March, 2010
UK Moving to Improve Therapy for Patients Suffering with Depression
Individuals suffering with depression need more than simply a prescription to popular medications – they also need psychological therapy. According to a BBC News piece, however, 65 percent of UK doctors say they can rarely offer such therapy to depression sufferers within two months of referral.
This finding is according to the Royal College of GPs survey of 590 UK doctors reported that access to psychological services was only usually possible in that time frame. This survey is the result of the government’s efforts in working with RCGP to provide better access to therapies.
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Hoarding: A Compulsive Mental Disorder
Many of us hang on to treasures and memorabilia from the past, but our homes are not so overwhelmed with clutter that it becomes detrimental to our health and safety, let alone our sanity. Others are not so lucky. For some individuals, hoarding, or the obsessive compulsion to collect anything and everything – has become a danger to themselves and others. Often hoarding co-occurs with substance abuse, including alcohol, nicotine, prescription and illegal street drugs.
Antidepressants Effective in Individuals with Physical Ailments
When depression is mixed with physical illnesses, the challenge in treatment can intensify. According to a new systematic review by Cochrane researchers at King’s Health Partners Academic Health Sciences Center in the UK, antidepressants are effective in the treatment of depression in those with physical illnesses.
A recent Science Daily release focused on this study and its approach to examining the effects physical illness can have on mental health. Research in the industry indicates that more than 10 percent of patients suffering from physical diseases also suffer from depression.
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Psychological Barriers Could Prevent Reactions to Climate Change
Global warming is an issue receiving much attention as of late. Despite the overwhelming following of this concept, it still generates significant debate within the scientific field. At the same time, many Americans have jumped on the climate change bandwagon, but not everyone is buying into the requirement to “buy green.”
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Social Networks Impact Sleep and Drug Use
While some may wonder where their bad habits – such as the use or abuse of illegal drugs – began, recent studies are pointing to adult social networks. According to a recent Science Daily piece, behaviors that can include happiness, smoking and even drug use are influenced by friends and the friends of friends.
Researchers at the University of California, San Diego and Harvard University found that the behavior of adolescents is especially impacted by such social networks where drugs are concerned. This study was led by Sara C. Mednick, PhD, assistant professor of psychiatry at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine and the VA San Diego Healthcare System.
Therapy via Teleconference Proves Effective
New research finds that obtaining therapy via teleconference is just as effective as face-to-face sessions. “Previous studies have shown that phobia therapy via teleconferencing was just as efficient as face to face contact,” says lead researcher Dr. Stéphane Guay, a psychiatry professor at the Université de Montréal who is also director of the Trauma Studies Centre at the Louis-H. Lafontaine Hospital’s Fernand-Seguin Research Centre. “We wanted to see if the process could also be used for post-traumatic stress treatment.”
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Chronic Workplace Stress and Lack of Exercise Linked to Obesity
A new study has found that chronic job stress and lack of physical activity are strongly associated with being overweight or obese. Unexpectedly, researchers also found that a diet rich in fruits and vegetables did little to offset the effect of chronic job stress on weight gain among the employees, who were mostly sedentary. Instead, exercise seemed to be the key to managing stress and keeping a healthy weight.
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Failed College Dreams Don’t Spell Depression
A wise person once said, “It is better to shoot for the stars and miss than aim at the gutter and hit it.” That’s right on, says Florida State University Sociology Professor John R. Reynolds, who just completed a study to determine whether unrealized educational expectations are associated with depression among adults. Reynolds also is the director of the Pepper Institute on Aging and Public Policy at Florida State.
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An Interview with Lee FitzGerald: Director of Clinical Outreach at Promises
Five years ago, Lee FitzGerald had made up her mind that she was moving to Australia to open a bed and breakfast. But before she left, a friend suggested that she apply for a new opening at Promises Treatment Centers. Lee responded that she didn’t want a job as she was moving, but she ended up submitting her resume.
Promises staff instantly loved her and wanted to hire her on the spot, but she was told she needed to meet the founder and former owner of Promises, Richard Rogg. When she arrived to meet with him, she recognized him from her Saturday group meetings. “Are you applying, too?” she asked him. Richard laughed and explained that he owned the place. Lee was shocked as he had never shared this in any group meetings over the years; she was so impressed by his humility—and by Promises as a whole—that she immediately accepted the job as a Marketing Representative. Five years later, she is now the Director of Clinical Outreach.
“I’m in recovery—in three weeks I’ll have 10 years. Before I started working at Promises I owned a marketing company. But after getting sober, I realized that I needed to be of service to others, and I didn’t feel that I was helping others in the marketing field, so I sold the company to my business partner. I had started a sober volleyball team, and one of the members told me about a job opening at Promises. When I resisted, he told me that the job seemed made for me, as it was a marketing position where I could help other people in recovery. After interviewing with Richard, I knew I was meant to stay here and work for Promises instead of moving to Australia, and I’ve been here ever since,” Lee explained.
In her position as Director of Clinical Outreach, Lee, who is a CADC (California Association of Alcohol and Drug Counselors) and a BRI (board-registered interventionist), oversees alumni services and plans alumni events; heads up a quarterly newsletter, which is sent out to all Promises alumni; organizes a monthly advisory board, where alumni discuss ways to improve the programs at Promises; surveys alumni weekly, bi-weekly, and monthly to check on their aftercare; and sets up speaking conferences for Promises staff.
“I reach out to alumni, doctors, hospitals, other treatment centers, interventionists, therapists, holistic healers, and more. I’ll arrange dinners or other meetings with the potential referral source because we don’t want to send our clients to people we haven’t met. We want to make sure they adhere to the 12-step model and the same treatment modalities as we do,” Lee said.
Lee also runs a not-for-profit treatment center for women in Nepal. She traveled to Nepal with a friend for three weeks and volunteered to help addicted women, who have little support in Nepal. Together they started the first Narcotics Anonymous group for women on the outskirts of Kathmandu. “Alcohol isn’t very prevalent there because it’s so expensive, but poppies grow on the side of the road so heroin is very popular,” Lee explained, adding that the program also provides clean needles. “We hope that when women come to the Drop-In Center to get clean needles, they’ll see all the other women who have gotten clean and are in NA meetings, and they’ll want to get clean too.” Lee explained that one of the women spoke English and was her translator, and Lee still sponsors her via email. “I ship books over there to keep them well stocked and educated, and we’re opening another center in Dharan, a small town south of Kathmandu.”
Lee explained that volunteer work is an important part of Promises. Female clients help out at Miriam’s House, which is a recovery home for mothers and their children, and clients also help out at the Venice Community Housing Corporation, which houses homeless people. “When clients come back from doing service work they tend to feel a lot of gratitude for what they have. Most of our clients haven’t been homeless, so when they see others in that situation, it makes them feel grateful,” Lee said. “Richard Rogg instilled the importance of being of service to others in everyone who works here or comes through here—he’s helped countless people. The idea behind Promises is that this is your home, and we will always open the door for you.”
“Being of service to others is one of the most important parts of recovery. I see some people in meetings that are very lonely, and I’ll invite them to events or ask them to play volleyball, or I’ll introduce them to other clients who are having a hard time,” Lee said. “I also sponsor people whenever they ask me, and I never say no to speaking. The premise of the program is that if you don’t help other people, you can’t help yourself.”
Lee added that she believes the staff at Promises makes it stand out from other treatment centers. “Promises has a great reputation, and we make our clients feel special. About 90 percent of our staff is in recovery, so we know what it’s like to be in the clients’ shoes. Adhering to our original modality and the 12-step model is also important—we’re not about harm reduction. If someone is resistant to the 12 steps, we can help ease them into it,” she said. “Our 24-hour admissions policy is also great. We’ll take a call at any time—addiction doesn’t take a weekend.”
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Study Examines Potentials in Schizophrenia Treatments
As it can be a debilitating disease, scientists continue to research schizophrenia in the hopes of finding a cure or at least preventative measures to use in treatment. According to a recent Science Daily piece, researchers at UC Davis have found evidence that deficits in a brain chemical may be responsible for some of the debilitating cognitive deficits that accompany this disorder.
The study suggests that an important avenue of inquiry for improving cognitive function in those that suffer from this disorder is important, according to Jong H. Yoon, an assistant professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at UD Davis. Yoon was also the lead author on this study.
“We still know very little about the neurobiology of schizophrenia, particularly at the level of specific circuits and molecules and how their impairments affect behavior and cognition in the disease,” said Yoon. “We need this level of specificity to guide targeted treatment development.”
Abnormalities in the perception or expression of reality are the norm for those suffering with schizophrenia. These individuals may experience visual or auditory hallucinations, as well as paranoia, delusions and disorganized speech and thinking. At the same time, these individuals also experience profound cognitive difficulties that interfere with daily functioning.
“People think of schizophrenia as being related to psychosis. But patients’ cognitive limitations can be even more debilitating for them,” said Cameron Carter, professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences, director of the Imaging Research Center and the study’s senior author.
“This study actually looked at brain chemistry in live patients in relation to cognitive performance to determine the underlying neurobiology of the cognitive deficits. Our ultimate goal is discovering ways to help patients lead more productive lives.”
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