The Saybrook Forum

Heartache HURTS! Science catches up with a thousand sad songs to prove it

“The blues aint nothin' but a pain in your heart” Billie Holiday Lady Sings the Blues

She was right – and science has now caught up with a million songs of rejection to prove that love hurts. 

40 people graciously volunteered to share their pain for an experiment conducted by social psychologist Ethan Kross, the lead author of an article to be published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

All the volunteers shared a common story, they were broken hearted and had experienced this loss within the past six months.  Even thinking about the break up would bring about intense feelings of rejection. A very sad group.

Previous research had shown that yes, that there is an area of our brains that activates when we are in deep emotional pain. Physical pain and social rejection show up here as well. These researchers wanted to find out if there was a connection or neural overlap between emotional and physical pain.

Women over 40 get eating disorders too; they just don't get treated very much

Do you ever outgrow eating disorders?  Do seniors and people later in life even develop them?

The answer is yes - but a lot of people don’t believe it.  Despite research and a mountain of anecdotal evidence suggesting that women over 40 are just as interested in their body images as younger women, plenty of people assume no older woman can develop an eating disorder. 

A research study looked at 48 published studies of eating disorders in people over the age of 50. They found that 88% of the cases were female, 81% had anorexia nervosa, and 10% had bulimia nervosa.

The New York Times recently featured an woman who suffered from anorexia until her 40s.  She’s recovered and at the 58 she is telling her story of healing. It's a stark narrative that is present in her story, that despite having all of the symptoms no one said anything to her. She was praised for her focus on exercise and eating “right.” Friends and family thought she looked great. They believed that she was successful, when in reality she was in pain.

Her story is supported by a small research study published in 2010 that looked at 32 patients over the age of 50 that were being treated at a national eating disorder clinic. The found that many of the patients had a history of eating disorders and that at the time of treatment they were in relapse.

For women both old and young, the signs of anorexia are still the same:

Depression rates in men are going to rise - and we're not handling it well

For some of us depression is a hard subject to talk about with others. It has been described as the “Dark Night of the Soul”. But that darkness is certainly not a place that anyone would want to spend their lives, let alone spend that time alone without anyone else knowing or helping.

In an editorial published in the March 2011 issue of the British Journal of Psychiatry, Boadie Dunlap wrote that the rates for depression in men will increase. Why? Men are under the shadow of long term unemployment and recovering from the violence of war. Much like their fathers, they are confronted with their own sadness, grief and pain as a result of dealing with these struggles. But unlike their fathers, they have access to services, treatments and support for their depression.

Yet even with all of the education, outreach and support, many men are facing depression alone. Why?

Deceptive advertising, unethical research practices, "brain shrinkage" -- have we had enough of Big Pharmacy yet?

BigPharma hasn’t admitted doing anything wrong – but their mask got pulled off all the same this month.

Drug company AstraZeneca agreed to settle lawsuits brought by 37 states – effectively they’re paying $67.5 million to avoid having to go to court and defend themselves against charges that their marketing was deceptive and their research practices unethical. 

The lawsuits centered around AstraZeneca’s illegal business practices with the antipsychotic medication Seroquel:  the company marked the drug for conditions including depression and anxiety, both of which were used it was not approved for by the FDA.  Further, AstraZeneca failed to publicize three studies showing mixed results on the effectiveness of Seroquel overall. 

It is not the first time a major drug company has been rightly accused of such wrong doing (AstraZeneca alone agreed to a $520 million settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice last year) and it won’t be the last. 

In fact, the lawsuit comes in the backdrop of

• Research that proves the efficacy of psychotherapy without psychotropic medications for folks with schizophrenia
• dramatic increases in physician’s prescribing patterns (estimates suggest that twenty-five percent of patients in nursing homes have been prescribed antipsychotic medications!)
• disturbing “off label” uses of antipsychotic medications—all with perilous and anti-human side effects.

For many who walk into their doctor’s office, brain shrinkage and weight gain were not on their “to do” list for the day. Recent research proves that in a few years time these side effects become the reality for many who fall for the hidden research and deceptive Big Pharma tactics. Clearly, you are not the “patient” with an issue to them – you are a client with a bank account at your local pharmacy, a number with a money sign.

See for yourself.  Here’s the research, you be the judge. 

Say hello to "sidewalk rage," a very real condition that's a symptom of the modern addiction to speed and anger

Ladies and gentlemen, our culture has created a new kind of “mental illness” to suffer through.

A recent article in The Wall Street Journal highlights the modern form of road rage with a twist – sidewalk rage. It’s being comically called “Pedestrian Aggressive Syndrome,” and likely is in a city near you.

In Lower Manhattan, the capital of “side walk rage,” people average 4.27 feet per second. If you cannot keep up with this unwritten rule of how fast to move your legs you’re at risk for the rage and hostility of the fast walkers around you.

Quite literally, we are becoming a people addicted to anger and speed.  You probably didn't need a mental health professional to tell you that.  You've probably felt it in your own life. 

There’s more. Not only do people walk fast, they multitask even faster...

1)    Nicotine lovers walk 4.17 feet per second

2)    Cell phone junkies walk 4.20 feet per second

3)    Ipod addicts walk 4.64 feet per second.

 

Don't think these are harmless statistics: the fury associated with sidewalk rage and society’s increased levels of aggression is being connected to the well known psychiatric disorder, Intermittent Explosive Disorder. The DSM-IV defines the disorder as the following: 

Getting through the day isn't good enough: we know what it takes to help kids thrive

It’s one thing to live, it’s another to thrive.  We know the difference, but do the institutions we put our kids through?

There is an emerging field of study that focuses on what helps youth thrive rather than wither.

A research study published in the Journal of Youth and Adolescence looked at the role a child’s passions and interests or “sparks,” relationships and personal empowerment played in their well being and how this helped them to thrive.

What does it mean to thrive? The researchers described as such “…thriving persons are nurtured by their contexts and also make positive contributions to those contexts.” 

Their study included a national sample of 1,817 youth age 15 years, of this group 49% identified female; 56% were white, 17% Hispanic/Latino and 17% African American. The youth answered an online survey that asked questions about their talents, interests, hobbies, relationships, level of participation in community activities, self-efficacy and empowerment.

Their research conclusions found that youth who had high levels of sparks, opportunities for positive relationships, and empowerment were more likely to be leaders, value helping others and working for social justice in their communities. Even those who showed only two of the three strengths were more likely to volunteer weekly.

You always want a therapist who’s more interested in what you have to say than in what drugs you take

When it was published nearly 50 years ago, Carl Rogers’ work Client-Centered Therapy inspired a generation of therapists and transformed psychology. 

It has remained relevant all this time, but over the years some – especially those who advocate replacing therapists with anti-depressants – have suggested that Rogers was too idealistic. Putting the patients humanity at the heart of therapy might sound nice, but it isn’t as effective as pharmacology or neurology at the hard headed business of getting clients in, out, and on with their lives.

Well, today new research is proving that Rogers was right.  A client-centered, humanistic, approach to psychology is effective, affirming … and has no side-effects. 

If you’re looking at the therapist, it’s not just common sense to find one who puts you at the center of your therapy – it’s established best practice.

The newest research comes from Barry Farber and Erin Doolin of Columbia University, who meta-analyzed positive regard and affirmation in the context of Carl Roger’s Client Centered Therapy.

Forget grades: Bad schools are hazardous to kids' mental health

What schools need to succeed is a hot debate – but we all know that a school that doesn’t have what it needs will fail.  

What we don’t know, what we’re just beginning to ask, is:  what impact does a failing school have on a child’s mental health? 

A recent study published in the March issue of the Journal of Health and Social Behavior, looked at how lack of resources in the classroom impacts mental health. Researches found that children who attended schools that did not have the resources for supplies or for their teachers to focus on teaching, were more likely to have mental health problems.

The study used a representative sample of 10,700 first graders. Their teachers and parents were interviewed as a part of the study.

They found five aspects of the classroom that they believe impacts a child’s learning and sense of safety in a classroom.  They are:

Sleeping is an essential life skill: here's how you can improve

Likely you are one of millions of Americans who dread the sound of your morning alarm clock. The electronic rooster goes off early for too many – who fell asleep too late – and did not stay asleep for too long. As a result we fill our abdomens with espresso and Red Bull, and the circles under eyes become ever-darker.

Even our metaphors for sleep aren’t working:  “sleep like a baby”?  Come on:  how many babies are known for getting a good night’s sleep?

Recently a published study in the Journal of Sleep Medicine dispelled the age old myth of one-size-fits all sleep patterns, while emphasizing the importance of sleeping well. While more research to validate the findings is needed, the research suggests that shorter than 6.5 hours and or longer than 7.5 hours of sleep leaves people at risk for early or increased risk of mortality.

Most of us need better rest, and it is within our power to get it.   A recent article in Prevention Magazine gives us a sneak peak of how to improve this important facet of our busy lives...

Savoring food can reduce stress eating - and lead to weight loss

Chances are you are like millions of American-- eat more, not less-- when stressed. Stress increases cortisol. Cortisol increases appetite. And we all know:  the cookie jar, noisy chip bags, and drive thrus seem to be inevitable consequences once the cortisol levels start raging in your body.

Or are they so inevitable? 

Stress eaters, meet Cognitive Behavioral Mindfulness. It takes best of humanism and the best of cognitive behavioral psychology and applies them to your eating habits, today, in the midst of the immense stress and frenzy of life.

Released earlier this month, the landmark book, Savor Mindful Eating, Mindful Life looks at exactly this—the relationship between food and stress—and how mindfulness can rescue you. World renowned Buddhist leader Thich Nhat Hahn and medical doctor Lilian Cheung speak to nutrition, food, dieting, and how the psychotherapeutic and spiritual practice of mindfulness can save you from countless extra pounds, unsatisfied yearnings and the devastating physical effects of stress.

The foundation of the book rests on the following assumptions regarding food consumption:

The Seven Practices of Mindful Eating: