Coming off antidepressants can be a significant decision. For some people, medication has been an important part of getting through depression, anxiety, trauma-related distress or a difficult period in life. Others may reach a point where they wonder whether they still need it, feel concerned about side effects, or want to understand their options. Deprescribing [...]
Being ghosted — when someone suddenly stops responding without explanation — can happen in dating, friendships, family relationships, workplaces and even professional settings. Although it may look from the outside like a small event, the emotional impact can be unexpectedly strong. Many people are left feeling confused, embarrassed, angry or preoccupied with what they might [...]
We talk a lot in this blog about the cyclical nature of depression and anxiety – how the way you feel controls the way you act, and the way you act then controls the way you feel. This cycle can easily spiral downwards when it comes to mental health because our emotions are intrinsically linked [...]
In New Zealand over recent years there has been a high-profile push to raise awareness of depression in men – by finding sportsmen and comedians and “good Kiwi blokes” to get the conversation started and help remove the stigma of male mental health issues. That’s not to say that there’s more men than women suffering [...]
When it comes to provoking an open and honest conversation about mental health – and more specifically, depression – few people are more successful worldwide than UK author, TV personality and actor Stephen Fry. As president of mental health charity, Mind, and as the author of numerous documentaries and autobiographies detailing his own battles with [...]
The influential American College of Physicians (ACP) has recommended that doctors should choose cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) to treat adults with major depressive disorder. Their guideline follows an exhaustive review of 25 years-worth of trials conducted between 1990 and 2015 into the treatment of a disorder which cost an estimated $US83.1 billion worldwide in 2000 [...]
Robert Street Clinic director Kyle MacDonald has launched a new weekly health column in the New Zealand Herald in a bid to further fight against the stigma associated with mental health and wellbeing in New Zealand. Already no stranger to Kiwi mainstream media – MacDonald is a regular commentator on mental health issues and funding, [...]
Depression treatment doesn’t always work – whether you’re using medication, counselling or therapy. In fact, up to two-thirds of people who suffer from depression won’t be helped by their initial antidepressant and between 12{7e66f01e68c52d858b59d425bd8f3886b02d30322136bee7d8e459b39be00af4} and 20{7e66f01e68c52d858b59d425bd8f3886b02d30322136bee7d8e459b39be00af4} of them won’t respond to a number of alternative methods of treatment. This persistent, chronic or treatment-resistant depression can [...]
When the Roman poet Juvenal wrote that mankind should wish only for “mens sana in corpore sano” (a healthy mind in a healthy body) rather than fame and fortune, he linked mental and physical wellbeing in a way which has become increasingly difficult to understand in our modern world. After all, we might see a [...]
Need that back pain to go away? Take a couple of these pills. Need help in the bedroom? Yes, there’s a simple little prescription for that too. Need your clothes whiter than white? You can even pop a tablet in your washing machine. Our quick fix society combined with pharmaceutical companies’ drive for profits have [...]
