are they effective against cyber-bullying? According to the Western Australian Education Minister, up to 15% of students have been harassed over the Internet or by mobile phone.
The government is funding a five-year study to find out how to reduce cyber-bullying.
Don't stress
Date Published: Tuesday, 1st April 2008
Source: ABC - Health and Wellbeing
Full story: online here
Impossible work deadlines, a sick child, rising interest rates, traffic gridlock - it's all enough to make you sick. And it often does, unless you know how to manage the tension.
Ethics at work
Date Published: Tuesday, 1st April 2008
Source: ABC - Life Matters
Full story: online here
How hard is it to be ethical at work? And is it a valuable workplace skill anyway? Philosophy Professor Jeff Malpas argues that skills associated with making ethical decisions will be at a premium in the workforce of the future.
Don't stress
Date Published: Tuesday, 1st April 2008
Source: ABC - Health and Wellbeing
Full story: online here
Impossible work deadlines, a sick child, rising interest rates, traffic gridlock - it's all enough to make you sick. And it often does, unless you know how to manage the tension.
Living with a black dog: Matthew and Ainsley Johnstone
Date Published: Monday, 31st March 2008
Source: ABC - Life Matters
Full story: online here
The dog we're talking about represents depression for Matthew and Ainsley. It's very much a beast, but one that can be brought to heel.
Matthew and Ainsley Johnstone have combined to write an illustrated guide to living with the black dog.
Teens and lying
Date Published: Monday, 31st March 2008
Source: ABC - Life Matters
Full story: online here
Most children lie and they learn it from their parents. But what about teenagers? It turns out that having more arguments about rules and boundaries may lead to less deceit.
And mothers can detect a lie around sixty per cent of the time.
Your irrational mind
Date Published: Saturday, 29th March 2008
Source: ABC - All in the Mind
Full story: online here
Like it or not, you're not the beast of reason you think you are. Dan Ariely, a behavioural economist at MIT, argues that we're surprisingly and predictably irrational. Sex, freebies, expectations, placebos, price: they all cloud our better judgment in rather sobering ways.
Sick notes should be replaced with 'fit notes' (UK)
Date Published: Monday, 17th March 2008
Source: BBC - News
Full story: online here
Dame Carol Black, the national director for health and work (UK), said ill-health was costing the economy 100 billion pounds a year.
A new report from the director called for a new fit-note system as well as fit for work schemes embedded in the health system to help people back to work. She said '100 billion sounds a large figure. But I think the cost to human life is much larger. For most people their work is a key factor in their self-worth, family esteem and identity. We must do more to help people, because if you intervene at an early stage you can stop the longer-term problems emerging.'
Male-specific counselling
Date Published: Monday, 17th March 2008
Source: ABC - Life Matters
Full story: online here
Men have never used counselling and other relationship services as much as women. With separated men now required by law to draw up parenting plans, the imperative for men to be engaged in such services is stronger than ever.
Prevention of early childhood behavioural problems
Date Published: Monday, 3rd March 2008
Source: ABC - Health Report
Full story: online here
A study from Melbourne investigated whether a parenting program, offered universally in primary care, can prevent behavioural problems in children and also improve parenting and maternal mental health.
Aggressive teens have mismatched brains
Date Published: Tuesday, 26th February 2008
Source: ABC - Science Online
Full story: online here
Angst-ridden teens really do have something wrong with their heads. Their emotions seem to be developing much faster than the parts of the brain that manage those emotions. The findings should offer some comfort to parents trying to understand why their once-cheerful children are suddenly transformed into sulky, over-sensitive strangers, especially since this mismatch is usually resolved by the time the brain finishes developing in the mid-20s.
Teen angst linked to brain development
Date Published: Tuesday, 26th February 2008
Source: ABC - News Online
Full story: online here
If you are dealing with a moody, whingeing teenager today - take heart. New research has found there is a physical reason for it. Better yet, it is just a phase that they are likely to grow out of.
Researchers at the University of Melbourne, working with American colleagues, scanned the brains of nearly 140 11 to 14-year olds, catching them just before the age when true teenage angst tends to emerge. They also monitored them as they tried to resolve a conflict with their parents.
Step families
Date Published: Monday, 25th February 2008
Source: ABC - Life Matters
Full story: online here
More people will experience life in a step family, either as a parent or as a child and it's a special challenge to make them work. Step families are at a greater risk of relationship breakdown yet they're less likely to seek professional help. But why should that be so and what's the new thinking on what works best for step families?
Changing men
Date Published: Monday, 25th February 2008
Source: ABC - Four Corners
Full story: online here
One in five Australian women - perhaps your workmate, or your neighbour or your friend - knows the humiliation and terror of domestic violence. And every five days, on average, a woman is killed by her partner.
Across Australia hundreds of men are now fronting new voluntary programs which are claiming modest success in changing their ways. The men are challenged to own up to their abuse and its dire impact on their families, then to find better ways to communicate and modify their controlling behaviour.
Greening the psyche
Date Published: Saturday, 16th February 2008
Source: ABC - All in the Mind
Full story: online here
Intuitively we sense that nature relaxes us - even small pockets of green in the concrete urban jungle seem to make a difference. But finding good scientific evidence for how and why has been more difficult - until now. Crime rates, academic performance, aggression and even ADHD: could a bit of greening make all the difference?
Apology to help ease Indigenous hurt
Date Published: Tuesday, 12th February 2008
Source: ABC - News in Science
Full story: online here
An apology from the Australian federal government to Indigenous Australians affected by the forced removal of children from their families will be a starting point for improving Indigenous mental health, experts say.
Professor of population mental health and disasters at the University of Western Sydney, Beverley Raphael, says apologies are an important part of the healing process for victims of trauma.
Doing anger differently: adolescent boys
Date Published: Tuesday, 5th February 2008
Source: ABC - Life Matters
Full story: online here
Learning to handle anger is part of growing up, especially in adolescence. But at worst, anger combined with aggression can wreck educational opportunities and life chances. Michael Currie has been working with adolescent boys and schools for more than 20 years and he argues there is a different way of 'doing' anger.
Suicide risk factors consistent across nations
Date Published: Thursday, 31st January 2008
Source: Harvard University Press Release (via Mental Health Foundaton)
Full story: online here
Risk factors for suicidal thoughts, plans and attempts are consistent across countries, and include having a mental disorder and being female, younger, less educated, and unmarried. So says new research from a Harvard University professor and the World Health Organization (WHO) World Mental Health Survey Initiative. The study examined both the prevalence and the risk factors for suicide across 17 countries, and is the largest, most representative examination of suicidal behavior ever conducted.
Helping children cope with stress
Date Published: Monday, 28th January 2008
Source: ABC - Health and Wellbeing
Full story: online here
When schools and parents work together, even sensitive kids can be taught to deal with life's ups and downs. Fifty years ago psychologists believed resilience was somehow inborn, when they noticed a proportion of children who grew up in stressful environments developed well despite adversity. But there is evidence that resilience can be taught, enabling even the most vulnerable children to learn how to ride the waves of life.
Don't worry, be (moderately) happy, research suggests
Date Published: Thursday, 24th January 2008
Source: Mental Health Foundation UK - News Release
Full story: online here
Could the pursuit of happiness go too far? Most self-help books on the subject offer tips on how to maximize one's bliss, but a new study suggests that moderate happiness may be preferable to full-fledged elation. The researchers, from the University of Virginia, the University of Illinois and Michigan State University, looked at data from the World Values Survey, a large-scale analysis of economic, social, political and religious influences around the world.
Value of supporting people confirmed (UK)
Date Published: Wednesday, 16th January 2008
Source: Press Association (via Mental Health Foundation UK)
Full story: online here
The Supporting People programme is more than paying for itself through the positive impact it is having on the lives of the most vulnerable people in society, a new independent report has found. The government funded programme helps over a million people live independently in their homes at any one time including 800,000 older people, 40,000 single homeless people, 36,000 people with mental health problems and 8,000 women at risk of domestic violence.
The study found that an investment of £1.55bn in the programme delivers £2.77bn net financial benefits - through reduced costs in health services, tenancy failure, crime and residential care.
Back from the brink: recovering from depression
Date Published: Monday, 14th January 2008
Source: ABC - Life Matters
Full story: online here
Graeme Cowan has spoken with 12 Australians who have suffered from depression about their experiences of the illness and their recovery.
Disordered eating less common among teen girls who regularly eat family meals
Date Published: Monday, 7th January 2008
Source: Mental Health Foundation UK - News Release
Full story: online here
Adolescent girls who frequently eat meals with their families appear less likely to use diet pills, laxatives or other extreme measures to control their weight five years later, according to a report in the January issue of Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine.
Given the findings of this and other studies and the prevalence of disordered eating among teen girls, it is important to find ways to help families eat meals together, the authors note.
Walk away menopausal anxiety, stress and depression
Date Published: Thursday, 3rd January 2008
Source: Mental Health Foundation UK - News Release
Full story: online here
With more menopausal women seeking natural therapies to ease symptoms, a new study has found that simply adding a brisk walking routine can reduce a variety of psychological symptoms such as anxiety, stress and depression. The research is published in the January issue of Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise.
Sounds of Summer: Youth mental health
Date Published: Wednesday, 2nd January 2008
Source: ABC - PM
Full story: online here
In Australia, hundreds of thousands will suffer some sort of mental health problem before they reach the age of 25, with the problems ranging from temporary depression right through to bipolar disorder and schizophrenia.
Unlike physical ailments, mental illness isn't always obvious at first and many people have trouble accepting the symptoms.
Deep listening: working with Indigenous mental distress
Date Published: Saturday, 22nd December 2007
Source: ABC - All in the Mind
Full story: online here
'How do I get them to talk?' Hinted-at events, listening to the silence, roundabout stories. Mental health and other professionals inexperienced at working with Indigenous clients struggle with the limits of their cultural awareness, with language barriers and with the historical legacies of mistrust and misunderstanding. Cultural competency is more than sharing a joke. So what is it? And how can psychologists, doctors and others acquire it?
Mental health problems and substance abuse
Date Published: Monday, 10th December 2007
Source: ABC - Health Report
Full story: online here
A Co-morbidity Co-ordinated Forum, organised by the Alcohol and Drug Foundation, ACT, was held in Canberra last week. It brought together experts and practitioners from Australia and overseas to discuss initiatives of caring for people with psychiatric illnesses who also have a substance abuse problem.
One of the things that's incredibly common in people with mental illness and reduces the chances of recovery is alcohol and other drug use. And one of the things that's commonly associated with the abuse of alcohol and other drugs is mental illness which, in turn, makes it harder to give up the substances.
Youth mental health a hidden danger sign
Date Published: Friday, 30th November 2007
Source: ABC - Opinion
Full story: online here
The orthodox, or official, view of the health and wellbeing of young Australians is of continuing improvement. The official view draws largely on a continuing decline in mortality which underestimates the major contributions that non-fatal, chronic health problems now make to the burden of disease among young people. In important instances (such as depression, anxiety, diabetes), these problems are worsening.
Drinking away anxiety: a new program finds safer ways for college students to cope
Date Published: Monday, 26th November 2007
Source: Mental Health Foundation UK - News Release
Full story: online here
Researchers from the University of Cincinnati are reporting on a pilot program aimed at curbing alcohol abuse among college students. While prior studies have shown that a brief intervention using motivational interviewing helps reduce alcohol consumption or alcohol-related problems among college students, this study is the first to add strategies for coping with social anxiety in relation to alcohol intervention for college students.
Blood and popcorn
Date Published: Thursday, 22nd November 2007
Source: ABC - The Pulse
Full story: online here
Gory films and TV programs are pulling in audiences. But violence on the screen can have lasting effects, especially on kids and adolescents. There's a growing body of literature demonstrating that exposure to frightening content on television and in the movies is associated with intense emotional reactions that extend well beyond the time of viewing.
Self-esteem and our perception of the world around us
Date Published: Monday, 19th November 2007
Source: ABC - Health Report
Full story: online here
Research at Rutgers University in New Jersey has investigated how our self-esteem influences the way we perceive our environment. They also looked at self worth and the perceived closeness of threatening objects.
Attachment theory
Date Published: Monday, 19th November 2007
Source: ABC - Health Report
Full story: online here
Researchers at Rutgers University in New Jersey have investigated adult attachment and attitudes toward the mother. How we are brought up plays a significant role in how secure we feel and influences our attachment behaviour.
Archbishop raises childhood depression concerns
Date Published: Wednesday, 14th November 2007
Source: ABC - PM
Full story: online here
The Anglican Archbishop of Melbourne believes depression among young people is now so bad that many have effectively had their childhood stolen from them. Dr Philip Freier says society is making children stressed, forcing them to grow up too early and sexualising them. He's now calling for a national inquiry into the state of childhood in Australia.
Dr Mindfulness: science and the meditation boom
Date Published: Saturday, 10th November 2007
Source: ABC - All in the Mind
Full story: online here
Quiten your mind. Attend to the moment. Mindfulness based meditation is being touted as beneficial for any number of afflictions - from anxiety to asthma; social phobia to psoriasis. But what is it, and how can science scrutinize subjective states of mind? Three scientists at high powered institutions discuss how they've turned a personal passion into a professional investigation.
Mental health and young people
Date Published: Saturday, 10th November 2007
Source: ABC - Hack (Triple J)
Full story: online here
1 in 4 young people are likely to suffer from a a mental health problem and 3/4 of people with a mental health problem show the signs before they're 24. Which means tackling mental health is all about early intervention.
This program is available as an MP3 file.
Mind meets matter: stress, schizophrenia, immunity and heart disease
Date Published: Saturday, 3rd November 2007
Source: ABC - All in the Mind
Full story: online here
Are we really more vulnerable to colds when we're stressed? Does depression increase your risk of heart disease? Could a bad bout of the flu during pregnancy cause schizophrenia in your child? Science has long struggled with the question of whether states of mind influence the body, and vice versa. But the historic mind-body divide is being challenged as cardiologists, immunologists and neuroscientists meet across the lab bench.
Teenage binge drinking
Date Published: Wednesday, 31st October 2007
Source: ABC - Health Minutes
Full story: online here
Drinking in adolescence is not a harmless rite of passage. A UK study has found that binge drinking at 16 has long-term consequences.
Two out of three adolescents aged between 14 and 17 are drinking regularly and many of them are bingeing - meaning four or five drinks in the one sitting. Binge drinking, amongst other things, is associated with injury, violence, suicide and sexual risk.
Work and depression
Date Published: Saturday, 27th October 2007
Source: ABC - The Science Show
Full story: online here
High psychological demands are experienced in all areas of work, causing stress and anxiety. Rates of anxiety and depression are increasing in the western world.
Paternity blues: Adelaide research examines depression in dads
Date Published: Friday, 19th October 2007
Source: ABC - The World Today
Full story: online here
New research on the rate of postnatal depression among men shows that up to 10 per cent of first-time dads may experience depression. It's hoped that the findings will lead to greater awareness and better ways of diagnosing and treating depressed dads.
Primary school kids stressed out
Date Published: Wednesday, 17th October 2007
Source: ABC - PM
Full story: online here
This is the season when parents around the country are trying to help their teenagers through the stress of the last set of exams of their high school years. But a new study has revealed that today's school kids start worrying much earlier, many as young as seven and eight. The study says 40 per cent of students worry too much, and one in five has had a bout of depression.
Joblessness bad for health of parents and children
Date Published: Tuesday, 16th October 2007
Source: UK Press Assoc (via Mental Health Foundation)
Full story: online here
The UK Government's crusade for full employment has been strengthened by "shocking" statistics about the impact on people's health of being out of work. A recent study showed that the death rate for children of parents who had never worked or were long-term unemployed was 13 times that for the children of professional employees, according to Mr Hain (Work and Pensions Secretary).
Also the prevalence of psychiatric disorders among children in families whose parents have never worked is around five times greater than those with parents in professional occupations.
Carers more depressed than general population: study
Date Published: Monday, 15th October 2007
Source: ABC - PM
Full story: online here
A new study has shown that more than a third of Australia's full-time carers are suffering from severe depression. The survey by Deakin University of more than 4,000 carers around the country was released to coincide with National Carers Week.
Buddhism and happiness
Date Published: Thursday, 11th October 2007
Source: ABC - Health and Wellbeing
Full story: online here
Even scientists agree: Buddhists are on to something when it comes to boosting wellbeing. According to Buddhist thinking, happiness and sorrow are our own responsibility - and completely within our control. It seems like quite a claim - that mental training can make you happy, no matter what happens to you. But it's a claim that's backed up, not only by two and a half thousand years of religious tradition, but a growing body of research.
Stress contributes to range of chronic diseases
Date Published: Tuesday, 9th October 2007
Source: Mental Health Foundation UK - News Release
Full story: online here
In a review of the scientific literature on the relationship between stress and disease, Carnegie Mellon University psychologist Sheldon Cohen has found that stress is a contributing factor in human disease, and in particular depression, cardiovascular disease and HIV/AIDS.
The strongest evidence that stress contributes to disease comes from research on depression, which shows that stress is associated with the onset of depression as well as relapse in people who have recovered from it. Cohen said that particular types of stress are the biggest culprits in depression, namely 'social stressors' such as divorce and the death of a loved one.
(Cohen's findings will be published in the Oct. 10 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association)
Drugs and the teenage brain
Date Published: Monday, 8th October 2007
Source: ABC - Health Report
Full story: online here
A look at the effects of alcohol, tobacco and other drugs on teenage brains. How nicotine may harm young brains and not adult ones, and how alcohol is truly poisonous.
Ecstasy and psychological problems
Date Published: Tuesday, 2nd October 2007
Source: ABC - Health Minutes
Full story: online here
Ecstasy users are likely to have psychological problems: is it ecstasy-induced brain damage, or do users have pre-existing problems? Probably both, but a Dutch study suggests that pre-existing issues do matter.
Mental health issues affect one in four young Australians
Date Published: Monday, 1st October 2007
Source: ABC - PM
Full story: online here
Psychiatric researchers say mental health problems now affect one in four young Australians. In a 70-page supplement in this week's edition of the Australian Medical Journal, they call it the key issue facing young people across the country.
The researchers argue for a major re-think on the way young people are treated. And that includes what they say is a 'revolutionary' way of treating youth mental illness, which could become a template for treatment around the world.
Sex sells: but at what cost to our kids?
Date Published: Thursday, 27th September 2007
Source: ABC - Difference of Opinion
Full story: online here
There is growing concern that ads, magazines and music video clips have become much more sexualised. And many of these images are targeting kids, tweens, teens and young women. The American Psychological Association published a landmark report in February 2007 on the effects on young women, from long-term exposure to sexualised ads. The report says there has been a proliferation of sexualised images of girls that are teaching girls to be sexually desirable which has led to eating disorders, poor body image, depression and anxiety.
In Australia, parents and child psychologists are echoing the same concerns.
Program gives apprentices life skills to help combat suicides
Date Published: Wednesday, 26th September 2007
Source: ABC - News Online
Full story: online here
Hundreds of young Tasmanian building apprentices are taking part in a program aimed at combating youth suicide. Building and construction industry statistics reveal that between 1998 and 2003, ten people each year either committed suicide, or died of a drug overdose or other unknown causes. The Chairman of the Ozhelp Foundation, Royce Fairbrother, says the program teaches apprentices life skills.
Discrimination linked to mental heath: study
Date Published: Monday, 17th September 2007
Source: ABC - News Online
Full story: online here
A new report says there is a strong link between cultural discrimination and poor mental health. The VicHealth study says more than two million Victorians are at risk of the health impacts of discrimination.
See also VicHealth media release: New Report finds Discrimination is bad for health
Carer Couples: when a partner has a mental illness
Date Published: Saturday, 15th September 2007
Source: ABC - All in the Mind
Full story: online here
Lover or carer? Partner or dependant? When a partner is afflicted with a severe mental illness, how is the relationship redefined? Do they feel like the body and soul you first fell in love with? Two couples share the trials and triumphs of confronting illness and prejudice together.
Depression 'worse for health than physical illnesses'
Date Published: Friday, 7th September 2007
Source: Worldwide Press Assoc. via Mental Health Foundation UK.
Full story: online here
Scientific research from the World Health Organisation has revealed that depression does greater damage to a person's overall health than long-term physical diseases. In 2000 scientists rated depression as the disease which had the fourth greatest public health impact globally. By 2020 it is predicted to have jumped to second place.
Alcohol: Our Favourite Drug
Date Published: Thursday, 6th September 2007
Source: ABC - Difference of Opinion
Full story: online here
Alcohol is deeply embedded in Australian culture. It's perfectly legal but it causes more death and injury than all illicit drugs together. So do we have a national drinking problem, or is it just a case of a troublesome few too many?
Drugs and mental illness 'go hand in hand'
Date Published: Monday, 3rd September 2007
Source: The Australian
Full story: online here
Substance abuse and mental illness go hand-in-hand for hundreds of thousands of people and more options are needed to treat the problems together. The Anex Illegal Drugs and Mental Health Conference in Melbourne was told that separating drug use and mental health treatment put lives at risk.
Cannabis and psychosis
Date Published: Tuesday, 21st August 2007
Source: ABC - Health Minutes
Full story: online here
The doubts about whether cannabis use really does increase the risk of psychotic illness have probably been laid to rest by an international review of the available evidence.
A review and analysis of 35 studies which have followed groups of young people for several years or studied whole populations has tried to eliminate alternative explanations for the link between psychosis and cannabis use. They found that the evidence does indeed support the assertion that cannabis use is linked to psychotic illness directly and the more cannabis, the higher the risk.
Happiness and its causes
Date Published: Sunday, 19th August 2007
Source: ABC - Compass
Full story: online here
Everyone wants to be happy. So why is there is such little understanding of what causes us to be happy? The Dalai Lama and a group of eminent Australians discuss key issues that are impacting on the happiness of individuals and society as a whole.
Addiction: Dis-ease over diseased brains
Date Published: Saturday, 18th August 2007
Source: ABC - All in the Mind
Full story: online here
Your brain hijacked - possessed by a chronic, relapsing brain disease. Scientists now view addiction as a disease, not a behavioural problem. Brain circuits involved in reward and pleasure, planning and control are dramatically changed. The priority is medical treatment, not shame and blame. But others challenge what they dub the 'disease rhetoric', arguing it's fatalistic and reductionist. Do we treat the brain, or the person? And, should we surrender control to the addicted brain?
Is feeling blue the new black?
Date Published: Friday, 17th August 2007
Source: ABC - Science News: Health and Medical
Full story: online here
Many people could be diagnosed with clinical depression who are just feeling a bit blue, says one Australian psychiatrist. But there's an argument that such people should be treated anyway because they are at risk and could go on to develop major depression.
Teen alcohol
Date Published: Thursday, 9th August 2007
Source: ABC - Catalyst
Full story: online here
Should we be rethinking underage drinking? That's the question experts around Australia are asking as new evidence mounts of the long term damage to vulnerable brains and lives.
UK scientists reiterate cannabis link to psychosis
Date Published: Friday, 27th July 2007
Source: ABC - News Online
Full story: online here
Scientists in Britain have produced further evidence linking cannabis use to the possible development of psychosis later in life. The research, published in the medical journal The Lancet, indicates that although the risk remains low, users of cannabis are 40 per cent more likely to develop conditions such as schizophrenia.
This review of existing data found what the researchers say is a consistent association between cannabis use and psychotic symptoms, such as hallucinations and delusions.
Fighting fear
Date Published: Thursday, 26th July 2007
Source: ABC - Health Matters
Full story: online here
Don't let fear get in the way of your life, fight back by recognising the signs of a serious phobia or anxiety disorder and seek help. This Health Matters feature describes different types of fears and phobias and the techniques that may help to deal with them.
At-risk children to benefit from inter-agency work (UK)
Date Published: Monday, 23rd July 2007
Source: Press Association (via Mental Health Foundation UK)
Full story: online here
Children at risk in the UK will benefit from the launch of a new body focusing on inter-agency work. The Children Acts Advisory Board (CAAB) will enhance the delivery of services for youngsters through research and the sharing of information. The Board will advise Children's Minister Brendan Smith on policy issues relating to the effective delivery of services to children. Its functions will also include consulting the government in relation to the co-ordinated delivery and effectiveness of services to children and young people at risk, specifically under the child care acts.
For the children's sake
Date Published: Monday, 23rd July 2007
Source: ABC - Four Corners
Full story: online here
How do we deal with parents who are drug or alcohol dependent? Do we just accept the dangers they pose? Is it enough to rely on rehabilitation services and monitoring? Or as a last resort should the authorities step in? How many chances should they get before they forfeit their rights to be parents? There are no easy answers. Four Corners meets drug users and alcoholics who explain their struggle to get clean and prove themselves fit to be parents.
Study shows increase in teenage eating disorders
Date Published: Friday, 20th July 2007
Source: ABC - The World Today
Full story: online here
A study on the eating habits of children and teenagers has shown that campaigns to reduce childhood obesity are only having an effect on children from wealthier families. The study of about 9,000 young Australians showed that while obesity levels are still increasing among poorer children, the fear of obesity is having a damaging effect on teenage girls. Over the last six years the number of teenage girls with eating disorder behaviours almost doubled to 18 per cent.
Deep listening: working with Indigenous mental distress
Date Published: Saturday, 7th July 2007
Source: ABC - All in the Mind
Full story: online here
Hinted-at events, listening to the silence, roundabout stories. Mental health and other professionals inexperienced at working with Indigenous clients struggle with the limits of their cultural awareness, with language barriers and with the historical legacies of mistrust and misunderstanding. Cultural competency is more than sharing a joke. So what is it? And how can psychologists, doctors and others acquire it?
Coping with trauma
Date Published: Thursday, 21st June 2007
Source: ABC - The Pulse
Full story: online here
'Gunman at large after Melbourne shooting'; 'Kerang Train Crash tears families apart'; 'NSW Flood death toll reaches nine'.
Just some of the headlines over the last few weeks. Most of us have become conditioned and immune to headlines like these; yes it's tragic, but we're bombarded with so many images of carnage and disaster, that, if only to protect ourselves from thinking about it, we'll turn instead to a story on interest rates or a celebrity wedding.
But for survivors and witnesses to traumatic events, it's not so easy. Commonly they'll suffer mental and physical symptoms that can last weeks - even years - after the event. Mental health experts have a name for it: acute stress disorder (ASD).
Teaching your brain to be happy
Date Published: Saturday, 16th June 2007
Source: ABC - All in the Mind
Full story: online here
Happiness is paradoxical. What we think will give it to us - invariably doesn't. When we think we've got it - we invariably haven't. We're not even good at predicting what will make us happy people. From languishing to flourishing - can even the most troubled mind be primed for happiness? A panel of international trailblazers in the study of emotion, positive psychology and Buddhism get earnest about pleasure.
Humour as medicine
Date Published: Sunday, 10th June 2007
Source: ABC - Ockhams's Razor
Full story: online here
Emeritus Professor Roger Rees from Disability and Research at Flinders University discusses the importance of humour for people with disabilities and illnesses. There is compelling evidence of the role of humour in coping, decision-making, and mental health.
All Australian boys need a shed
Date Published: Wednesday, 6th June 2007
Source: ABC - PM
Full story: online here
The backyard shed has a treasured, almost sacred place in the hearts of many Australian men, it can be a place of solace. Community men's sheds are spreading all over the country, as a place where men can gather and not only use the equipment, but also mingle and socialise. And a national study has found that the sheds are proving vital to sustaining older men's health as well.
Can God make you better?
Date Published: Thursday, 31st May 2007
Source: ABC - The Pulse
Full story: online here
Is religion good for your health? It's a question that researchers looked at in the latest Medical Journal of Australia. Doctors and other health workers need to recognise the importance of religion and spirituality, the researchers concluded. They shouldn't offer religion as a treatment (it should be left to the individual) but they should accept it as a factor in a person's well being.
When work is stressing you out
Date Published: Monday, 28th May 2007
Source: ABC - The Pulse
Full story: online here
There's a growing number of Australians who suffer more than just Mondayitis. Work stresses them to the point where their health suffers. That's the conclusion of research from the National Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health at the Australian National University (ANU). The researchers say that changes in the workplace are taking their toll on workers, and are causing anxiety, depression and stress.
Bullying in schools
Date Published: Thursday, 17th May 2007
Source: ABC - The Pulse
Full story: online here
One kid in six in Australia's schools is regularly bullied. And the consequences can be devastating. There are plenty of studies that show that kids who are bullied have low self esteem and are prone to depression. There's also evidence that bullies also suffer depression and are more likely themselves to be the victims of violence and aggression.
Some schools are doing something about it. They are teaching cooperation, problem solving and respect for others as part of the school curriculum
Mindfulness
Date Published: Sunday, 13th May 2007
Source: ABC - The Spirit of Things
Full story: online here
The 'holy grail' of meditation techniques is mindfulness. But what is it, exactly, and why has the medical profession suddenly appropriated this age-old technique devised by yogis and Buddhist monks?
Frequent TV viewing during adolescence linked with risk of attention and learning difficulties
Date Published: Monday, 7th May 2007
Source: Mental Health Foundation UK - news release
Full story: online here
Teenagers who watch television for three or more hours per day may have a higher risk of attention and learning difficulties in their adolescent and early adult years, according to a report in the May issue of Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine. Overall, the findings have important preventive implications: the authors state "they suggest that by encouraging youths to spend less than three hours per day watching television, parents, teachers and health care professionals may be able to help reduce the likelihood that at-risk adolescents will develop persistent attention and learning difficulties".
Stress Disorder
Date Published: Friday, 4th May 2007
Source: ABC - Stateline Queensland
Full story: online here
The physical devastation caused by Cyclone Larry was easy to see and mend but the unseen damage is still taking a toll and is much harder to quantify. Researchers say many children suffered post-traumatic stress disorder after their city, schools and in some cases their homes were levelled by the wild weather of just over a year ago.
Breastfeeding and good fats help new mothers fight depression
Date Published: Wednesday, 2nd May 2007
Source: Mental Health Foundation UK - news release
Full story: online here
Breastfeeding and the good fats in Omega-3 fatty acids help new mothers fight depression, according to a new article published in the most recent issue of the International Breastfeeding Journal by a University of New Hampshire researcher. The review was authored by Kathleen Kendall-Tackett, a health psychologist and researcher at UNH's Crimes against Children Research Center.
"Depression in new mothers is common in many cultures, and since depression has devastating effects on both mother and baby, it's vital that it be identified and treated promptly. Depressed mothers are also more likely to stop breastfeeding with negative health effects for each," Kendall-Tackett said.
Mental health costing business: study
Date Published: Monday, 30th April 2007
Source: ABC - PM
Full story: online here
A major study of some of Australia's biggest companies has found that one worker in 20 has a mental health problem and that's costing business about $9,000 a year for every one of those employees. The Queensland Centre for Mental Health Research conducted the study in collaboration with Harvard University and the University of Queensland.
The WORC Project is a major national study involving 90,000 employees from 58 Australian companies. It aims to identify workers with symptoms of depression or anxiety and then encourage them to seek help.
Places of healing
Date Published: Monday, 9th April 2007
Source: ABC - Health Report
Full story: online here
No matter what the advances in modern medicine are, there are still too many times when a patient's sickness is cured but the patient doesn't feel better. The body is fixed but the spirit is languishing. It's a challenge without a solution - so far. A small experiment taking place in Arnhem Land might just provide some answers for all of us.
Psychologists publish 3 new studies on violent video game effects on youths
Date Published: Wednesday, 4th April 2007
Source: Mental Health Foundation UK - news release
Full story: online here
The book, "Violent Video Game Effects on Children and Adolescents" (Oxford University Press, 2007) is the first book to unite empirical research and public policy related to violent video games. The book's first study found that even exposure to cartoonish children's violent video games had the same short-term effects on increasing aggressive behavior as the more graphic teen (T-rated) violent games.
Coping with bereavement
Date Published: Tuesday, 27th March 2007
Source: ABC - Health Matters
Full story: online here
It's something everybody dreads, but it happens to most of us; the death of a loved one. The initial shock and disbelief is followed by painful emotions that can last months; even years and in some people never goes away. Eventually though, for most people, painful emotions subside and the wounds heal after about six months.
And while every person grieves in their own way, there's a similarity in their reactions - they go through set stages, say researchers from Yale University in the US.
Supporting depressed children 'prevents crime'
Date Published: Monday, 26th March 2007
Source: Mental Health Foundation UK - news release
Full story: online here
Researchers at Brunel University's School of Social Sciences (London) said moves to help such youngsters should be put in place more quickly to curb escalating levels of violent crime. Bad behaviour and defiance by youngsters - particularly boys - could often be the "first step towards becoming involved in violent crime".
Down to Earth
Date Published: Monday, 26th March 2007
Source: ABC - Australian Story
Full story: online here
Brian and Nerida Egan lost their farm, near Dalby in southern Queensland, from a combination of drought and post traumatic stress syndrome caused by disturbing events he witnessed as a young serviceman in the 1960s. Brian spent a year in Brisbane's Greenslopes Hospital for veterans before a remark from a psychologist led to a remarkable turnaround. "Go and find somebody worse off than you are, and see if you can help them," he was told.
Divorce: a man's survival guide
Date Published: Thursday, 22nd March 2007
Source: ABC - Health Matters
Full story: online here
If you're a man facing separation and divorce, the way you respond to the crisis can make a big difference to your health and well being. Separation comes as a shock for a good proportion of men..to dull the shock and pain, some turn to alcohol and drugs, or they can become violent. These behaviours in turn can start a further downward spiral of difficulties. Depression and suicide are not uncommon outcomes.
The good news is that there are now much better resources and services for men facing a relationship crisis and its knock-on effects than in the past.
Report claims sexualisation of girls is pervasive and damaging
Date Published: Wednesday, 21st February 2007
Source: ABC - PM
Full story: online here
A major investigation in the United States claims a constant bombardment of images and products sexualising girls has damaged a generation of women. The study by the American Psychological Association has found a pervasive culture that focuses on women's' bodies. And it says more young women are developing depression, eating disorders and reduced cognitive skills as a result. The report's authors say the media, retailers, manufacturers, artists and parents must act now to reverse the trend.
Beating the back to school blues
Date Published: Thursday, 8th February 2007
Source: ABC - Health Matters
Full story: online here
It's back to school time. Most kids cope well...But about one child in ten finds going back to school a traumatic experience. Changes in routine - new teachers, new classes, new classmates - can cause anxiety and apprehension. It can make them feel sick, fearful, angry and aggressive towards others. It can make them 'go silent'; withdrawing from family activities, and not wanting to eat.
The greater the degree of change, the more likely the symptoms are, says Margot Trinder, educational psychologist, former teacher, and coordinator of the schoolkids' mental health initiative KidsMatter.
Chronic disease self-management
Date Published: Monday, 29th January 2007
Source: ABC - Health Report
Full story: online here
The biggest health problem facing Australians personally and as taxpayers is not heart disease, or cancer, or arthritis, or depression, or dementia. It's the combination of them which accumulate in each of us in various permutations as we age. One solution is that patients with chronic diseases should take more personal control of their care. An educational and self-help program has been pioneered at Stanford University in California and has found many fans around the world.
Coping by cutting
Date Published: Sunday, 14th January 2007
Source: ABC - Backgroung Briefing
Full story: online here
The incidence of self harm is rising and there's a search for understanding and solutions. Princess Di admitted to it. As many as 1 in 5 young people are likely to deliberately hurt themselves to release internal tension and pressure. What is it, and how can parents handle it?
Salsa dancing 'can help tackle depression'
Date Published: Monday, 8th January 2007
Source: Mental Health Foundation UK - news release
Full story: online here
Salsa dancing can help tackle depression, a University of Derby study has concluded. Physical exercise, social contact and fresh confidence from learning a new skill help lift the spirits, according to the project. Matt Birks, senior lecturer in mental health at Derby, said salsa classes could be another treatment option for people who do not want to take medication.
Child abuse and neglect associated with increased risk of depression among young adults
Date Published: Monday, 1st January 2007
Source: Mental Health Foundation UK - news release
Full story: online here
People who were abused and neglected during childhood have a higher risk of major depression when they become young adults, according to a report in the January issue of the Archives of General Psychiatry. Child abuse has been linked to depression in clinical populations and community surveys, but few prospective longitudinal studies have examined the relationship between abuse or neglect in childhood and depression in adulthood.
Does Philosophy work better than Prozac
Date Published: Sunday, 24th December 2006
Source: ABC - Big Ideas
Full story: online here
British philosopher and writer Alain de Botton and Nobel Prize winning Australian immunologist Peter Doherty put science up against philosophy. Can philosophy help the mind become more resilient to life's problems, just as the immune system can help fight illness? This program will explore the latest developments in understanding how the body resists disease, and the mind resists despair.
Journeys to recovery
Date Published: Saturday, 16th December 2006
Source: ABC - All in the Mind
Full story: online here
People who hear voices or have delusions as part of a psychotic illness often don't believe they are sick. It's their harsh and frightening reality. Consequently, helping them accept treatment can be challenging and confronting. Lynne Malcolm speaks with two brave men about their personal journeys to recovery after severe psychotic illness. We also hear from psychologist Xavier Amador, who served as the forensic expert in high profile cases such as the Unabomber and the 12th 9/11 highjacker in the US.
Margaret Springgay: Well Ways
Date Published: Thursday, 14th December 2006
Source: ABC - Perspective
Full story: online here
There are ten medical conditions that cause most disabilities around the world. Of those ten, five are related to mental illness. It may be surprising to hear that at least a quarter of a million of Australians suffer with schizophrenia, bi polar or schizo-affective disorder. Add their families and carers - that's a lot of Australians affected by serious mental illness. Since de-institutionalisation, an unfair proportion of the burden has been carried by carers.
Words betray tolerance of violence
Date Published: Friday, 8th December 2006
Source: Sourced from VicHealth, first printed in the Age,
Full story: online here
A VicHealth survey of 2000 Victorians found that 40 per cent considered rape a product of men's inability to control their need for sex, while half believed, without evidence, that women falsified claims of domestic violence to gain a tactical advantage in family law disputes. This points to a stubborn, significant malaise in our social consciousness, and a willingness to trivialise violence against women.
Training the brain - treatment for depression, suicide, or flashbacks
Date Published: Saturday, 2nd December 2006
Source: ABC - The Science Show
Full story: online here
Emily Holmes is trying to determine why flashbacks sometimes remain and recur after trauma. Perhaps they get encoded in the brain as a warning. Understanding how the brain processes the information is helping in the development of treatment.
Bundy Macintosh is taking similar approach treating patients with depression and anxiety. She encourages patients to focus on good things rather than the bad, changing their distorted biases.
Cognitive behaviour therapy or trauma-focussed cognitive therapy are currently the gold treatment standard and work better than medication for post-traumatic stress disorder
Preventing violence in Aboriginal communities
Date Published: Friday, 1st December 2006
Source: ABC - Lateline
Full story: online here
Lateline's interview with the Northern Territory's Crown Prosecutor Nanette Rogers earlier this year prompted a national debate about child abuse and violence in Aboriginal communities. In the months following that interview many Aboriginal men felt targeted by the debate. They argued that Indigenous men involved in the fight against violence and abuse were largely ignored. This programme presents the stories of three individuals who are trying to do something about violent behaviour in their own communities.
Mindfulness
Date Published: Sunday, 26th November 2006
Source: ABC - The Spirit of Things
Full story: online here
The 'holy grail' of meditation techniques is mindfulness. Why has the medical profession suddenly appropriated this age-old technique devised by yogis and Buddhist monks? Professor Emeritus at the University of Massachusetts Medical School, Dr Jon Kabat-Zinn, is the world leader in this field.
When the kids fly the coop
Date Published: Thursday, 16th November 2006
Source: ABC - Health Matters
Full story: online here
In fact, parents of kids who've flown the coop often find it a very different experience than they expected. Often, it's accompanied by feelings of loss, abandonment and grief. The 'empty nest' syndrome refers to a sense of loss that parents feel when children grow up and move out.
Stimulating infants helps behavioural problems
Date Published: Tuesday, 14th November 2006
Source: ABC - Health Minutes
Full story: online here
It's long been known that a potent cause of babies not thriving is psychological and social deprivation and is linked to behavioural problems in later childhood. It's also known that providing stimulation in infancy can make a difference.
Converging on happiness
Date Published: Saturday, 4th November 2006
Source: ABC - The Philosopher's Zone
Full story: online here
This program looks at the importance - or, perhaps, the irrelevance - of happiness with a philosopher who has studied Aristotle and a motivational speaker who writes self-help books, and we find that, curiously, their ideas on the subject converge.
We Need to Talk
Date Published: Tuesday, 31st October 2006
Source: Mental Health Foundation UK - news release
Full story: online here
A new report from the UK argues that talking therapies such as CBT are as important for the nation's health as any cancer drug or surgical procedure. Evidence shows that they can help millions of people in the UK who experience common and severe mental health problems.
Perils of peacekeeping
Date Published: Sunday, 29th October 2006
Source: ABC - Backgroung Briefing
Full story: online here
It's well known that soldiers can be traumatised by war, but peacekeeping can be just as stressful with its own horrors. Australian veterans of the peacekeeping operation in East Timor have taken their own lives, committed crimes, or are living with mental illness. Includes a link to the Dept. of Veteran's Affairs report containing statistics and background information about claims by veterans of the East Timor peacekeeping operation.
High-density cities threaten welfare of kids: experts
Date Published: Saturday, 28th October 2006
Source: ABC - AM
Full story: online here
Children who live in high-density cities could be at greater risk of behavioural problems, depression, and obesity. That's the latest warning from Australia's leading child experts.
They say the move towards high-rise living, large homes on small blocks and disappearing backyards is threatening the wellbeing of the next generation. And they say the creation of "child-friendly cities" is the only way to get society back on track.
In the family - a journey through madness
Date Published: Saturday, 16th September 2006
Source: ABC - All in the Mind
Full story: online here
A candid family story of life inside: inside psychiatric hospitals, inside schizophrenia, and inside a remarkable journey towards compassion, activism and understanding. Penelope and Lloyd met and married after years of cycling in and out of Perth's psychiatric institutions. Penelope's 19-year-old daughter, Tynx, reveals a wisdom beyond her years about the impact of growing up with a parent with mental illness.
Warning over suicide risk to young male drinkers
Date Published: Thursday, 7th September 2006
Source: Mental Health Foundation UK - news release
Full story: online here
Young men who drink are more likely to be violent, commit suicide or suffer mental health problems, it was warned today. Professor Ian Robertson, the Dean of Research at the Institute of Neuroscience and School of Psychology at Trinity College, said the brains of young men were more vulnerable to the effects of alcohol as they are not fully developed until their early 20s. Excessive intake of alcohol can produce a 'double whammy' effect on an individual, leading to violent and reckless behaviour. This doubled up impact on the brain's natural inhibitor and emotional regulator can be linked to instances of suicide in young men.
Be positive about a teen girl's weight
Date Published: Thursday, 31st August 2006
Source: ABC - Health Matters
Full story: online here
Are you the parent of a teenage girl who has a weight problem? Have you ever criticised her for it? Don't - you're putting her at risk of an eating disorder like bulimia or anorexia nervosa. That's the conclusion of researchers from Stanford University in California, after finding that, in most cases of young women at high risk of eating disorders, there was a family history of teasing and criticism about their body size and weight.
Omega-3 fatty acids and mood disorders
Date Published: Monday, 28th August 2006
Source: ABC - Health Report
Full story: online here
This health report looks at myths about schizophrenia, cannabis, and the effect of diet (especially omega-3 fatty acids typically found in seafood) on mood disorders.
Happiness part 2 - How to be happy
Date Published: Thursday, 17th August 2006
Source: ABC - Science News
Full story: online here
You've got the job, the partner, the kids, and the dog - but is it enough to make you happy? What are the ingredients for happiness and can we be happier? The good news, according to the director of Sydney's Happiness Institute Dr Timothy Sharp, is that being happy is a choice and unless there are clinical mental health problems, we can all be happier.
Hunting for happiness
Date Published: Thursday, 10th August 2006
Source: ABC - Science News
Full story: online here
Whether it's a warm feeling inside when you receive a compliment or a burst of passion when you meet that someone special, the search for happiness is what keeps us wading through life's pitfalls. What is happiness, and why do we want it so badly?
Volunteering helps combat mental ill health - study
Date Published: Thursday, 10th August 2006
Source: UK Press Assoc (via Mental Health Foundation)
Full story: online here
A major new study published today has suggested volunteering can help boost the recovery of people who experience mental health issues. Preliminary research from the Institute of Psychiatry at King's College London found 85% of those involved in the Capital Volunteering project had experienced positive outcomes from getting involved despite the underlying isolation experienced by many of them within the community.
Epiphanies: Judy Atkinson (recovery from violence and trauma)
Date Published: Sunday, 6th August 2006
Source: ABC - The Spirit of Things
Full story: online here
Judy Atkinson is Director of the College of Indigenous Australian Peoples at Southern Cross University in Lismore, and author of 'Trauma Trails'. She has worked in the area of violence and trauma for almost 20 years and aims to forge a connection between Indigenous healing practice and western recovery processes. Judy suffered her own trauma as a girl, but her outlook is founded on a deep sense that her elders walk with her at all times.
Marijuana study indicates vicious cycle of use and mental illness
Date Published: Wednesday, 2nd August 2006
Source: ABC - PM
Full story: online here
The link between mental illness and marijuana is well explored now, but a new study from the University of Melbourne has found a further link - that marijuana users often self-medicate with the drug to offset the effects of mental illness. Researchers says it's a 'vicious cycle' that many users find impossible to break.
Coping by cutting
Date Published: Sunday, 23rd July 2006
Source: ABC - Backgroung Briefing
Full story: online here
The incidence of self harm is rising and there's a search for understanding and solutions. As many as 1 in 5 young people are likely to deliberately hurt themselves to release internal tension and pressure. What is it, and how can parents handle it?
Hearing voices - the invisible intruders
Date Published: Saturday, 22nd July 2006
Source: ABC - All in the Mind
Full story: online here
Around 10% of the population hear voices that aren't there. Some people can live harmoniously with them, but for those whose voices are associated with a psychiatric illness, they can be frightening and menacingly real. This program discusses the latest research on how auditory hallucinations occur in the brain, what it's like to live with voices in your head - and the healing power of the international Hearing Voices Network.
Mental illness in prisons
Date Published: Wednesday, 19th July 2006
Source: ABC - Australia Talks Back
Full story: online here
The Australian Medical Association is calling for all people convicted of a crime to be given a mental health check before entering prison. Depression and mental illness have received much focus and attention in recent years, but are sufferers in prison out of sight and out of mind. Is the "get tough" approach with prisoners masking a substantial problem?
Going cheap: happiness
Date Published: Thursday, 13th July 2006
Source: ABC - The Pulse
Full story: online here
What makes us happy? It's not money, say researchers who reviewed the available research on income levels and happiness, and reported their findings in the latest issue of the journal Science.
Football helping to fight mental health problems
Date Published: Wednesday, 12th July 2006
Source: Scottish Press Association (via Mental Health Foundation News)
Full story: online here
Football is being used to help men battle mental health issues such as depression and low self-esteem, and attending matches regularly is a way to release pent-up tension, the Royal College of Psychiatrists' annual meeting in Glasgow heard. One scheme, where men have been attending sessions in football grounds to discuss their problems, away from a traditional clinical setting, is being hailed as a success.
Learning with all kinds of minds
Date Published: Saturday, 8th July 2006
Source: ABC - All in the Mind
Full story: online here
We now know that we all differ in the way we think. We have different areas of natural strength and weakness which can deeply affect our learning experience. This program looks at some alternative approaches to helping children achieve their potential, and a psychologist speaks about the importance of teaching children to manage their emotions in school.
Emotions at work
Date Published: Saturday, 1st July 2006
Source: ABC - All in the Mind
Full story: online here
Australians seem to be working harder than ever, highlighting an increased need to manage stress and establish a better balance between work and family life. This program highlights some learnable techniques that might help people be more self-aware at work, allowing them to use their emotions as a positive force.
Manage that anger
Date Published: Thursday, 29th June 2006
Source: ABC - The Pulse
Full story: online here
It's a primitive emotion but it plays a big part in our modern day lives. Anger - how do we contain it?
The Long Grassers' Legacy - Aboriginal Mental Health Part 2
Date Published: Saturday, 17th June 2006
Source: ABC - All in the Mind
Full story: online here
For many Aboriginal people the loss of their country has caused significant health and social problems, including substance abuse, and has led them to 'living in the long grass' on the outskirts of urban townships.
Depression treatments may help tackle painful conditions
Date Published: Friday, 16th June 2006
Source: Press Association (UK)
Full story: online here
Doctors could help reduce the disability experienced by women suffering from chronic conditions such as arthritis - by treating their depression, according to recently published new research. The research suggests that by targeting depression and focusing on psychological well-being, doctors could help reduce the sensations of disability.
Aboriginal Mental Health Part 1 - Tiwi Islands.
Date Published: Saturday, 10th June 2006
Source: ABC - All in the Mind
Full story: online here
Mental health in many Aboriginal communities takes a back seat because often the most basic human needs are not adequately provided for. However, depression, psychosis and suicide are widespread, against a backdrop of chronic alcohol and substance abuse. But there are some amazingly committed individuals working hard to improve the situation with an innovative approach. Lynne Malcolm visits Tiwi and meets a man whose story of mental illness is being used to educate his community.
Indigenous doctors urge considered response to violence
Date Published: Tuesday, 23rd May 2006
Source: Australian Indigenous Doctors’ Association
Full story: online here
This media release from the Australian Indigenous Doctors' Association (AIDA) urges fellow Australians and Government to be constructive, careful and considered in responding to issues of violence against and within Aboriginal communities.
Detainees returned against psychiatrists' advice
Date Published: Monday, 22nd May 2006
Source: ABC - News Online
Full story: online here
A psychiatrist treating immigration detainees says some have been exposed to serious harm and the possibility of suicide by being sent back to detention from mental care in hospital. Dr Hawker says returned detainees have suffered post-traumatic stress disorder, depression and associated psychosis.
Job satisfaction and health
Date Published: Monday, 22nd May 2006
Source: ABC - Health Report
Full story: online here
Many studies have shown a link between job satisfaction and health. Having a lot of stress at work can make us sick. Many people have unrealistic workloads which negatively influences their health and their relationship with family and friends.
"See how she runs"
Date Published: Monday, 22nd May 2006
Source: ABC - Australian Story
Full story: online here
When severe mental illness cut short Anne Garton's police career she set herself the challenge of competing in a triathlon, with surprising results.
'Unacceptable' (notes from Suicide Prevention Forum)
Date Published: Monday, 15th May 2006
Source: The Age
Full story: online here
The organisers of a suicide prevention forum are determined to stamp out a major men's health issue too often ignored by politicians and the media. There is a growing frustration that the issue of why men kill themselves has not become a deafening blip on the public radar. Much of that frustration was evident when about 100 delegates gathered for two days in Sydney earlier this month, charged with thrashing out what amounts to a decisive action plan to raise community awareness of male suicide.
A Deathly Silence
Date Published: Monday, 15th May 2006
Source: ABC - Four Corners
Full story: online here
Breaking the taboo of silence that surrounds the act of suicide, its illusory appeal to the vulnerable and its cruel toll on the living. The 'Four Corners' webpages contain the transcript of this program, transcripts of full interviews and the online forum.
The Art of Healing Trauma
Date Published: Saturday, 13th May 2006
Source: ABC - All in the Mind
Full story: online here
Since Anzac Day the nation has been absorbed in the plight of the Beaconsfield miners, and we've been told by trauma psychologists that now the men are safely reunited with family their natural need to talk through their experience will be a vital mental salve.
We know instinctively that we need to talk through unpleasant experiences. But the biological explanation for this has emerged only recently. It seems that stories have the power to actually reorganize our brain after traumatic events.
Happiness and suffering
Date Published: Sunday, 7th May 2006
Source: ABC - Encounter
Full story: online here
Australia has everything: jobs, education, fair weather, and a multi-million dollar happiness industry dedicated to making us feel good about ourselves. But "everything" also includes a high national rate of depression and teen suicide. So why aren't we happier? And how happy can we hope to be, in a world of pain and violence? A view from Buddhist and Christian perspectives - as well as voices from Vietnam, Ethiopia, and the great philosopher of joy Friedrich Nietzsche.
Evidence cannabis use more harmful than thought
Date Published: Friday, 5th May 2006
Source: ABC - PM
Full story: online here
Marijuana has been dismissed for a long time as a "soft" drug, compared with the likes of heroin or speed. But more evidence is coming to light of the harm, both mental and physical, that cannabis can cause, especially with long-term use.
Toddlers diagnosed with bipolar
Date Published: Friday, 21st April 2006
Source: ABC - Science News: Health and Medical
Full story: online here
Children as young as two years old are being inappropriately diagnosed and medicated for bipolar disorder, says a UK psychiatrist. Professor David Healy of Cardiff University told the Inaugural Conference on Disease-Mongering recently in Newcastle, Australia, that increasing numbers of children are being treated for the condition with drugs that carry serious side-effects, without evidence the condition exists in that age group.
Fragmented minds, part 2
Date Published: Saturday, 8th April 2006
Source: ABC - All in the Mind
Full story: online here
Schizophrenia is caused by a complex range of genetic and environmental factors but it can seem to occur out of the blue. We hear from a father who first knew his son had schizophrenia when he found him curled up in his wardrobe, psychotic, frozen with fear. We find out about some of the early warning signs and how young people with schizophrenia can be helped to cope with the social isolation and impaired thinking abilities that result from this debilitating brain disorder.
Happiness and why do Greek philosophy?
Date Published: Saturday, 8th April 2006
Source: ABC - The Philosopher's Zone
Full story: online here
Recently the Vajrayana Institute held the first international conference on happiness and its causes. This program interviews one of the speakers at the conference: Dr Caroline West, lecturer in the Department of Philosophy at the University of Sydney.
The brain and omega 3 - fishy or fact?
Date Published: Saturday, 18th March 2006
Source: ABC - All in the Mind
Full story: online here
It's commonly accepted that Omega 3, an essential fatty acid mainly found in fish, can help to prevent conditions like cardio vascular disease and rheumatoid arthritis. Now evidence is accumulating showing that fish oil is also important for mental health and well being. We hear some remarkable findings from a British study looking at the effect of giving fish oil to children with ADHD and learning difficulties. And the figures, showing significantly lower depression rates in countries which eat lots of seafood, may give you an idea for tonight's dinner.
Ecstasy may unearth hidden depression
Date Published: Friday, 24th February 2006
Source: ABC - Science News: Health and Medical
Full story: online here
Ecstasy, the drug that some doctors blame for depression and anxiety, may often only enhance these symptoms rather than cause them, according to a study published today.
Dutch researchers found that children who suffered from depression were more likely to go on to use the illegal drug when they grew up to make them feel better. The Dutch study of 1580 individuals over 14 years left open the possibility that ecstasy might cause depression in some cases.