A social enterprise providing education and information to protect and enhance the mental health of young people
For years the addiction field has said that addictions were caused by genetics. If your father is an addict then you have the gene for it and you will become an addict. We now know that the gene is passed on, but it can be turned off if the child has a good and supportive, [...]
Domestic violence is a serious national issue in Australia and globally. It is an inherently gendered crime. Research consistently shows the overwhelming majority of offenders are male and the victims are female. Australian governments have recently taken a strong stand against domestic violence, focusing mainly on preventing physical forms of abuse. For example, in 2015, [...]
On first impression bipolar disorder is easy to understand. It’s a disorder where a person experiences extreme mood changes, highs and lows, with periods of normality in between. But, when we look further into the disorder, or we hear people talk about their experiences, it starts to get a little more complex, and the terms [...]
It is impossible to support the social and emotional health of young people, if we as teachers do not attend to our own emotional health. Anyone who has worked in schools or who knows a teacher will be aware that they are often stressed, tired, and running on empty until the next school holiday arrives. [...]
Life’s too short to sweat the small stuff isn’t it? It’s what adults often say to each other. But a child’s attitude to the ‘small stuff’ is often a different matter. This is an observation that a dad made: Children do ‘sweat the small stuff.’ There’s no doubt, children can get very emotional very quickly [...]
“Look on the sunny side of life.” “Turn your face toward the sun, and the shadows will fall behind you.” “Every day may not be good, but there is something good in every day.” “See the glass as half-full, not half-empty.” Researchers are finding that thoughts like these, the hallmarks of people sometimes called “cockeyed [...]
When children are chronically anxious, even the most well-meaning parents can fall into a negative cycle and, not wanting a child to suffer, actually exacerbate the youngster’s anxiety. It happens when parents, anticipating a child’s fears, try to protect her from them. Here are pointers for helping children escape the cycle of anxiety. 1. The [...]
While being diagnosed with a serious mental health condition like schizophrenia can have devastating consequences for patients, many don’t realise how much their physical health may suffer too. The life expectancy for people with schizophrenia is around 10 – 25 years less than the general population. They also have two to three times the risk [...]
Data from nearly 14,000 men shows those who strongly identify as self-reliant are more likely to have suicidal thoughts. For the first time large-scale empirical research has linked notions of what it is to be a man with suicidal thoughts, which the researchers argue puts a spotlight on the societal attitudes that may be putting [...]
Jane* has lived with severe depression and anxiety for the last 15 years outside a small town in rural Victoria. For much of that time, she's felt isolated and alone in her struggle with her mental illness. "I've had several attempted suicides," she said. Jane has no doubt where she'd be if she wasn't getting [...]
