How’s your Saturday going, sweet readers?
Swimmingly, I hope!
Whether you’re waking up with a cup of coffee (or tea), taking a break from the weekend, or just winding down, take some time to check out this week’s latest mental health news. We’ve got everything from how wandering minds affect our mental well-being to figuring out when self-help programs are actually helpful to the research that shows cats aren’t causing psychotic symptoms.
Why Mind Wandering Can Be So Miserable, According to Happiness Experts: Unless you’re super skilled at staying in the present moment, your mind tends to wander when you’re left alone with your thoughts, right? (Hey, maybe it sometimes does even if you are super skilled.) Anyway, scientists are taking a closer look at this “stimulus-independent thought” — which can range from daydreams to thinking about regrets — and how it affects our mental well-being.
Your Brain as Laboratory: The Science of Meditation: Does it make sense to think about meditation as…technology? Yes, according John Yates, who states how we use mental faculties in the “investigation of the mind is subject to modification that can increase or decrease the efficacy of this endeavor.”
Cat Ownership Not Linked to Mental Health Problems: Because cats host a common parasite called Toxoplasma Gondii (T. Gondii), which is linked to mental illnesses like schizophrenia, some earlier research suggested owning cats — especially having grown up with cats — might contribute to mental disorders; however, newer research from University College London has catnipped (sorry, bad pun) this theory in the bud, stating cat ownership isn’t related to psychotic symptoms.
Why Mental Illness Can Fuel Physical Disease: Being diagnosed with both a mental and a physical illness might seem like bad luck, or that a mental illness might lead to a physical illness (for example, if a depressed person doesn’t take his or her medicine regularly or do things like eat healthy and exercise, a physical health problem follows); however, scientists like Dr. David Gitlin says scientists are learning that’s not always the case. According to Gitlin, “These factors are certainly important, but there is also something physiological that’s happening.”
Demi Lovato Opens Up About Her Mental Health: ‘I’m Bipolar And Proud’: The 24-year-old singer has been vocal her mental health as well as mental health awareness (even partnering with Be Vocal: Speak Up for Mental Health in 2015), and now she’s appeared on “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” earlier this week to talk about her work on a new mental health documentary called “Beyond Silence.”
When Are Self-Help Programs “Helpful”? Some people find self-help programs useful as an addition to other professional services or even suitable all by themselves, but Harvard Medical School’s Assistant Professor of Psychiatry Srini Pillay, M.D. has a few suggestions on what to consider when you’re trying to choose the right self-help program for you.
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