Our online activity generates a wealth of data that may help with predicting and preventing mental health challenges before they unravel. This summer, Google rolled out a depression assessment tool, the PHQ-9, to US-based mobile users. The PHQ-9 [you can read a study on it here] is a standardized set of questions that’s commonly used […]
Yes. The answer is an unequivocal, irrefutable yes. We can see this in anecdotal personal experiences and in research. Let’s start with an anecdote and then we’ll explore some research and what it might mean for you on your own journey. In the past, I struggled with a bunch of different mental illness diagnoses. The […]
I don’t exercise for my mental health. I’m only able to exercise because I take care of my mental health. But I do find that exercising is great for practicing skills I can apply with mental health. Right now at the gym I go to we’re doing an Assault Bike tournament–first to 30 calories, best […]
I saw an article recently criticizing workplace mental health programs as nothing more than attempts to make people work harder and longer. That’s a valid criticism if a workplace or an individual is trying to use “stress relief” as an excuse to ignore the things they’re doing to cause that stress. But for me, that […]
There’s this old Buddhist story about a king that proposes a game to a group of monks. They must compete to identify an animal in a dark room. Whichever monk identifies the animal first will become the head monk at a temple the king is building. Eager to demonstrate their wisdom to the king, to […]
One thing I found key to recovery was preparing to walk away from the illness. After years of fighting, I didn’t know how to live without mental health problems to manage. My existence was just a reaction to controlling anxiety. I only knew how to feel good by first feeling bad and then controlling that […]
Researchers from the University of Buffalo have found that psychiatric drugs and their metabolized remnants are building up in the brains of fish species in the Great Lakes: Selective Uptake and Bioaccumulation of Antidepressants in Fish from Effluent-Impacted Niagara River Waste treatment facilities don’t remove chemicals like those found in psychiatric medications. This may sound harmless […]