January 11, 2018
by Tracey Block
The goal of innovations in technology is to bring about positive change and improvements. But once time has passed and a new technology has become a part of daily life, the good and the bad become more apparent. In a recent letter to Apple Inc., major investors presented the company with their concerns over the addictive influence of iPhones and other electronic devices on the children and youth who use them.
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January 9, 2018
by Tracey Block
The human sense of smell is well recognized for its attachment to memory in the brain. The smell of cookies baking, the scent of a perfume or the bouquet of fresh-cut grass can quickly take one back to a past time or place. But now, researchers are realizing human olfactory cues can have incredible effects on stress levels, mood and overall mental health.
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January 7, 2018
by Hilda Huj
Beginning of the new year may seem like an ideal time of the year to make a significant change. Ther
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January 5, 2018
by Tracey Block
A recent video posting by an American social media celebrity has caused a public uproar. But researchers and mental health professionals are asking whether the finger pointing and outrage should be less about the people and technology producing the content—and more about facing the facts their videos illuminate: that suicides are still occurring at alarming rates.
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January 3, 2018
by Amy Rollo
Recently, there’s been a second wave of positive psychology; which has changed and grown into different forms. After the growth of Dr. Seligman’s positive psychology, researchers began to understand the limitations of focusing only on positive experiences. They noted that not all negative experiences and emotions are destructive or depleting.
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December 28, 2017
by Tracey Block
Long before movies like "One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest" first hit theatres in 1975, films and TV programs have depicted stereotypes of people with mental illnesses, psychiatric wards and the professionals therein. But slowly, the pictures are changing to represent the real people struggling, surviving, and succeeding with mental challenges as part of their daily realities. And so, the Oscar goes to . . .
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December 28, 2017
by Tracey Block
For some sufferers of chronic depression, medications and psychotherapy bring no relief. For those people, researchers are looking at a completely different kind of treatment. And while drilling a hole into the brain may sound like something out of science fiction movies, it just might be the answer. The treatment requires a very small hole in the brain—but, it has been showing big results.
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December 25, 2017
by Tracey Block
The last week of December rushes past in a whirlwind of remembering gifts, managing party schedules, and recalling recipe ingredients. Sometimes in the haste of it all, we forget what is most important--our mental health. Professionals suggest managing mental health issues as well in the last week of December as in the other 51 weeks of the year. How can you prevent one week of festivities from undoing all your hard work?
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December 22, 2017
by Tracey Block
It isn't unusual to feel a little more tired--maybe even a little depressed--during the winter months. The long, dark, cold nights and brief hours of sunlight can ruin anyone's mood. For some, however, the effect is more serious. Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) causes a host of debilitating symptoms in sufferers, but research is finding ways to help.
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December 21, 2017
by Tracey Block
Would you go to a mental health professional who publicly admits a personal struggle with mental illness? Researchers are finding that as long as the professional is stable, patients are buoyed by a therapist's example of success. Do counsellors with first-hand knowledge of mental illness elicit better results in their patients?
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