Depression blogger Therese Borchard writes: “Even with its gorgeous foliage and festivities, autumn triggers anxiety and depression for many people. The shorter days and lack of sunlight affect our circadian rhythms; we feel the stress of upcoming holidays, and the claustrophobia of winter is lurking around the corner. Mother Nature, fortunately, has done her part in providing many foods and spices during this season that can aid our sanity. From enjoying some freshly picked apples to munching on some dry pumpkin seeds, autumn is full of good mood foods that can help us to enjoy the season.” Read the rest of the blog.
8 Fall Foods That Boost Our Mood
The Fascinating Link Between Eating Full-fat Yogurt and a Lower Risk of Depression
A new study found that women who ate a serving a day were 34% less likely to become depressed than women who ate less than half a serving a week. Read the story.
Will Meditation Help Stressed-out Lawyers?
Western cognitive psychologist John Paul Minda is collaborating with San Francisco-based lawyer and author Jenna Cho on a project designed to investigate the relationship between mindfulness training and the well-being of attorneys. “We’re hoping to uncover whether or not there are specific things in relation to lawyers,” said Minda, a member of the Brain and Mind Institute. “The specific kinds of stress attorneys deal with is something research really hasn’t done. We just don’t know because this is a relatively new venture. This is definitely exploratory work which will allow us to generate a more specific and targeted hypothesis.” Read the rest of the story.
Lawyers: Find Freedom From Anger, Anxiety, and Stress
Dr. Rebecca Nerison, a psychologist and author of the ABA Web Store bestseller “Lawyers, Anger and Anxiety: Dealing with the Stresses of the Legal Profession,” says that the accumulated pressures have damaging effects if left unchecked. In this interview, she offers some practical tips for managing stress and developing the resilience to bounce back from stressful events. Read the this article.
Success Syndrome: The Ambition-Depression Connection
“I’m trying to get comfortable with the idea that I am a human BEING not DOING, and that being a child of God is enough. With therapy and lots of soul searching, I am digging inside for the strength that lies at my core — naked, unassociated with any accolade or achievement,” writes Therese Borchard. Read her Blog
10 Ways Our Thinking Can Fuel Depression and Anxiety
Psychologist Elvira Aletta writes, “Right now, you and I can see clearly how those thoughts are exaggerated, over-the-top, unreasonable. It’s not so easy to see when we are caught up in the moment. Luckily, to make this task easier for us, Dr David Burns did a lot of work categorizing ten basic ways we distort our thinking. Study these categories. Highlight the ones you tend to use. Think of your own real life examples”. Read her Blog
How Exercise May Help the Brain Grow Stronger
The New York Times reports that a new study with mice fills in one piece of that puzzle. It shows that, in rodents at least, strenuous exercise seems to beneficially change how certain genes work inside the brain. Though the study was in mice, and not people, there are encouraging hints that similar things may be going on inside our own skulls. Read the News
Two in Five Formerly Depressed Adults are Happy, Flourishing
A new study reports that approximately two in five adults (39%) who have experienced major depression are able to achieve complete mental health. “This research provides a hopeful message to patients struggling with depression, their families and health professionals. A large number of formerly depressed individuals recover and go on to reach optimal well-being” said Esme Fuller-Thomson, lead author of the study. Read the News
What’s Up? Gratitude and Depression
When first squashed by clinical depression years ago, some told me to think of all the things I had to be thankful for – as if this would cure my “blues.”
But I didn’t have the blues. I didn’t just feel “sad.” I had an illness. I had entered a long, dark tunnel. I didn’t see a glimmer of light at the end of it. I wandered in it for years before things got better. At some point, I saw an end, of sorts, in sight. I exited that tunnel and felt the warming sun of life reinvigorating my body. I knew I was going to be okay.
It was only after having exiting the tunnel that I was capable of even thinking about gratitude. But now it’s an important part of my “Depression Toolkit”: things I do to keep what sufferer Winston Churchill called “the black dog” at bay.
Listen to the podcast of my interview with Rabbi Mark Gellman
How Faith Helps Depression
Blogger Therese Borchard writes, “A substantial amount of research points to the benefits of faith to mitigate symptoms of depression. In one study, for example, researchers at McLean Hospital in Belmont, Massachusetts, found that belief in God was associated with better treatment outcomes. Of all my sanity tools, my faith is what has kept me alive during severe depressive episodes. When I’m convinced that no one else could comprehend the intense suffering I’m experiencing, I cling to my belief in a God who created me for a reason, who knows my pain more intimately than any other human being, and who will see me through to the other side.” Read the Blog
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