GreenKa Weblog

The latest in the series of Courage to Care fact sheets targeted to support our nation’s military service members and their families are now available on the web. Suicide Facts for Primary Care Providers: Helping Service Members and Families Overcome Barriers to Care"; "Suicide Facts: What Military Families Should Know to Help Loved Ones Who May Be at Risk"; and, "Health Literacy: Addressing Continue Reading »

Before flying off the handle the next time someone cuts you off in traffic, consider the latest research from Yale School of Medicine researchers that links changes brought on by anger or other strong emotions to future arrhythmias and sudden cardiac arrests, which are blamed for 400,000 deaths annually.
The study - led by Rachel Lampert, M.D., associate professor of Continue Reading »

A new report by psychologists at the University of Leicester warns of the dangers of jurors facing trauma because of their exposure to harrowing and gruesome evidence. In the first study of its kind, the research highlights how women jurors are more vulnerable, particularly if the trial covers material that resonates with their personal histories.
The research confirms that jury service, particularly for crimes against people, can cause significant anxiety, Continue Reading »

More funding to help improve the emergency centres that help victims of sexual assault, was announced by Health Minister Ann Keen today. The National Support Team on Response to Sexual Violence will receive a ??1.4 million funding boost to improve Sexual Assault Referral Centres (SARCs) across England that provide support for the victims of sexual violence.
SARCs offer victims of sexual offences an integrated Continue Reading »

The recovery of some stroke victims, those who suffer brain haemorrhage, could be vastly improved if they were tested and treated for post-traumatic stress disorder, a distressing psychological condition more commonly known to affect soldiers who have fought in war zones.
A study of over 100 brain haemorrhage survivors, led by Durham University and funded by the Clarke Lister Brain Haemorrhage Foundation, Continue Reading »

As of September 30, 2008 over 200,000 women were serving on active duty in the U.S. military. While women are technically barred from serving in combat they are serving in support positions in combat areas in greater numbers. This new role for women in the military brings with it new physical and mental health concerns, namely post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) for those exposed to combat-related trauma.
According Continue Reading »

While science tries to understand the stuff dreams are made of, humans, from cultures all over the world, continue to believe that dreams contain important hidden truths, according to newly published research.
In six different studies, researchers surveyed nearly 1,100 people about their dreams. "Psychologists’ interpretations of the meaning of dreams vary widely," said Carey Morewedge, an assistant professor at Carnegie Mellon University and the study’s Continue Reading »

A generic beta-blocker normally used to control blood pressure could one day be used to treat anxiety and phobia by erasing bad memories,
according to a new Dutch study.
The research was the work of Dr Merel Kindt, a professor in the Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences - Clinical Psychology at the University of
Amsterdam and other colleagues from the university and was published in the advanced Continue Reading »

The Institute of Race Relations has published a new report on the devastating impact on family life of Britain’s anti-terrorist control order and detention policy. The report, entitled ‘Besieged in Britain’, has been written by journalist and author Victoria Brittain, co-author with Moazzam Begg of Enemy Combatant: a British Continue Reading »

Many people will be psychological victims of the fires sweeping through south-eastern Australia as much as physical or economic victims, warns the Australian Psychological Society (APS).
"During and immediately after a disaster of this magnitude the focus is understandably on sheer survival and rescue," says Professor Bob Montgomery, President of the APS. "But soon after, most people will naturally show signs of distress. At Continue Reading »

A PhD thesis defended at the University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU) has investigated the relationship between adolescents’ perception of their physical qualities and their psychological well-being and unwellness.
Self-concept may be defined as the totality of perceptions that each person has of themselves, and this self identity plays an important role in the psychological functioning of everyone. Continue Reading »

"Association Between Anxiety and Smoking in a Sample of Urban Black Men," Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health: Bradley Collins and Stephen Lepore of Temple University’s Health Behavior Research Center examined the relationship between self-reported smoking status and anxiety among 430 black, middle-aged men Continue Reading »

Post-Christmas blues, freezing weather and the long wait until summer means today (Monday 2 February) is statistically the worst day for absenteeism. But this year’s recession woes may make today’s annual National Sickie Day the worst yet, according to research from Friends Provident.
Compared to three years ago - Continue Reading »

Teenagers who smoke could be setting themselves up for depression later in life, according to a groundbreaking new Florida State University study.
Psychology Professor Carlos Bolanos and a team of researchers found that nicotine given to adolescent rats induced a depression-like state characterized by a lack Continue Reading »

A groundbreaking new study by researchers in the US suggests that teenagers who smoke could be setting themselves up to become depressed
adults.
Published pre-press as an early on line issue last month in the journal Neuropsychopharmacology, the research was the work of Florida State
University Psychology Professor Carlos A Bola?±os-Guzm??n and colleagues.
In Continue Reading »

generic lasix online buy Materialistic people tend to form strong connections to particular product brands when their level of anxiety about death is high, according to a new study in the Journal of Consumer Research.
Authors Aric Rindfleisch (University of Wisconsin-Madison and Korea University), James E. Burroughs (University of Virginia), Continue Reading »

Many of the 40 million American adults who suffer from anxiety disorders also have problems with balance. As increasing numbers of children are diagnosed with anxiety, Tel Aviv University researchers have discovered that the link between balance and anxiety can be assessed at an early age and that something can be done about it before it becomes a problem.
Dr. Orit Bart at Tel Aviv University’s Continue Reading »

Preliminary research suggests that use of the drug escitalopram provided some improvement in symptoms for older adults with generalized anxiety disorder, although the overall benefits were diminished because of nonadherence to the drug by some patients, according to a study in the January 21 issue of JAMA.
Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), one of the most Continue Reading »

A new study shows that people who are socially active and not easily stressed may be less likely to develop dementia. The research is published in the January 20, 2009, print issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.
The study involves 506 older people who did not have dementia when first examined. The group was given questionnaires about their personality Continue Reading »

High caffeine consumption could be linked to a greater tendency to hallucinate, a new research study suggests.
People with a higher caffeine intake, from sources such as coffee, tea and caffeinated energy drinks, are more likely to report hallucinatory experiences such as hearing voices and seeing things that are not there, according to the Durham University study.
‘High caffeine users’ - those who consumed more than the equivalent of seven cups of instant Continue Reading »

Playing ‘Tetris’ after traumatic events could reduce the flashbacks experienced in post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), preliminary research by
Oxford University psychologists suggests.
If this early-stage work continues to show promise, it could inform new clinical interventions for use immediately after trauma to prevent or lessen
the flashbacks that are the hallmark Continue Reading »

Childhood trauma is a potent risk factor for development of chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS), according to a study by researchers at Emory University School of Medicine and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The study is published in the Jan. 5, 2009Archives of General Psychiatry.
Results of the study confirm that childhood trauma, Continue Reading »

A network of emotion-regulating brain regions implicated in the pathological worry that can grip patients with anxiety disorders may also be useful for predicting the benefits of treatment.
A new study appearing online Jan. 2 reports that high levels of brain activity in an emotional center called the amygdala reflect patients’ hypersensitivity to anticipation Continue Reading »

Contact with nature has long been suspected to increase positive feelings, reduce stress, and provide distraction from the pain associated with recovery from surgery. Now, research has confirmed the beneficial effects of plants and flowers for patients recovering from abdominal surgery.
A recent study by Seong-Hyun Park and Richard H. Mattson, researchers from the Department of Horticulture, Recreation and Forestry at Kansas Continue Reading »

Anxiety disorders in children and adolescents should be recognized and treated to prevent educational underachievement and adult substance abuse, anxiety disorders and depression, says a nationally recognized child psychiatrist from UT Southwestern Medical Center.
In an editorial appearing in the Dec. 25 issue of New England Continue Reading »