Mental Illness

Here’s How Citizen Power Can Drive Mental Health Reform

Citizen panels and juries around the world are having their say about how health funding is prioritised and allocated. It’s time this happened in Australia, particularly when it comes to deciding how best to carve up Australia’s limited resources for tackling mental health. This is because constructively engaging with the community this way is fundamentally [...]

Can We Trust The Rorschach Test?

To its critics, it is dangerous pseudoscience. To its supporters, it offers unique insights. What is the future of this controversial psychological test? Victor Norris had reached the final round in his application for a job working with young children, but he still had to undergo a psychological evaluation. Over two long November afternoons, he [...]

Online Treatments Reduce Depression

Online psychological therapy is highly effective and should be considered a viable alternative to treating people with depression, say the authors of a new study. Analysis of nearly a dozen international studies found the use of self-guided internet-based cognitive behavioural therapy (iCBT) was associated with "significantly" lower depressive symptoms. The statistics show one in five [...]

Strong Link Between Disadvantage And Suicide

The state of the economy, including low incomes, job insecurity, zero-hours contracts, unmanageable debts and poor housing, is putting people at increased risk of suicide, according to a report by the Samaritans. The report, Dying from Inequality, says there is “overwhelming evidence of a strong link between socioeconomic disadvantage and suicidal behaviour”. It says governments [...]

Anxiety Or ADHD? Why They Sometimes Look The Same And How To Tell The Difference

Anxiety and ADHD are very different, but sometimes the symptoms can look similar. The correct diagnosis is critical to guide treatment and to make sense of things when kids seem to be struggling or when something doesn’t feel quite right. As much as the right diagnosis can heal, the wrong one can also harm. Understanding [...]

12 Statistics To Get You Thinking About Mental Health In Young People

Mental health problems often start in childhood, but opportunities to help are being missed and research spend is lacking. Three in four mental illnesses start in childhood 75% of mental illnesses start before a child reaches their 18th birthday, while 50% of mental health problems in adult life (excluding dementia) take root before the age [...]

Raising A Child Is Mission Impossible. That’s Why It Takes A School

The fundamental role of a teacher is not to deliver information but to make kids feel like they are important, and have an adult who will never give up on them. When my first child was born, I didn’t realise I was signing up for Mission Impossible. Even as my daughter grew into a toddler [...]

Can Artificial Intelligence Curb The Trend of Live Suicides?

Mental-health experts say there is no question that social media is becoming a platform for public suicide. The concern is that people who are planning to take their own lives can broadcast their own deaths in real time — which is not only devastating for those who die but also for those watching it happen online. Facebook said Wednesday that it is bolstering [...]

Anorexia Leaves Lasting Changes In The Brain, Even After Treatment

Even after weeks of treatment and considerable weight gain, the brains of adolescent patients with anorexia nervosa remain altered, putting them at risk for possible relapse. The study, published last week in the American Journal of Psychiatry, examined 21 female adolescents before and after treatment for anorexia and found that their brains still had an [...]

Depression Is Now The ‘Leading Cause Of Disability Worldwide’

Depression is now the leading cause of disability across the globe, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has revealed. More than 4% of the world’s population lives with depression - with young people, pregnant or post-partum women, and the elderly being most affected. According to the United Nations (UN), the mental illness costs more than $1 trillion [...]

Go to Top