Dreaming reduces the impact of negative emotional events

Dreaming not only helps consolidate memories but a new study shows that it may also help process negative emotional events better.

The study involved participants who viewed emotionally arousing images. One group viewed the images in the morning and in the evening, while the other group viewed the same images in the evening and in the following morning (after sleeping).

The results indicated that the second group showed a decreased emotional reaction to the images compared to the first group. That conclusion was further corroborated by brain scans taken during the study that revealed reduced activity in the amygdala, an almond-shaped brain structure associated with the fear response and anxiety.

Thus, sleeping after experiencing an emotionally-arousing event may contribute to good mental health.

http://www.scientificamerican.com/podcast/episode.cfm?id=dreams-help-soothe-your-bad-memorie-11-11-28

Jazzie.

Living with anxiety

Thyroid problems can be the cause of Anxiety

The thyroid is a gland wrapped around the trachea that produces hormones. Those hormones contribute to a host of physical processes from hearbeat regulation to cognitive functoning, and more recently their effect on moods is being explored.  

Often people presenting psychiatric symptoms like anxiety or depression also exhibit abnormal blood levels of thyroid hormones. More specifically, links were found between an overactive thyroid (hyperthyroidism) and anxiety, as well as between an underactive thyroid (hypothyroidism) and depression. For example, a patient suffering with both anxiety and depression for 10 years saw her anxiety and depression simply disappear after undergoing treatment for her thyroid (with synthetic thyroid hormone replacement).

There is a caveat though and that is that it can be diffcult to diagnose abnormal blood levels of thyroid hormones when the actual levels range between the two extremes (too low and too high) as there is no consensus yet about what constitutes an abnormal level. In any event most doctors agree that a person presenting physical symptoms of an abnormal thyroid hormone (e.g.,fatigue, weight gain, inability to concentrate or palpitations, weigh loss and sweating) with psychiatric symptoms should check their thyroid. 

Jazzie

Living with Anxiety

Thyroid problems can be the cause of Anxiety

The thyroid is a gland wrapped around the trachea that produces hormones. Those hormones contribute to a host of physical processes from hearbeat regulation to cognitive functoning, and more recently their effect on moods is being explored.  

Often people presenting psychiatric symptoms like anxiety or depression also exhibit abnormal blood levels of thyroid hormones. More specifically, links were found between an overactive thyroid (hyperthyroidism) and anxiety, as well as between an underactive thyroid (hypothyroidism) and depression. For example, a patient suffering with both anxiety and depression for 10 years saw her anxiety and depression simply disappear after undergoing treatment for her thyroid (with synthetic thyroid hormone replacement).

There is a caveat though and that is that it can be diffcult to diagnose abnormal blood levels of thyroid hormones when the actual levels range between the two extremes (too low and too high) as there is no consensus yet about what constitutes an abnormal level. In any event most doctors agree that a person presenting physical symptoms of an abnormal thyroid hormone (e.g.,fatigue, weight gain, inability to concentrate or palpitations, weigh loss and sweating) with psychiatric symptoms should check their thyroid. 

Jazzie

Living with Anxiety

Direct Instruction VS Play-based Instruction in preschool linked with subsequent emotional problems

Preschool as we know it is disappearing as more and more schools are adopting direct-instruction programs while leaving little to no room for playtime. As a result children as young as 5 year-old learn cold facts such as the geographic location of Vietnam on a map and which they can regurgitate on command to the delight of their parents. Nevertheless, under those circumstances children do not make the connections between that piece of knowledge and their environment that are necessary to make it permanent. In other words, learning becomes dry and empty.

The assumption is that educating children earlier will increase their chances of being accepted in good schools where the competition is so fierce that quantity is now emphasized over quality during the admissions process. What they seem ignorant about is that play lays the foundation for subsequent learning; it allows the child to interact physically with the world and to manipulate it. That in turn titillates their imagination and expand their minds.

To make matters worse, recent research has linked early academic experiences with subsequent emotional and behavioral problems. More distrubing is the fact that since this type of instruction literally feeds children information instead of letting them discover it on their own, their brain may not develop to withstand life stresses and other frustrations thus making them more susceptible to anxiety disorders and depression later in life.

Our society is already slowly killing childhood, but now it is even attacking early childhood with the “baby einstein” trend. What is next, will we take away a baby’s cooing and babbling?

Jazzie

Living with Anxiety

Direct Instruction VS Play-based Instruction in preschool linked with subsequent emotional problems

Preschool as we know it is disappearing as more and more schools are adopting direct-instruction programs while leaving little to no room for playtime. As a result children as young as 5 year-old learn cold facts such as the geographic location of Vietnam on a map and which they can regurgitate on command to the delight of their parents. Nevertheless, under those circumstances children do not make the connections between that piece of knowledge and their environment that are necessary to make it permanent. In other words, learning becomes dry and empty.

The assumption is that educating children earlier will increase their chances of being accepted in good schools where the competition is so fierce that quantity is now emphasized over quality during the admissions process. What they seem ignorant about is that play lays the foundation for subsequent learning; it allows the child to interact physically with the world and to manipulate it. That in turn titillates their imagination and expand their minds.

To make matters worse, recent research has linked early academic experiences with subsequent emotional and behavioral problems. More distrubing is the fact that since this type of instruction literally feeds children information instead of letting them discover it on their own, their brain may not develop to withstand life stresses and other frustrations thus making them more susceptible to anxiety disorders and depression later in life.

Our society is already slowly killing childhood, but now it is even attacking early childhood with the “baby einstein” trend. What is next, will we take away a baby’s cooing and babbling?

Jazzie

Living with Anxiety

Happiness in a Box: Light Therapy to Combat The Winter Blues

For people suffering from the winter blues, a condition called Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), there is an easy and affordable remedy: Light Therapy.

Indeed, there is evidence that light therapy effectively reduces the symptoms of SAD in as short a time as a week with very few side effects. Patients generally sit in front of the light box for 30 to 45 minutes every morning while reading or doing other things as it is not required to look directly at the light (staring at the light is proscribed).

The premise behind light therapy is that during the winter months as daylight starts later, people suffering from SAD have difficulty being energized and cheering up, so they are in the grip of depressed moods and fatigue. Light is known to affect the Hypothalamus, which is a gland in the brain responsible for regulating mood, energy and appetite. In addition, light influences serotonin and norepinephrine (brain chemicals necessary to regulate mood) that are also found to be really low in depressed individuals. Therefore, exposure to light in the morning helps reset these systems and raise the mood.

Furthermore, light therapy is currently being investigated for the treatment of Depression, Sleep disorders, Bipolar disorder and a slew of other disorders.

The advantages are that light therapy does not require prescriptions and the box can be purchased online (about $200) or rented. The disadvantages are that it does not yet qualify for insurance reimbursement and that it may cause headaches and hypomania (overstimulation).

Your pick!

Jazzie _ Living with Anxiety

For more info visit the Society for Light Therapy at www.sltbr.org

Happiness in a Box: Light Therapy to Combat The Winter Blues

For people suffering from the winter blues, a condition called Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), there is an easy and affordable remedy: Light Therapy.

Indeed, there is evidence that light therapy effectively reduces the symptoms of SAD in as short a time as a week with very few side effects. Patients generally sit in front of the light box for 30 to 45 minutes every morning while reading or doing other things as it is not required to look directly at the light (staring at the light is proscribed).

The premise behind light therapy is that during the winter months as daylight starts later, people suffering from SAD have difficulty being energized and cheering up, so they are in the grip of depressed moods and fatigue. Light is known to affect the Hypothalamus, which is a gland in the brain responsible for regulating mood, energy and appetite. In addition, light influences serotonin and norepinephrine (brain chemicals necessary to regulate mood) that are also found to be really low in depressed individuals. Therefore, exposure to light in the morning helps reset these systems and raise the mood.

Furthermore, light therapy is currently being investigated for the treatment of Depression, Sleep disorders, Bipolar disorder and a slew of other disorders.

The advantages are that light therapy does not require prescriptions and the box can be purchased online (about $200) or rented. The disadvantages are that it does not yet qualify for insurance reimbursement and that it may cause headaches and hypomania (overstimulation).

Your pick!

Jazzie _ Living with Anxiety

For more info visit the Society for Light Therapy at www.sltbr.org

Low Calcium Levels can Make People Anxious

Low blood calcium, while rare, can cause severe physical problems like heart failure and osteoporosis, but it can also trigger psychological problems like anxiety and psychosis.

All muscles (including the heart muscle) require calcium to function, which is why it is the most carefully regulated element in the body. Vitamin D plays an important role in calcium regulation to the extent that vitamin D deficiency leads to calcium disregulation. So it is essential to have enough vitamin D, of which the primary source is the sun.

The telltale signs of calcium deficiency are swollen legs, hand twitching, and diffculty breathing as he lungs fill with fluid.

So if you are experiencing sudden anxiety and show those symptoms, take a blood test to check your calcium level.

Also,make sure you get plenty of sunshine!

 

Jazzie722

Living with Anxiety

Altering Frightening Memories: A Potential Treatment for PTSD

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is marked by debilitating anxiety triggered by traumatic memories. The individual becomes paralayzed with fear arisen by recollection of the traumatic event or by neutral events that are associated to the original trauma; for example a scent or a place can conjure up the traumatic memory.

Thus, it is the memory that triggers the anxiety and that is what researchers at NYU University are looking to alter. When people experience and learn something, it is immediately placed in short-term memory (temporary storage of information that will be used right away before being deleted, such as a phone number) where subsequently it will either be forgotten or be stored in long-term memory for future recall. According to the researchers every time a memory is recalled, it requires a process called consolidation to put it back into long-term memory and it is that mechanism that is targetted for the treatment of PTSD. In fact, the traumatic memory that is being recalled is then replaced with a more neutral memory, a process called reconsolidation. Interestingly, reconsolidation has only a 10-minute window of opportunity after wich time the memory can never be modified.

This method has not yet been applied to patients suffering from PTSD, but the results are so far very promising. 

Jazzie.

Living with Anxiety

Altering Frightening Memories: A Potential Treatment for PTSD

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is marked by debilitating anxiety triggered by traumatic memories. The individual becomes paralayzed with fear arisen by recollection of the traumatic event or by neutral events that are associated to the original trauma; for example a scent or a place can conjure up the traumatic memory.

Thus, it is the memory that triggers the anxiety and that is what researchers at NYU University are looking to alter. When people experience and learn something, it is immediately placed in short-term memory (temporary storage of information that will be used right away before being deleted, such as a phone number) where subsequently it will either be forgotten or be stored in long-term memory for future recall. According to the researchers every time a memory is recalled, it requires a process called consolidation to put it back into long-term memory and it is that mechanism that is targetted for the treatment of PTSD. In fact, the traumatic memory that is being recalled is then replaced with a more neutral memory, a process called reconsolidation. Interestingly, reconsolidation has only a 10-minute window of opportunity after wich time the memory can never be modified.

This method has not yet been applied to patients suffering from PTSD, but the results are so far very promising. 

Jazzie.

Living with Anxiety