psychological problems
Alternative treatments for mental disorders
In BC, doctors routinely prescribe medications for people with depression, anxiety disorders and other mental disorders. But the widespread use of medications doesn't mean that drugs are the only option for treating mental illness."We encourage people w...read more
Autism: some information
Autism (sometimes called “classical autism”) is the most common condition in a group of developmental disorders known as the autism spectrum disorders (ASDs). Autism is characterized by three distinctive behaviors. Autistic children have diffic...read more
Children's mental health: feeding the next generation
Dr Neil Ward from the Department of Chemistry at Surrey University explained the influence that toxins and heavy metals can have on childrens’ behaviour.His researches suggest that in ADHD children low levels of zinc, ...read more
Children, youth and mental disorders
Though Canada prides itself on its universal health care system, mental health services for children and youth are not keeping pace with the high rates of depression, suicide, eating disorders, schizophrenia and other mental illnesses in young Canadians.A 20...read more
Clinical depression: you can do something about it
What is clinical depression? Clinical depression is a treatable illness that can strike anyone at any age. It can be caused by one or a combination of triggers including biological factors, genetics, difficult life events, negative thinking patterns, physical health problem...read more
Dealing with depression
Depression is the result of living your life in a way that we are simply not designed to live it, there are a number of ways that the body can be put under both physical and psychological stress. Eventually – and this is the key to understanding depres...read more
Depressed mood or depression ?
Depressed mood v depression Everyone goes through tough times and feels down or sad. The term depression is sometimes used to describe the normal sadness or low mood people feel if they've had to cope with a stressful event or problem, such as the death of a loved one or a...read more
Depression during and after pregnancy
As many as one in four women will suffer from depression throughout their lifetime, and often will experience it during the childbearing years. Depression is one of the most common complications during and after pregnancy. Pregnant women were once considered...read more
Getting support for your problems
Counselling Counselling takes place when a counsellor sees you in a private and confidential setting to explore a difficulty you are having or distress you may be experiencing. No one can properly be 'sent' for counselling, as you have to want to be a part of it. Counsellin...read more
Getting the most from your counsellor
What is counselling? The feelings you experience as you go through your caring journey can be some of the most confusing and overwhelming you will ever encounter. Medical health staff such as your GP should be able to help with the majority of practical issues relating to t...read more
Homesickness, what might help?
What is homesickness? Most people will have felt homesick at some time in their lives, perhaps when they were younger, and it is easy to forget just how overwhelming it can be. Beginning life at university naturally generates both excitement and anxiety about the move, acad...read more
How to cope with suicidal thoughts and feelings
The ultimate tragedy of mood disorders is suicide. Suicide is a double disaster. Not only does it prematurely end a life, it wreaks havoc on the lives of those left behind. Devastated survivors can be traumatized by feelings of grief, guilt, anger, resentment, and confusion....read more
How to help yourself when you're depressed?
There are some things you can try which have been shown to help lift a depressed mood. These involve changing your behaviour and challenging your negative thoughts. Changing behaviour People who are depressed often stop doing pleasurable activities...read more
Manic depression aka bipolar disorder
What is bipolar disorder? Bipolardisorder, previously known as manic-depression, is a mood disorder characterized by exaggerated mood swings. Bipolar means two poles or extremes and if you have bipolar disorder you are likely to have extre...read more
Mental-emotional imbalances
This is a huge subject and I am not planning on covering everything here. I am going to give an outline of the role acupuncture can have in the treatment of mental & emotional imbalances.Within Chinese medicine, the different organs have different emotio...read more
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
People with obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) suffer intensely from recurrent (happens over and over) and unwanted thoughts (obsessions) or rituals (compulsions), which they feel they cannot control. Rituals such as hand washing, counting,...read more
Post-natal depression: some information
Post-natal depression is a serious and common disorder that occurs some weeks after delivery and may last for many months. It occurs in at least 15% of women and frequently goes unrecognised because women frequently regard this degree of depression and exhaustion as the norm...read more
Postnatal depression: help yourself
The most important thing you can do for yourself is believe that you will get better. Be patient with yourself and remember that you will recover completely. This is a phase like so many others in life. Family and friends Research has shown that talking to people about the way you feel can...read more
Self injury as a result of being powerless
Most of us act at some time in a way that is harmful to our body whether it be by drinking, smoking or other excesses. This leaflet is about the need to inflict injury on oneself in a more deliberate way such as cutting, burning, stabbing, scratching, hair pulling and bruisi...read more
Self-esteem is an opinion not a fact
The way we view and feel about ourselves has a profound effect on how we live our lives. These opinions are shaped by experiences in the family, at school, from friendships and in wider society. Self-esteem involves our ability to think, to deal with life and to be happy. T...read more
Three different types of depression
There are different types of depression, each of them have their own symptoms, causes and treatments. Non-melancholic depression Non-melancholic depression (also called major or clinical depression) is the most common type of depression an...read more
Understanding depression
Depression is a disturbance in mood characterised by varying degrees of sadness, disappointment, loneliness, hopelessness, self-doubt and guilt. Most people tend to feel depressed at one time or another, but some people may experience these feelings more frequently or with ...read more
What causes depression?
Depression is a complex, multi-faceted, multi-dimensional disorder. Just as there is no single cause of cancer, neither is there a single cause of depression. Depression, like the trunk of a tree, has many roots. Some of these include: Ge...read more
What is a phobia?
A phobia is a mainly irrational fear of something. It is not an illness. It is not a mental disorder. Nor is it a lack of will-power, or 'moral fibre', or determination.A phobia can make one's life miserable, cause embarrassment, and undermine self confidence and self esteem.However you do n...read more
What is postnatal depression?
Postnatal depression is very common and so are the amount of mothers who suffer in silence with this terrible illness. Many suffer alone because it is not well recognized or just classified as The baby blues. There are three classifications of depression th...read more
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