OCD worry monster

Helping Children to Overcome OCD: 6 Creative Strategies for Parents

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Here, Dr. Ben Furman offers a creative approach to helping children who struggle with OCD. Explaining why behaviors like reasoning, reassuring, and superstitious rituals don’t work, he suggests engaging alternatives that teach kids how to manage their “worry monster” and make sense of their distressing experience.

Is Long-term Use of Benzodiazepines a Risk for Cancer?

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A large study of the population in Taiwan reveals that long-term use of benzodiazepine drugs, commonly prescribed for anxiety, significantly increases the risk for brain, colorectal, and lung cancers. The research, published open-access in the journal Medicine, also identifies the types of benzodiazepines that carry the greatest cancer risk.

The “Shotgun Method” – A Story of Mental Health Crisis in Iceland

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"Let's try the shotgun method," my psychiatrist said — meaning that you load the gun with a bunch of pellets and hope that one of them hits the target. I went through 16 different psychiatric medications in five years, and they were not the right choice for me.

Researchers Set the Record Straight on Controversial Zoloft Study

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An issue of Lancet Psychiatry is devoted to clarifying the lack of efficacy for Zoloft (sertraline).

Increasing Physical Activity in Schools May Improve Mental Health

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A new article suggests integrating physical activity throughout the day may help to address the mental health of students.

Do Social Network Sites Help or Harm Well Being?

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How does social network site use influence well-being? Researchers suggest this depends on the extent to which site use is “connection-promoting."

Systematic Review Finds Antidepressant Withdrawal Common and Potentially Long-lasting

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Prominent researchers conduct a review of antidepressant withdrawal incidence, duration, and severity. Results lead to call for new clinical guidelines.

Sense of Purpose Reduces Negative Effects of Social Media Use

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New research shows that having a strong sense of personal meaning and purpose can reduce the negative effects of social media use.

45% of Children and Adolescent Inpatients Prescribed Antipsychotics

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In a rare long-term study of antipsychotics used in children and adolescent inpatients, the Institute of Living in Hartford, CT followed 3,851 consecutive admissions...

Outcomes of Childhood Bullying on Young Adults’ Wellbeing

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A qualitative study explores young adults’ childhood bullying experiences.

Therapy Changes the Brain, Reduces Anxiety

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After undergoing a nine-week cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) treatment for social anxiety, patients show changes to both the physical structure of their brain and its activity, according to a new study published in Translational Psychiatry. The amygdala is most closely associated with the experience of fear and this study found that patients receiving CBT with reduced social anxiety had significant changes to this section of the brain.
school refusal

“I’m Not Going, You Can’t Make Me!”: A Community Approach to School Refusal

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Consider an imaginary child called Jack who has been avoiding school as much as possible for a month. Standard practice would be cognitive-behavioral therapy or psychoactive drugs to help Jack deal with his anxiety. But what if Jack's social network instead mobilized to help him regain the role of student?
gavel of justice

Seeking Justice

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My life flashed before my eyes as my entire medical history over the last decade was rewritten from having a genetic brain disease to being a victim of a medical scam. It was bittersweet, for I realized that I was not sick and dying, but I had been robbed of so many years of my life due to the psychiatrist’s lies. Now I am suing my former psychiatrist for damages.

Study Investigates Long-Term Effects of Social and Emotional Learning Programs

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Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) programs have gained popularity in U.S. schools in recent years. A new study examines the nature and longevity of their impact on students.

Emotional Child Abuse Just as Harmful as Physical Abuse

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Different types of child abuse have equivalent psychological effects, according to a study in JAMA Psychiatry. It has previously been assumed that emotional and verbal abuse could have different or less harmful impact on a child’s psychology than physical or sexual abuse, but research now suggests that these forms of abuse can be just as damaging.

Benzodiazepines Linked to Treatment Resistant Depression

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Prior use of benzodiazepines, such as Xanax, Librium, or Ativan, may increase the risk of treatment-resistant depression (TRD), according to a new study published in The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease.

Video Games By Prescription Continue Developing

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"Is this the future of medicine?" asks Stephen Armstrong in the British Medical Journal. "Little Artie has been left at the doorstep of his...

Benzodiazepine Prescriptions Increase with Overdose Deaths

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A recent article in the American Journal of Public Health calls for policy level interventions to reduce the use of benzodiazepines, drugs commonly prescribed...

Most People with Common ‘Mental Disorders’ Get Better Without Treatment, Study Finds

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A new study suggests that most people diagnosed with depressive, anxiety, and substance abuse disorders recover without treatment within a year of diagnosis. “This...

Unanswered Questions in New Mental Health Screening Program for Children

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An article presents new screening tools for pediatric depression and anxiety—but fails to answer its own questions about efficacy.

More Physical Activity-Based Mental Health Interventions Needed in Schools

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What physical activity-based programs are being implemented in schools, how are they being researched, and what kind of impact have they made?

New Study Explores Approaches to Discontinuing Antidepressants

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Psychiatrist and psychologist outline pharmacological and psychotherapeutic strategies for discontinuing antidepressants.

Unpublished Trials Reveal Antidepressant Provides Little Benefit For Depression or Anxiety

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Upon reviewing all of GlaxoSmithKline's data from both published and unpublished trials of the antidepressant paroxetine, researchers found the drug provided almost no benefits...

Exploring the Role of Community Engagement in School Psychology

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New research emphasizes the impact of school connectedness and community engagement interventions on students' mental health.

D-Cycloserine Supplement Does Not Add Much to Exposure Therapy

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A closer look at a new study reporting that the supplement D-cycloserine improved anxiety when used with exposure therapy.